China boosts offshore wind capacity to speed up low-carbon transition

The country’s total wind power installed capacity hit 650 million kW at the end of February 2026—up by 22.8 per cent year on year (YoY), data from the National Energy Administration show.

China is developing several advanced offshore wind projects, fast-tracking its energy transition.
Its cumulative offshore wind installed capacity has surpassed 47 million kW, leading the world for five consecutive years.
China is now shifting its focus to deeper, more distant waters.
It has also developed a robust, clustered offshore wind industrial supply chain, with key hubs in coastal provinces.

Its cumulative offshore wind installed capacity has surpassed 47 million kW, leading the world for five consecutive years.

Generally, projects with water depths exceeding 50 metres are categorised as deep-sea offshore wind, and those over 65 kilometres from the shore as far-offshore wind.

China is now shifting its focus to deeper, more distant waters, where winds are stronger and more stable, but pose greater operational challenges.

In south China’s Guangdong Province, a major offshore wind farm project developed by China Huadian Corporation, situated off the coast of Yangjiang City, has started full-scale construction.

Located up to 89 km offshore, it will generate 1.6 billion kWh of clean power annually and reduce carbon emissions by 1.26 million tonnes upon completion, a state-controlled media outlet reported.

Meanwhile, in east China’s Shandong Province, the country’s deepest operational offshore wind farm has achieved full grid connection. The 504,000-kW project, developed by China Huaneng Group, operates in waters ranging from 52 to 56 metres deep, approximately 70 km offshore.

In south China’s Hainan Province, a pilot wind project has also commissioned its first grid-connected turbines, which are expected to generate 150 million kWh of clean power per year.

China has also developed a robust, clustered offshore wind industrial supply chain, with key hubs in coastal provinces like Guangdong, Jiangsu, Shandong and Fujian, covering turbine manufacturing, auxiliary equipment, construction and installation, and operation and maintenance services.

In Shantou, Guangdong Province, local authorities are exploring diversified utilisation models for offshore wind to build a world-class high-end offshore wind equipment cluster.

Key components for wind turbines, including generators, gearboxes, and bearings, are produced and assembled seamlessly within the industrial cluster, reducing long-distance transportation costs and the risk of damage.

The city also boasts a key offshore wind innovation hub, equipped with a training centre and an advanced wind turbine testing platform, which provides professional technical support and performance testing services for the global offshore wind industry.

In Yancheng, east China’s Jiangsu Province, China’s largest offshore wind industrial cluster has taken shape, with a complete supply chain. Its total wind turbine production capacity accounts for over 40 per cent of the national total, and blade production accounts for about 20 per cent of the country’s output.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), China aims at further developing large-scale offshore wind bases across the Bohai Sea, the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, and steadily scale up deep-sea wind development.

The country targets over 100 million kW of cumulative offshore wind capacity by 2030.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)