As the heyday of mega-dam construction passes, China Three Gorges Corp., the world’s largest hydroelectric firm, is diversifying its operations by adding wind and solar capacity, Bloomberg Green reported.
According to a statement, the state-owned company now has the ability to create around 26 gigawatts of power using photovoltaic panels or wind turbines, up from 16 gigawatts in 2020. By 2025, it plans to reach a capacity of 70 to 80 gigawatts.
According to Bloomberg Intelligence experts including Chia Chen, hydroelectric power output in China is anticipated to remain flat this year, but solar and wind power generation is expected to increase by up to 30%. There are also few possibilities for huge hydro projects, as most of the best sites have already been taken, and the costs of competing energy sources are falling quicker.
Three Gorges Corp. controls many of the world’s largest hydropower projects, such as the Baihetan and Wudongde mega-dams in the southwest region of China, and claims that the technology will contribute to almost 70% of its entire 104-gigawatt output capacity by 2021.
In December, the business authorized three new offshore wind power initiatives in the province of Guangdong, agreed to a transaction for assets in Spain, and explored the possibility of acquiring renewables projects in Mexico as part of its diversification strategy.