In recent years, China has surged forward as the global leader in wind energy, driven by rapid domestic growth due to Beijing’s strong push toward strategic and environmental goals.

Goldwind, the nation’s leading player in its industry, is scheduled to release its fiscal-year-end financial outcomes this Friday. This will provide insights into the performance of both its home market activities and international growth initiatives.

AFP examines how Goldwind and other Chinese companies transformed China into the unrivaled world leader in wind energy.

Recent gusts

Since the late 2000s, China has played a significant role in global installed wind capacity; however, it was only in recent years that it rose to the leading position.

Last year, companies based in Mainland China made up six out of the top seven global turbine manufacturers globally, as stated in a recent report by BloombergNEF released this month.

Goldwind held the top spot, followed by three more Chinese firms — the first time European and US firms all ranked below third.

The distribution of the nation’s wind energy sector globally is uneven, primarily due to most companies expanding through local market demands.

“The market for wind turbines beyond China remains highly diversified,” stated Lauri Myllyvirta, the lead analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), to AFP.

“The circumstances can remain as they are if nations worried about an overreliance on China foster an environment for non-Chinese suppliers to increase their production capabilities,” he further explained.

Overcapacity concerns

The surge in China’s wind energy sector has sparked concerns in Western nations about an influx of inexpensive imports that could disadvantage domestic companies, such as Denmark’s Vestas and the U.S.’s GE Vernova.

In January, a report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) revealed that Chinese wind turbine producers have been receiving considerably greater amounts of government support over several decades compared to those in OECD member nations.

Western critics contend that significant backing from Beijing aimed at boosting the local wind energy sector has created an uneven playing field.

Last April, the European Union announced an investigation into the subsidies received by Chinese companies exporting turbines to Europe.

“We can’t let China’s excess capacity problems skew the well-established European market for wind energy,” stated Phil Cole, who leads industrial affairs at WindEurope, an organization based in Brussels, commenting on the latest OECD report.

“Losing European manufacturing and a robust European supply chain means we can’t produce the necessary equipment, which ultimately compromises our energy and national security,” stated Cole.

Gold rush

The roots of Goldwind can be traced back to the expansive, dry regions of western China, where in the 1980s, a firm called Xinjiang Wind Energy constructed its initial wind farm.

Wu Gang, an engineer who later became an entrepreneur, quickly jumped aboard, aiding in the transformation of the nascent company into a leader within China’s wind energy industry. He founded Goldwind in 1998.

“Goldwind has been involved since the start,” stated Andrew Garrad, who co-founded Garrad Hassan, a British engineering consulting firm that was actively engaged with China’s wind sector early on.

Garrad told AFP that the West viewed China as a poor country requiring assistance.

Thus, it was not an industrial powerhouse to be taken seriously.

Garrad, whose firm previously provided technology to multiple Chinese wind energy start-ups such as Goldwind, recalls Wu coming to see him in Bristol during the early 1990s to discuss business matters.

They negotiated a software deal totaling approximately £10,000 over the course of three days, which they both felt was significant enough to pursue at the time, according to Garrad’s recollection.

“He had absolutely no money, which is why he was lodging at the youth hostel and sharing a room with five others,” he explained.

Wu’s company was set to hit the jackpot, eventually becoming a worldwide frontrunner in wind turbine technology and installed capacity this century.

Global future?

In recent years, with China’s wind energy sector maturing and government subsidies being reduced amid economic challenges, Goldwind has progressively expanded into international markets.

In 2023, the company removed “Xinjiang” from its official title.

The relocation was seen as an effort to distance itself from the problematic area, where Beijing faces allegations of extensive human rights violations.

This shift highlighted an increased focus on embracing a global outlook and international engagement.

China’s wind power companies are achieving progress internationally, notably in emerging and developing nations, according to Myllyvirta from the CREA.

This holds especially true “following supply chain disruptions for Western manufacturers and significant increases in input costs because of COVID-19 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” he noted.

Endri Lico, an analyst at Wood Mackenzie, informed AFP that China seems to have the greatest opportunity for international expansion through emerging markets connected to Beijing’s “Belt and Road” initiative.

“China’s power stems from its size… along with its strategic management of domestic supply chains and natural resource reserves,” stated Lico.

Western markets continue to be dominated by domestic participants, though, as he pointed out, this is due to established footholds, worries about energy security, and protective trade measures.