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Bergey Windpower News XBWL Enters Full Production of 7.5/10 kW Turbines |
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December 17, 1999 |
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China is the world's largest market for small wind turbines. Over 150,000 small wind turbines from 60 Chinese companies have been installed in China since 1982. Thousands more are installed each year. Historically, however, Chinese small wind turbines have not been as reliable as their Western counterparts, which has limited market development. In 1997 BWC began investigating opportunities for bringing its advanced technology and manufacturing expertise to the Chinese market. After considering a number of investment and technology transfer options, BWC decided to form a joint venture with a major manufacturer of electrical machinery.
The system pictured above provides 24-hour/day power to the Dashitou herdsmen village in Mulei county, Xinjiang Province, in far western China. It was installed in October, 1999. A number of similar projects are underway. BWC expects solid growth for XBWL over the next ten years as the Chinese rural electrification programs gain momentum and ancillary markets in telecommunications, water pumping, and regional exports develop. |
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For further information, please contact:
Charlie Dou, Director of China Operations, Bergey WindPower Co. T: 405-364-4212 F: 405-364-2078 E-mail: cdou@bergey.com or, Xiangtan Bergey Windpower Co., Ltd. No. 8 Tanxia Road, Xiashesi Xiangtan, Hunan 411 101 P. R. China T: (86 732) 863-0659 F: (86 732) 859-6782 E-mail: xbwl@public.xt.hn.cn |
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BWC's joint-venture in
the People's Republic of China, Xiangtan Bergey Windpower Co., Ltd. (XBWL) was established in
January 1998 between BWC and Xiangtan Electrical Machinery Group Companies
(XEMGC). XEMGC, one of China's top 500 enterprises, is a 12,000 employee state-owned
enterprise which builds electric motors, industrial electric vehicles, and
electrical control equipment. XEMGC has 700,000 square meters of factory
space spread over a works complex totaling 2.3 million square meters in
Xiangtan, Hunan Province (50 km from the provincial capital of Changsha. BWC is the majority partner in
the XBWL joint venture, a position that is not often allowed for foreign
investors. In fact, XBWL was the first Chinese
joint-venture in the wind power field. Financing for XBWL has been provided by E&Co., a renewable energy
financial services firm in Bloomfield, NJ. Paul, Weiss, Rifkind in Beijing
provided legal services for the establishment of the joint venture. BWC's
Director of China Operations, Mr. Zhijie (Charlie) Dou, a native of Shanghai,
serves as General Manager of XBWL. The photo to the right shows the XBWL
contract signing ceremony in Beijing in January 1998. The ceremony was
covered by the national television news (CCTV) and was seen by an estimated 100
million people.
XBWL produces wind turbines
primarily for the China and Asian markets. The first Excel installation in
China, which used a turbine built in BWC's U.S. factory, was installed on Hebao
Island, Guangdong Province in December 1998. This complete system,
including a Trace sine-wave inverter, supplements an existing diesel generator
and has provided the villagers with 24-hour power for the first time. The first Excel built in China was
completed in May, 1999 and is currently operating at the Nutoushan Lighthouse in
Fujian Province. Additional projects with locally-built wind turbines have now been completed in
Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia Provinces. Several other projects are
currently underway and a US-DOE supported four turbine island electrification
project is pending in Shangdong Province. The photo above shows the XBWL
office staff and engineers in front of the XBWL offices.
The
XBWL wind systems are primarily used for rural
electrification in areas where it is not feasible to bring in the power
grid. China has 60 million people without electricity in areas that the
utility grid will probably never reach. In response, the Chinese
government has
launched several large scale electrification programs based on decentralized
renewable energy systems. Under the SDPC (State Development and Planning Commission)
one program "Brightness Engineering" aims to bring electric power to 5
million rural families by 2008 using primarily wind/solar home systems and
wind/diesel village power systems. Under the SETC (State Economics and
Trade Commission) the World Bank is financing a 100,000 home electrification
program using solar and wind/solar home systems.