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China starts producing power from ‘world’s largest open-sea’ solar project
China’s state-owned CHN Energy has brought online the first units in its 1 GW solar PV project offshore of Kenli District, in east China’s Shandong Province.The project is claimed to be the first and largest of its kind in the world, and is being developed by CHN Energy subsidiary Guohua Energy Investment Company.
Located 8 km offshore the city of Dongying, the solar farm covers some 1,223 hectares and comprises 2,934 solar PV panels installed using large-scale steel truss platform, fixed-pile foundations. Each platform measures 60 metres in length and 35 metres in width.
According to CHN Energy, the project marks the first time in China that a 66-kV offshore cable paired with an onshore cable has been used for high-capacity, long-distance transmission in the PV sector.
Installation of a single platform at the project site
Photo: CHN Energy
Once fully commissioned the solar farm is expected to generate 1.78bn kW/y of power, enough to meet the needs of approximately 2.67 million urban residents in China, says CHN Energy. The company also reports that this is equivalent to saving some 503,800 tonnes of standard coal and reducing CO2 emissions by 1.3447mn tonnes.
The project employs an integrated fishing and PV model, combining fish farming with solar power generation to maximise marine area use.
According to the Energy Institute’s 2024 Statistical Review of World Energy, solar power capacity in China increased by 55% in 2023 to nearly 610 GW, while wind power installed capacity rose by nearly 21%, to nearly 442 GW, compared with 2022.
The Chinese government has committed to build 1,200 GW of renewables capacity by 2030. It is planning to achieve peak emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
