China plans to harness energy from hurricanes using giant turbines

The platform can generate power even during Category 5 hurricane, company says

A Chinese firm has launched the world’s largest wind turbines that can harness energy even during strong Category 5 hurricanes.

The massive Ocean X platform developed by MingYang Smart Energy consists of two wind turbines in a V-shaped arrangement providing a combined power output of over 16MW.

Launched in the southern Chinese port city of Guangzhou, the turbine platform can produce 54,000MWh of energy annually, enough to power 30,000 Chinese households each year, the company said in a LinkedIn post.

The firm first tested a smaller 1:10-scale prototype in 2020, and completed the installation of the OceanX platform at its original size in April, this year.

It consists of counter-rotating rotors each with giant turbine blades with diametres of 182m (597ft), sitting atop a V-shaped structure.

This structure is held together by high-tension cables and mounted on a Y-shaped floating platform to ensure maximum stability.

The mega platform, built with ultra-high-performance concrete, weighs about 16,500 tonnes and can operate in waters deeper than 35m (115ft), the company said.

MingYang says the turbine platform can endure and generate power even during Category 5 hurricane conditions, withstanding wind speeds up to 260 kmph (161 mph) and waves as high as 30m (98ft).

“Robust typhoon resistance, withstands up to 79.8mps winds,” the company says in its website.

These types of hurricanes can cause catastrophic damage, leveling most framed houses, trees, and power poles when they cross residential areas.

Ship transporting turbine platform to its power-generating site in ocean (Mingyang Smart Energy)

Typical wind turbines may struggle under such rough conditions, causing power fluctuations and premature wear down of their power generator’s components.

The company calls its new design “an adaptive system that ensures stability and safety even in extreme typhoon conditions,” which it hopes would bring “a new dawn in marine energy”.

This may be crucial for power generation in the coastal parts of China like Guangzhou which are regularly hit by strong typhoons, especially in the era of climate change-fuelled storms.

It also comes as a shot in the arm in China’s goal is to supply a third of its national power consumption via renewable sources by 2025.

By powering thousands of households with green energy, the wind turbine platform may also help reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 56,000 tonnes.