Longyuan Power Group and Shanghai Electric Wind Power Group, a subsidiary of Shanghai Electric, have completed the world's first maritime renewable energy project that combines deep-sea floating wind energy and aquaculture. Built within the Nanri Island National Marine Fish Farming Demonstration Zone, located in Putian, in China's Fujian province, the offshore fish farm will also be powered by solar energy.
This appears to be a further step in China's aim to boost its aquaculture development, specifically towards offshore aquaculture projects that additionally pretend to cover the different parts of the industrial chain. Moreover, it is also a new example of innovative projects developed in the country in which aquaculture establishes synergies with another industry, as was the case with the semi-submersible marine fish farm complex for aquaculture and tourism presented last year.
When Shanghai Electric announced a year ago that it had won the bid for the world's first wind and solar-powered offshore aquaculture project, it explained that a floating wind turbine would be built based on the innovative concept of "generating power and farming fish simultaneously to realize the shared use of platform structure, ocean space and operation capabilities." Now the project is already a reality in Putian, Fujian province.
As mentioned, the project is located in the National Marine Fish Farming Demonstration Zone of Nanri Island, and features three-column semi-submersible floating platforms, each supporting a 4 MW offshore wind turbine and lightweight, flexible solar modules that are installed in the area with a water depth of about 35 meters. The hexagonal space that can be used for fish farming is located in the central zone of the platform.
Although important details such as which species of seafood will be raised on the platform have yet to be determined for the aquaculture side of it, the entire project has undergone a wide range of rigorous testing. It has been tested under nearly 200 operating conditions, including a 1:40 scale model used to examine the fishing pond. The company has also developed a reliability enhancement system to ensure the safe and consistent operation of the turbines while maximizing wind utilization, applying a multi-pronged approach to ensure the reliability of the project throughout its life cycle.
In its announcement of the project's completion, Shanghai Electric said that wind power is a key pillar in the fight against the climate crisis. The company added that this pioneering convergence of wind power, solar power, and fish farming represents "a new horizon for the industry to develop sustainable and green renewable solutions designed to reduce carbon emissions while boosting economic growth."