The hoisting of the Rudong H8# offshore wind power plant is completed in Rudong county in Jiangsu province on Oct 25. [Photo/ntfabu.com]

The hoisting of the Rudong H8# offshore wind power plant was completed in Rudong county in Jiangsu province on Oct 25, which marks that the farthest offshore wind power project in China has stepped closer to becoming a grid-connected power source.

As the second offshore wind power plant invested by China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN) in Rudong county, the H8# offshore wind power project is located in the Huangshayang sea area and has an offshore distance of 65 kilometers. It is one of the wind plants with the longest distance from the shore among those under construction in China.

It takes more than seven hours for general engineering vessels to reach the project site from Rudong Xiaoyangkou wind power homeport, up to twice the time to reach an ordinary offshore wind power plant.

During the construction process, the disadvantages such as the long offshore distance, complicated geological conditions, a scarcity of ships and machines, and high waves were overcome. Four days were spent completing the hoisting of a tower barrel, a combination of nacelle, hub and single blades.

With an investment of about 5.5 billion yuan ($823 million), the Rudong H8# offshore wind power project covers 48 square kilometers and has a total installed capacity of 300 megawatts.

Twenty-five 4-MW wind turbines and 40 5-MW turbines, as well as a 220kV offshore booster station, are to be installed.

So far, the project has completed foundation construction of 12 wind turbine piles and installation of 4-MW turbines. It is expected to be connected to the grid in 2021.

After completion, the wind power plant will add impetus to CGN's "striving to become a main force in offshore wind power development" and Rudong's building a new energy industry worth hundreds of billions of yuan.