Alstom on November 4 inaugurated its new hydropower manufacturing facility at Tianjin in China. The new factory will place Alstom in a better position to supply its customers in China and abroad, while offering opportunities for further expansion in China’s healthy hydropower market, which accounts for 22 percent of the country’s electricity generation capacity and is expanding at a rate of 15 gigawatts per year.
The new site is to be named Alstom Hydro China Company Ltd. (AHC) and will, over time, fully replace Alstom’s original factory in China, Tianjin Alstom Hydro (TAH). Its construction is taking place in two main phases, with phase one already operational. To ensure gradual transition of the workload, Alstom’s existing factory TAH will remain operational until the second phase has been fully completed.
Representing an investment of one billion RMB (just under €110 million), AHC is Alstom’s first carbon-neutral manufacturing site in China. Its energy-efficient design includes double insulation, heat recovery systems, a geothermal heating and cooling system that consumes 43 percent less energy, rainwater recycling and solar photovoltaic panels that will provide electricity for heating, cooling, lighting and ventilation for the entire factory. In addition, skylights have been installed to take full advantage of natural light.
Energy efficiency in buildings is at the top of the Chinese government’s agenda in honoring its commitment to reduce CO2 emissions per unit of GDP by 40-45 percent by 2020 from 2005 levels, following its promise for a 20 percent cut by 2010.
AHC will have a total area of nearly 250,000 square metres and a production capacity that is 20 percent greater than the old site, capable of delivering up to 30 turbine and generator units per year with outputs ranging from 20 megawatts to 1000 MW.
“AHC places us in a great position to respond to demand and execute our order backlog in the Asian region, as well as having an eco-friendly design,” said Philippe Joubert, president of Alstom Power and executive vice president of Alstom. “Its new location in the TAEZ industrial zone near Tianjin Airport provides us a lot of room for potential further expansion.”
The new facility will house a Global Technology Center where Alstom will carry out R&D activities and test turbines developed for its customers. It will be Alstom Hydro’s third global technology centre, following the opening of Alstom’s centers in Grenoble, France, and Vadodara, India, in 2008.
Alstom is one of the leading hydro producers in China and, to date, has signed contracts for hydro turbines and generators covering 43 GW in the country, out of which approximately 28 GW are already in commercial operation.
On November 4, Alstom announced it had won a further €50 million contract to supply five 40 MW units for the Xiajiang hydroelectric project in Jiangxi province.
About Alstom
Alstom is a global leader in the world of power generation, power transmission and rail infrastructure and sets the benchmark for innovative and environmentally friendly technologies. Alstom builds the fastest train and the highest capacity automated metro in the world, provides turnkey integrated power plant solutions and associated services for a wide variety of energy sources, including hydro, nuclear, gas, coal and wind, and it offers a wide range of solutions for power transmission, with a focus on smart grids. The group employs 96,500 people in more than 70 countries.
