CPIH and Equinor sign cooperation agreement on offshore wind

CPIH (China Power International Holding) and Equinor have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate on offshore wind in China and Europe.

Søren Lassen, Wood Mackenzie Senior Research Analyst, said:

"2019 is shaping up to be the strongest year for Equinor when it comes to offshore wind. The MoU between CPIH and Equinor comes in the wake of two major tender victories in the US (816MW) and UK (1,800MW). Equinor also secured subsidies for its 88MW Hywind Tampen project located in Norway this year, which will be the largest floating offshore wind project in the world once it is grid-connected in 2022.

"In order to realise their offshore ambitions, we are seeing offshore wind developers aggressively push to position themselves in new markets through greenfield projects, pipeline acquisitions and alliances. Equinor has, in 2019, cemented its strong position in offshore wind - not only through its tender victories but also though its ability to position itself in fledgling offshore wind markets e.g. Poland, South Korea, the Canary Islands and now China.

"Equinor is only the second European developer to break into the Chinese offshore wind market. The other European developer, EDF, only managed to do so earlier this year. Both of these players have leveraged existing relationships with state-owned Chinese companies to enter the market, proving that relationships are key to enter the Chinese market.

"Five players sit on almost one-third of the global offshore wind portfolio. The offshore wind sector is becoming increasingly competitive as industry globalises and developers bolster their offshore wind ambitions."