China, Solar Energy and the Logic of Amplification » Enrique Dans

in the picture, Gansu Dunhuang Solar Parkin the province of GansuIn China, with a capacity of 50 megawatts, construction began in 2009 and is gradually expanding, taking advantage of the Gobi Desert.

a Latest World Energy Monitor Report He claims that China is building nothing less than Two-thirds of the world’s solar and wind power generation capacityWhich leads increasingly clearly to the future energy source not only in the installation, but also in the manufacturing. In fact, cCompanies like Siemens Gamesa and others are exposed to scandal and seek protection Because some of Europe’s most important offshore wind parks have been awarded to Chinese companies, which compete at more competitive costs.

China currently has a projected 180 gigawatts of commercial-scale solar installations under construction, and 15 gigawatts of wind power. That brings the total wind and solar capacity under construction to 339 gigawatts, well above the 40 gigawatts under construction in the United States. The report only includes solar parks of 20 megawatts or more that feed directly into the grid, meaning China’s total solar capacity could be much higher, with small solar parks accounting for about 40% of China’s total solar capacity.

Another report, issued by the Australian ABC network, reveals that the pace of the transition to clean energy in China is approximately That’s equivalent to installing five large-scale nuclear power plants every week.which is so fast (at least 10 gigawatts of wind and solar generation capacity every two weeks) that it will take the country to Achieving its goals set for the end of 2030 at the end of this monthThat is to say, Six and a half years ago.

China accounts for about a third of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. The latest drop in emissions, the first since pandemic restrictions were eased, coupled with the decarbonization of the electricity grid, could mean the country’s emissions have already peaked. As the power sector increasingly goes green, emissions will level off and then gradually decline from 2030. The world’s largest solar and wind farms are being built in China’s far west, connected to the rest of the country by the longest high-voltage transmission lines on the planet.

There is no doubt that China has found the benefit of renewable energies, and is ready not only to lead in everything related to its technology and construction, but also to be the first to benefit from the enormous advantages of a way of generating electricity at a lower cost than that offered by China. We have had them throughout human history. Nuclear power plant projects? There are also some, but given the long period required to build them, we will see if they will turn from projects into reality.

The current reality of electricity generation is called renewable energy, and it is fully capable of generating all the electricity the world needs, without resorting to electricity. There is no other generation technology. (It’s also more expensive and dirtier.) Let’s stop speculating and favoring lobbyists, and let’s do what China does: build massive renewable energy installations like there’s no tomorrow. Few things make more sense than that.