China builds 1,800-hectare offshore solar park

Two gigawatts of power

23. May 2024 4:37 p.m. Robert Klatt

A gigantic solar park made up of 3.3 million modules is under construction in China. The facility aims to help make the country climate neutral by 2060.

Lianyungang (China). China wants to become climate neutral by 2060. The country is therefore rapidly developing wind, hydro and solar energy. In 2023 alone, new photovoltaic plants with a total output of 217 gigawatts (GW) will be installed. This corresponds to an increase of 148 percent in one year.

Today, everyday life has World Time reports that the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) is building the country’s largest floating solar farm in the Yellow Sea, off the coast of Lianyungang city in east China’s Jiangsu province. According to Lin Boqiang, director of the China Energy Economic Research Center at Xiamen University, the location was chosen because demand for electricity in the region is growing rapidly. Producing electricity close to consumers makes overhead lines superfluous.

“As the southeastern coastal regions are among the fastest growing regions in China and with high electricity demand, the potential for offshore solar installations is significant. »

The floating solar park has a total area of ​​1,868 hectares and consists of 3.3 million photovoltaic modules that can provide a total power of 2 GW. According to CNNC forecasts, the solar park can provide around 2.2 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity per year, equivalent to the needs of 230,000 people.

Reduction of CO₂ emissions

In China, a large part of electricity is currently produced in coal-fired power plants. The new solar farm can save around 680,000 tonnes of coal per year and thus avoid around 1.77 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions. The first parts of the solar park will be connected to the public grid in September 2024. Full capacity should be available from 2025.

The total investment is approximately $1.39 billion. In addition to the solar power plant, this also includes a large on-land energy storage facility that can provide electricity in the evening and at night.