China's Surprise Growth In Renewable Energy Power

China is often cited as a major contributor to global warming, in U.S. energy debates, for their explosive growth of coal-fired power plants during the past decades.

It is true that at one point China was building close to two coal-fired plants a week. However new government policy's for renewable energy has resulted in an explosion of wind, solar, and nuclear power generating plants.

This year China will probably pass the U.S. as the largest market for wind turbines - doubling wind power in each of the last four years in one example alone. China's legislature passed sweeping energy policy changes over two years ago, while our representatives still debate and delay.

Deep in the Gobi Desert a series of projects is under construction. Construction includes one of six planned wind projects, each with the capacity of more than 16 large coal-fired plants.

These projects "totally dwarfs anything else, anywhere else in the world," said Steve Sawyer, the secretary general of the Global Wind Energy Council, an industry group in Brussels.

China needs to meet the energy requirements of 720 million rural Chinese as they begin to purchase products such as refrigerators, air conditioners and other energy consumption products common to the almost 600 million city dwellers.

China also generates about 21 percent of its electrical power from hydroelectric plants. Nuclear power accounts for slightly above 1 percent of power.

New mandates say that Chinese companies must generate 8 percent of their power from renewable sources by the end of 2020. This does not include hydroelectric.

China, like the U.S., suffers from lack of infrastructure for transmission of power from new regions that are likely to be where wind or solar farms will be. Also, like the U.S., China has just about reached a limit on new locations for hydroelectric turbine and the only future growth will be from turbine upgrades or new technology.

China is also conducting research on the clean burning of farm waste to generate electricity and there have been recent articles about wood pellet manufacturing plants springing up in China.

China appears to be in full gear towards the race for a balance of renewable and coal-fired energy. Looking ahead China recognizes coal as a limited natural resource and is making bold, pro-active steps for energy security.

Brett