China is expected to increase its wind power generation capacity to 100 Gigawatts by 2020 to meet its soaring energy demand and to address the environmental concerns.

Fang Junshi, Head of the Coal Department of the National Energy Administration, said the wind power generation capacity of China will rise to 100 Gigawatts by 2020, as reported by Reuters.

The latest estimation is over three times the target of 30 GW drawn by the government nearly 18 months ago. The Coal Department of the National Energy Administration said that the country’s wind-power capacity would surge by eight times of the capacity in 2008 to 100 Million Kilowatts in 2020, with nearly 20% annual growth rate.

Thanks to the rapidly increasing consumption rate, rising exports of heavy industry and boom in construction industry, the demand for energy in China is continuously rising. Even the government has taken the stand of not imposing any energy constraints and hunting for more sources of energy. 

For long, industry experts have expressed confidence in China’s wind power potential to represent much bigger share in the power mix than that planned by the government. Being the world’s second largest energy consumer, China’s current installed wind-power capacity stands at 12 GW and is determined to take it upto 20 GW by 2010. This indicates that China is treading on the path of exceeding the 2020 target set in 2007.

According to plan charted out in 2007, wind is believed to be the bigger source of power generation than nuclear power, although the country has witnessed boom in nuclear power plant construction. Solar power generation capacity also falls little before wind power and is projected to hit merely 1.8 GW by 2020. 

The World Wind Energy Report 2008 had previously predicted that the Asian region would lead the global wind power industry under China’s leadership. Wind turbine manufacturers in China will be counted among the top international suppliers.

According to a Research Analyst at RNCOS, “China has been meeting its energy demand through oil and coal for years and will continue to use them at similar levels. However, renewable energy will be an additional supplement to China’s energy industry as it will not only ensure sustainable energy to meet the country’s energy demand, but will help country to deal with the rising environmental concerns.”

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