Hainan city sells clean-energy image to Shanghai

A cooperation forum focused on Danzhou's new energy industrial chain drew nearly 100 companies, investors and industry groups to Shanghai on Friday, as the Hainan Free Trade Port's industrial core pushes to build a clean-energy hub and cut carbon emissions.

The Danzhou modern energy system industrial chain cooperation matchmaking meeting, themed around the pilot free trade port's "model room" advantages, featured talks on green certification, low-carbon manufacturing and export channels. Several key projects were signed on-site.

Danzhou Yangpu, which calls itself a free trade port "showcase" and industrial center, is accelerating efforts to upgrade its energy structure while coordinating green industrial transformation, according to local officials.

"Green and low-carbon development is a defining feature of high-quality growth in the Hainan Free Trade Port," said Chen Yang, mayor of Danzhou and director of the Yangpu Economic Development Zone Administration. He said Danzhou is focusing on three areas - clean power generation, modern power grids and clean heat sources - and is building a full offshore wind industry chain covering equipment manufacturing, power generation and hydrogen-ammonia-methanol utilization. The city is also moving ahead with two flagship projects to bring nuclear power and nuclear steam into Yangpu and is developing a zero-carbon industrial park.

Chen said Danzhou's new energy sector is entering a "golden window" for industrial agglomeration and value growth. The city aims to have a basic clean-energy supply system in place by 2030, providing sufficient, stable and traceable energy. He invited companies to invest and take part in the full new-energy chain, leveraging local resources, free trade port policy advantages and global market links.

Siemens Energy, which supplied heavy-duty gas turbine combined-cycle units to Yangpu Power Plant in the 1990s, formally established a Hainan company in Yangpu this year and broke ground on a turbine assembly and service center. "Two major strategic opportunities - the construction of the Hainan Free Trade Port and the green energy transition - are converging here," said Chen Sihui, vice president of Siemens Energy. She said the company will deepen cooperation in gas power, grid technology, offshore wind and energy digitalization.

Several key players are advancing projects. Hainan Power Grid is building a new power system with zoned distribution and layered operations for Danzhou. By 2030, the city is expected to have a relatively independent modern grid, with Hainan Nuclear Power directly supplying 220-kilovolt lines via a "point-to-network" model, giving local companies access to more traceable green electricity. Clean-energy producers including Huaneng Changjiang Nuclear Power will support the nuclear-power and nuclear-steam initiatives.

Cosco Shipping and other logistics firms are exploring green shipping, low-carbon logistics and carbon-accounting for transport to align with Danzhou's low-carbon industrial plans. The goal is to create a full loop - green energy, green manufacturing, green logistics, green certification and green exports - that helps companies meet international carbon standards.

Four rounds of project signings took place during the forum. The deals cover testing and certification, low-carbon services, green power supply, equipment manufacturing, hydrogen energy, power trading and integrated energy services.

Organizers said the strong turnout reflects market confidence in Danzhou Yangpu's new-energy strategy, the free trade port's policy strengths and the region's low-carbon growth prospects.

chenbowen@chinadaily.com.cn