The reality behind China's 'green power'

Chinese manufacturers are actively seeking export markets for excess capacity.

Just what is green energy in China?

The introduction of polluting coal fired backup systems in China converts a dedicated renewable energy plant into a dual-fuel facility with a positive carbon footprint.

This raises the question on how to assess the true green value of each wind facility, and calculate the net levels of “polluting energy” from “non polluting energy” from what was originally a zero carbon generating facility.

It also raises another interesting question. How reliable and relative is the methodology and criteria involved in calculating and approving incentives for a renewable facility with a carbon footprint under the Kyoto CDM scheme. China has secured 59 per cent of the total “rewards” under this scheme worldwide.

How will any possible future carbon trading scheme classify these dual-fuel power facilities?

Backup up for a 10GW wind facility requires a major coal fired power station of 6.5GW to 7.5GW capacity at each site.

Because of declining interest in CDMs, plus disappointing returns and mounting losses from wind generation operations, it could be reasonable to assume that installation of these coal fired backup systems is merely a blatant, licensed ruse to improve balance sheet bottom lines and return on investment.

Solar

China’s export-reliant solar cell industry is also in overcapacity mode and huge government incentives to build large-scale photovoltaic generating facilities will soak up solar cell inventories and provide work for the industry.

Like wind generation, solar is destined for the impoverished northwest and western regions of China and it will be interesting to monitor the operations and environmental effects of these large-scale arrays.

The newly completed Ningxia Hu’s Shizuishan Stage I 10MW plant comprises more than 37,000 panels. There is another 40MW of capacity in Phase II with more than 110,000 panels still to come.

Dunhuang is in the construction stage of a 100MW array designed to provide electricity for 50,000 families with an average daily consumption of 2kWhr per family a day.

Both plants are located in dry and arid areas as are the wind plants. What is good for wind may not be good for solar since the winds carry the fine abrasive and highly mineralised desert dust particles.