China tightens grip over Middle East turbine market with new factory deal
Shanghai Electric's local partnership for Oman wind turbine factory project comes after other Chinese OEMs have secured key deals in Saudi Arabia and UAE
China has tightened its grip over the Middle East wind power market as one of its state-owned manufacturing giants partners in building a new turbine factory in Oman.
Wind turbine manufacturer and project developer Shanghai Electric has linked up with a subsidiary of OQ, formerly known as the Oman Oil Company, to invest in a production facility, according to announcements from the parties involved.
The turbine factory will be located in a Special Economic Zone at Duqm. It will have an annual production capacity of 1GW and produce 6.25MW and 9.6MW turbines, according to various announcements.
Those agreements were signed between Mustafa Mohammed Al Hinai, CEO of Mawarid Turbine, and Yong Wang, president of Shanghai Electric Wind Power Group, which is one of China’s major wind turbine manufacturers as well as a project developer, according to the report.
Shanghai Electric Group chair Wu Lei also witnessed the signing ceremony, reportedly saying the partnership shows the strong cooperative relationship between China and Oman.
Western OEMs are meanwhile increasingly retreating from markets outside Europe, the US as they focus on profitability after a challenging few years for the global wind industry.
The Middle East is one region where Chinese OEMs have been particularly successful in expanding.