While the global offshore wind power industry is still discussing when to popularize 20 MW wind turbines, a new plan along China's southeast coast has already "lit up" the future ahead of schedule. On February 5, 2026, a project evaluation report from Fujian announced that the world's first offshore wind farm to mass apply wind turbines above 25 megawatts is about to land. This is not only a leap in numbers, but also means that the "critical point" of wind power technology iteration has arrived.

World's first batch adoption of super large models

This project is the offshore wind farm in Zone A-1 of Zhao'an, Zhangzhou. It is the winning bid for the market-oriented competition configuration of offshore wind power in Fujian Province in 2024, developed by a consortium composed of Huaneng Group and China National Nuclear Corporation. The wind farm is located in the southern sea area of Zhangzhou City, with an offshore distance of about 17 to 22 kilometers and a water depth of 30 to 47 meters. The total planned installed capacity is 300 megawatts. The most eye-catching feature is its wind turbine selection plan: the project plans to install 12 wind turbines with a single capacity of 20 megawatts, as well as 3 wind turbines with a single capacity of up to 26 megawatts. This marks the first commercial offshore wind power project worldwide to explicitly adopt 25 MW (including 26 MW) wind turbines in bulk, achieving a key leap from sporadic prototype testing to large-scale commercial applications.

The leap from experimental platform to batch application

Before the announcement of the Zhangzhou Zhao'an project, all projects involving 25 MW wind turbines worldwide were still in the testing and experimentation stage. These testing projects are mainly divided into two categories: one is the offshore test wind farm located in Changle, Fujian, Liu'ao, Zhangzhou and other places, mainly installing a single test prototype; Another type is the onshore high-capacity testing machine positions and research and development bases located in Yingkou, Liaoning, Dongying, Shandong, Guangdong and other places, providing testing and certification services for prototypes. For example, the Dongying base in Shandong is testing Dongfang Electric's 26 megawatt prototype, while Yingkou in Liaoning has built the world's largest 35 megawatt level test stand. Previously, there was a view in the industry that testing large capacity prototypes may only be an exploration of new technologies and may not quickly move towards commercialization. The emergence of the Zhao'an project in Zhangzhou has completely broken this wait-and-see attitude. With a clear bulk procurement plan, it has been confirmed that the technology of ultra large wind turbines has commercial feasibility and market demand, indicating that this level of model is about to enter a new era of large-scale promotion. Keywords: Wind Power News and Information, Wind Power News Network

Leading the global wind power into a new era

The planning of the Zhangzhou Zhao'an project is not only a breakthrough for the project, but also a strong guidance for the development direction of the entire global wind power industry. Firstly, it demonstrates China's leading strength in the entire industry chain of research and development, manufacturing, and engineering application of offshore wind power ultra large capacity units. Secondly, the mass application of ultra large wind turbines will significantly improve the efficiency of sea area utilization, achieve higher total power generation within the same sea area, help reduce the cost per kilowatt hour of offshore wind power, and accelerate its competitiveness compared to traditional energy sources. Finally, this move will accelerate the iteration and upgrading of the global wind power equipment manufacturing industry towards larger capacity and higher efficiency, marking the official entry of the global offshore wind power market into the era of 25 MW models and injecting stronger impetus into the global energy transformation.Editor/Gao Xue