China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) has unveiled a 60,000-square-metre ‘floating’ photovoltaic project, located near Qingdao in Shandong Province.
The project, which is China‘s first commercial floating offshore PV project in a full-seawater environment, was developed alongside provincial and municipal authorities.
The facility has an installed capacity of 7.5 megawatts and is expected to produce 16.7 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, reducing carbon emissions by around 14,000 tonnes per year.
A ‘pioneering initiative’
According to Sinopec, this ‘pioneering initiative’ aims to encourage the development of floating photovoltaic projects in coastal and shallow sea areas – the facility’s structure enables it to synchronise with tidal elevations, with the natural cooling effect of seawater also enhancing solar power generation.
Sinopec also utilised materials engineered to resist corrosion from the seawater environment, as well as employing a ‘robust’ anchoring system that enables the facility to withstand wind speeds of up to level 13 and accommodate tidal variations of 3.5 metres. This has reduced investment costs by around 10% compared to traditional ‘pile-based’ PV systems, the company noted.
In addition, the facility features a ‘streamlined inspection pathway’, with PV panels and cables positioned close to the water’s surface, reducing operating and maintenance costs compared to conventional systems.
Clean energy strategy
The project forms part of Sinopec’s broader clean energy strategy, which also includes China’s first carbon-neutral hydrogen refuelling station and an industrial-scale seawater hydrogen production initiative.
Moving forward, the company also plans to construct an expanded 23-megawatt floating PV facility.
‘China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation, joining hands with Shandong Province and Qingdao Municipality, has successfully commenced operations of China’s first commercial floating offshore photovoltaic (PV) project in a full-seawater environment,’ the company said in a statement. ‘Integrated with the pile-based floating PV project launched previously, it is the largest floating PV power station of Sinopec.’ Read more here.
