Fight poverty to reduce pollution

The Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region plans to use electricity created by offshore wind farms by 2017, the Beijing Times reports.

Huadian Heavy Industries Co. says it will introduce ocean-energy technologies from abroad and build an industrial base for ocean wind power in Caofeidian, an island land reclamation converted into an economic development zone in Tangshan, Hebei province.

Yang Guangchun, vice manager of the firm's subsidiary in Caofeidian, said that in the first stage, 300 4-megawatt wind turbines will be built in Yuetuo Island of Laoting county, Jingtang Port and Luannan county.

The project is scheduled to go into operation in 2017 and will provide electricity for Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province.

Only a few regions in China, including Jiangsu and Fujian provinces, have tapped into offshore wind power, the report said.

Tangshan's coastline is ripe for wind power production, as wind turbines there can generate electricity 2,400 hours in a year, exceeding other offshore wind farms in the country.

China's push into offshore wind energy is part of a broader effort to change its energy mix and reduce carbon emissions. It has set a goal of getting 15 percent of its power from renewable sources by 2020.