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China’s largest onshore wind-power facility started full-capacity operations in the northern Inner Mongolia autonomous region on Sunday, according to its operator, state-owned China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGNPC).

With a capacity of 3 gigawatts (GW), the project’s 701 turbines can generate more than 10 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, according to the company. This is equivalent to cutting standard coal consumption by about 2.96 million metric tonnes and avoiding around 8.02 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

The project, which started construction in 2020, is also the first in a batch of renewable energy projects targeted for the desert region, according to state news agency Xinhua.

China is the world’s largest wind power producer, adding 40GW of net capacity in 2022, more than half of the 77.6GW added worldwide in the same time frame, according to the International Energy Agency. Onshore installations accounted for 68.8GW of the capacity added worldwide last year, with China contributing 52 per cent of that.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has set a target of bringing China’s total wind and solar capacity to at least 1,200GW by 2030, the year China plans to peak its carbon emissions.

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BOEM developed a preferred alternative that includes fewer turbines (84 WTGs) to accommodate geotechnical feasibility of the project.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has completed its environmental review of the proposed Sunrise Wind energy project, which is located approximately 16.4 nautical miles south of Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., approximately 26.5 nm east of Montauk, N.Y., and 14.5 nm from Block Island, R.I.

BOEM estimates the proposed 924-megawatt project will power more than 320,000 homes with clean, renewable energy.  

"We carefully considered input from our government partners, key stakeholders and the public for the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for Sunrise Wind,” said BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein.

The project plan submitted by Sunrise Wind includes up to 94 wind turbine generators and their associated export cables. The onshore export cables, substation, and grid connection is located in Holbrook, N.Y. The lease area covers approximately 86,823 acres.

In response to comments from government partners, key stakeholders, and the public, and after considering project feasibility, BOEM developed a preferred alternative that includes fewer turbines (84 WTGs) to accommodate geotechnical feasibility of the project, reduce impacts to benthic habitat and Atlantic cod, and meet the energy needs of New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

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A €4.12 billion (£3.5bn) French scheme to support the rollout of offshore wind energy has been granted approval by the European Commission.

The state aid will support the construction of two floating offshore wind farms in the Gulf of Lion and will run for 20 years.

Each wind farm is expected to have a capacity of 230MW to 280MW and generate around 1.1TWh of renewable electricity per year.

The measure will be open to two beneficiaries, to be designated in 2024 and selected through a bidding process.

The aid will take the form of a monthly variable premium, under a two-way contract for difference (CfD).

Commissioner Didier Reynders, in charge of competition policy said: “This €4,12 billion scheme will allow France to accelerate the deployment of renewable offshore wind capacities, in line with the EU’s Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy.

“The scheme will also help France reduce its dependence on Russian fossil fuels, in line with the REPowerEU Plan, while ensuring that any potential competition distortions are kept to the minimum.”

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Germany’s Enercon GmbH has secured a contract to supply two 2.35-MW wind turbines to Sweden’s Port of Trelleborg for its green shore powering project, the companies announced on Friday.

The agreement includes the delivery of two of Enercon’s E-82 E4 turbines and a full maintenance service for the pair. The machines will be installed on 78-metre (255.9 ft) steel towers and will be equipped with Enercon’s rotor blade de-icing system.

The wind turbines will be installed at the new port on a 500-metre-long quay. Their commissioning is expected to occur at the turn of 2024-2025.

The Port of Trelleborg expects the turbines to produce around 15 GWh of electricity per year.

The wind turbine installation is part of the Port’s Green FIT 2025 project, co-financed by the EU. Sweden’s southernmost port aims to be Europe's most sustainable RoRo port and reach net zero by 2040. From 2030, all vessels that dock at the Port of Trelleborg will have to be connected to the shore power.

“The new wind turbines, together with the Port of Trelleborg’s own solar park of 2,200 square meters, will produce more green energy than we consume,” said Ulf Sonesson, Landlord at Port of Trelleborg.