AES Corp. has partnered with a Chinese energy firm to bring wind power to China, making it the first U.S.-based power company to establish a wind farm in the country.
This announcement was coupled with news of significant expansion of a wind farm in Texas, highlighting AES’ new push for an increase in wind power generation.
“Renewable generation is the fastest-growing new source of generation in the world, and wind is the lowest cost in most markets,” said Ned Hall, president of AES Renewable Generation, headquartered in Arlington.
The desires to reduce pollution, greenhouse gas impacts and the dependence on imported fuels are all “spawning the growth,” he added.
This isn’t unique to the U.S. and Europe. With respiratory disease the No. 1 cause of death in China, “there is a large motivation to clean up the environment” from both the government and the people, Hall said.
AES and Beijing-based Guohua Energy Investment Co. Ltd. will build, own and operate a wind farm by 2009 in Hebei province, about1.5 hours outside of Beijing. At the outset, the facility will generate 49.5 megawatts and could reach 225 megawatts.
This comes on the heels of Chinese legislation encouraging investment in renewable energy, setting a goal of generating 30,000 megawatts of new wind power by 2020. AES started building wind plants in the U.S. and some European countries about 2 1/2 years ago. About 2.5 percent of AES’ power is wind-driven, according to Hall and Robin Pence, vice president of communications.
AES generates more than 1,000 megawatts in the U.S., and it is committed to adding 1,673 megawatts by 2011, according to Hall. In Texas, AES is supplying 353 megawatts with the new expansion of the Buffalo Gap 2 wind farm near Abilene.
The company has 4,000 megawatts of projects in development across Europe and the U.S.
AES plans to expand its wind power generation capacity in
China. Hall said AES also is looking at other countries that are focusing on renewable-energy sources, such as India, Pakistan, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Chile.
