Jinshan Offshore Wind Farm Phase I

The construction of the Jinshan Offshore Wind Farm Phase I - the first project of its kind - has now seen all 36 turbines installed, marking a breakthrough for the project and lays a solid foundation for its full-capacity grid connection by the end of the year, according to Shanghai local media outlet thepaper.cn.

The wind farm is the first competitive offshore wind power project in China with a price lower than the benchmark coal price. It consists of 36 turbines, each with a nameplate capacity of 8.5 megawatts, and is the largest single offshore wind power project in Shanghai, the report said.

The project's offshore substation was installed on April 26 this year. Work is in progress on 36 planned circuits of 35 kilovolt submarine cables and 23.7 kilometers of 220 kilovolt submarine cables. As of August 8, 28 circuits had been laid, and 4.42 kilometers of 220 kilovolt cables from the booster station to the onshore grid had been completed, according to the report. 

To ensure the smooth progress of the wind farm, the Jinshan Maritime Safety Administration has actively coordinated with the project owners and developers, implementing multiple regulatory and service measures for both pre-construction and ongoing supervision, the report said.

The Jinshan Offshore Wind Farm Phase I, located 19.5 kilometers from the coast with a planned installed capacity of 300 megawatts, covers an area of 42.64 square kilometers. Its auctioned on-grid electricity price was set at below the benchmark price of coal-fired power in the city, according to a circular on the local government's website.

"After entering into service, the project will contribute to the local power supply. More importantly, it represents a step forward for the development of China's offshore wind power," Lin Boqiang, director of the China Center for Energy Economics Research at Xiamen University, told the Global Times on Sunday.

Lin said that offshore wind power has significant growth potential, leveraging vast ocean areas and abundant wind resources to overcome land limitations and provide a new platform for power generation.

As a global leader in renewable energy, China added 79.82 million kilowatts of new wind power capacity in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 6 percent. This included 75.79 million kilowatts from onshore wind and 4.04 million kilowatts from offshore wind, according to a National Energy Administration report released in January.

Global Times