At the critical juncture of the end of the 14th Five Year Plan and the upcoming start of the 15th Five Year Plan, China's energy green transformation has delivered an impressive performance report. New energy represented by wind power and photovoltaics not only surpassed thermal power in history, but also became an important engine to drive investment, export, and cultivate new quality productivity. How did this change occur? How will the future reshape the energy and economic landscape of China and even the world? Recently, Qin Haiyan, Secretary General of the Wind Energy Professional Committee of the China Renewable Energy Society, gave an exclusive interview to deeply interpret the rise and broad prospects of China's wind power industry.

Dual drive of policies and innovation, breakthrough increase in the proportion of renewable energy

As of July 2025, the installed capacity of renewable energy in China has exceeded 2.1 billion kilowatts, accounting for nearly 60% of the total installed capacity. Among them, the cumulative installed capacity of wind and photovoltaic power has reached 1.68 billion kilowatts, accounting for 46%, surpassing thermal power in history and approaching twice the total installed capacity of wind and solar power in the United States and Europe. Qin Haiyan believes that this achievement is driven by the "dual carbon" target and the continuous innovation of enterprises throughout the entire industry chain.

At the national level, a policy "combination punch" has been launched, providing solid institutional guarantees for the development of wind power from energy law legislation, large-scale base construction, wind control actions in thousands of villages and towns, to wind farm transformation and electricity market reform. Enterprises are continuously improving quality and reducing costs through the large-scale, intelligent, and full process digitization of wind turbines. The cost of onshore wind power has been reduced to 0.1-0.15 yuan/kWh, and offshore wind power has also been reduced to 0.33 yuan/kWh, making wind power one of the most economically competitive power sources.

Wind power has become a green and high-quality productivity, driving the coordinated development of multiple industry chains

Qin Haiyan emphasized that wind power is not only a clean energy source, but also a representative of new quality productivity. It integrates cutting-edge fields such as high-end equipment, new materials, intelligent control, and deep sea engineering, and plays a "chain master" effect: upstream drives high-end materials and precision manufacturing, downstream promotes emerging fields such as green hydrogen and energy storage, and supporting services also drive the growth of modern service industries such as monitoring and ocean engineering, injecting new impetus into local economic transformation.

The contradiction between supply and demand in the global market is prominent, and China's wind power exports are facing new opportunities

In 2024, China's wind turbine exports increased by 41.7% year-on-year, with a cumulative export capacity covering more than 50 countries and regions. Qin Haiyan predicts that China's wind power exports will further accelerate in the next five years. Currently, nearly 200 countries around the world have set development goals for wind power, but most regions are facing a shortage of industrial chains. As the world's largest wind power equipment manufacturing base, China produces over two-thirds of the world's complete machines and more than 70% of key components, with a comprehensive product range covering various environmental needs, which is expected to better serve the global energy transition.

In Qin Haiyan's view, Chinese wind power is facing dual opportunities in both domestic and international markets with its three major advantages of quality, cost, and supply chain.

From vast grasslands to vast blue seas, from the northwest desert to rural areas, wind energy is ushering in a profound green transformation across China. As the curtain of the 15th Five Year Plan approaches, China's wind power industry, which has already stood at the top of the world, is relying on its complete industrial chain, leading technological level, and significant cost advantages to not only provide solid guarantees for China's energy security and green development, but also inject strong impetus into the global energy transformation through Chinese manufacturing, Chinese technology, and Chinese solutions. In the next five years, it is timely for China's wind power to set sail overseas. Editor/Xu Shengpeng