The EDF group owns a stake in 5 operating wind farms with gross total installed power of 219.3MW through the Chinese subsidiary of EDF Renewables (with EDF stake corresponding to 102.6MW), as well as a pipeline of projects underdevelopment for several hundred megawatts. In 2018, EDF Renewables diversified its business into distributed solar power with the creation of a joint venture with ACC, aimed at developing rooftop solar power solutions for industrial customers(109.8MW is in operation or under construction to date, with EDF’s state corresponding to 87.75MW, plus a pipeline for several dozen megawatts). EDF Renewables also set up a joint venture with Qilu Transportation to install ground-mounted solar panels along highways operated by Qilu in Shandong Province.
In the sphere of offshore wind power, on the occasion of the official visit of the Chinese President to France in March 2019, EDF concluded an agreement with the China Energy Investment electricity company for the construction of two projects (Dongtai IV and Dongtai V) off the shore of Jiangsu province, subject to approval of the final agreements by the Chinese authorities. The two partners will build and operate these wind farms, with total capacity of 500MW, together; they will be commissioned progressively between now and 2021 (see section 1.4.1.5.4 “EDF Renewables”).
Eight years after its creation, EDF’s R&D centre in China has stepped up support to EDF China’s Divisions and is deploying its expertise on priority thematic areas for EDF’s development in China. The Centre’s activities involve the generation and storage of low-carbon electricity, innovative electricity grids, local multi-energy systems, energy engineering, electric mobility and open innovation. Benefiting from the highly dynamic and innovative Chinese ecosystem, EDF’s R&D centre in China is working on applications of digital technology and artificial intelligence to energy business lines.
In the city of Sanmenxia (Henan province), EDF set up a joint venture (of which 65%is held by EDF) for the construction and operation of an urban heating network using the recovery of unavoidable heat emitted by thermal power plants of its partner Datang. The concession agreement, for a period of 30 years, was signed on 9 August 2016 and the network entered into commercial operation on 15 November 2016.After the success of the first heating season, the municipality of Sanmenxia decided on 29 August 2017 to extend the concession area granted to the joint venture and to reduce CO2 emissions by 200,000 to 240,000 tonnes per year starting from 2021.
In the city of Lingbao (Henan province), EDF set up on 13 November 2017 a joint venture (of which 65% is held by EDF) with the municipal investment company to build and operate a heating network powered by a 35 MW biomass cogeneration power plant. The 30-year concession agreement was subscript on 9 January 2018 as part of the French President’s state visit to China. This project aims to provide additional income to local farmers and to allow for the controlled elimination of agricultural waste and the avoidance of 150,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.
In the city of Sanya (Hainan province), EDF and its partner Changfeng Energy were chosen on 8 August 2017 by the municipal government to complete a network of multi-energy plants in the city’s tourist areas under a 30-year concession agreement. This initiative will make it possible to supply cooling (air conditioning) and sanitary hot water to hotels, shopping centres and hospitals. The joint venture (of which 30%is held by EDF) was set up on 6 November 2017 and the concession agreement was signed on 9 January 2018 in the presence of the French and Chinese Presidents. The first cold production plant is due to commence commercial operations in 2020. This project should enable the avoidance of 20,000 to 70,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.
In the field of energy services, the agreement entered into with Dongfeng PeugeotCitroën Automobile in Caidian district, Wuhan in 2013 for lighting was extended to the whole of the site in 2014 and 2015, covering 65,000 lights. EDF is also working with the district of Caidian for the planning, development and operation of energy services in the Franco-Chinese eco-district.
In November 2019, EDF and Huadian concluded an agreement to create a joint venture (EDF’s stake being 49%) for the operation of an existing heat network in the centre of Wuhan city. Powered by waste heat from a CCGT in Huadian, the network will benefit from digital tools installed by EDF at Sanmenxia.
The Group also provides innovative solutions for industry and eco-neighbourhoods, drawing on EDF’s skills in Europe, in particular in the field of smart grids, cogeneration, waste heat recovery, decentralised renewable energy (heat pumps, urban solar heating, biomass, and geothermal energy) and digital tools developed onsite with the China R&D centre.
EDF is looking at ways to support investments in new engineering-based business models, for example “incremental” distribution networks and the sale of electricity. EDF also offers on-demand engineering services to its Chinese partners to foster long-term partnerships and access Chinese technology such as supercritical carbon dioxide and concentrated solar power (CSP).
Citelum subsidiary is also present in this country for public lighting, through the contract signed with Kunming city (100,000 road lights). In 2019, Citelum provided and installed 288 lights free of charge in the village of Qixingtan, near Kunming, where there was no road lighting.
The EDF group’s activities in Southeast and Southern Asia are focused on the development of the electricity sector, particularly through involvement in projects for the design, construction and operation of new thermal gas and hydraulic generation plants in countries offering Independent Power Plant (IPP) type opportunities, as well as in the field of renewable energies, nuclear, smart cities, micro-grids and innovation.
At 31 December 2019, EDF owned 56.25% of Mekong Energy Company Ltd. (MECO), the company owning Phu My 2.2, a combined cycle gas power plant with a capacity of 715MW. The other shareholders are TEPCO (JERA) and SGM2 (Sumitomo). This is the first IPP project financed exclusively by foreign investors in Vietnam. The BOT (Build, Operate, Transfer) contract has a term of 20 years. In 2005, EDF provided “turnkey” delivery of the power plant, and operations are now managed by MECO.
New milestones in the building of the Son My 1 thermal power plant in Vietnam were reached in 2019. Once built, the high-efficiency and environmentally-optimised CCGT plant with a capacity of 2,250MW in Binh Thuan province, situated northeast of Saigon will be operated by EDF for a period of 20 years. It forms part of Vietnam’s efforts to diversify its sources of energy and will help satisfy the country’s growing hunger for electricity while reducing the share of coal in its energy mix (38% in 2018) in favour of gas and renewable energy. The EDF group was chosen to head the consortium tasked with studying the project alongside local partner Pacific Corporation and Japanese partners Sojitz Corporation and Kyushu Electric Power Co.with stakes of 37.5%, 25%, 18.75% and 18.75% respectively. A memorandum of understanding setting out the general terms of the project was signed with Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) on 2 November 2018. 2019 was devoted to negotiations, followed by completion of the investment feasibility study. The working schedule for 2020 will consist in obtaining final approval for this feasibility study from MOIT and moving forward in the negotiation of a concession agreement and other contractual documents required for commissioning of the first unit by the end of 2024.
At 31 December 2019, the EDF group held a 40% stake in Nam Theun 2 Power Company (NTPC), which owns the hydropower complex Nam Theun 2 with an installed capacity of 1,070MW, built by the EDF group under a “turnkey” contract, commissioned in 2010 and which represents approximately 17% of the installed capacity of the country. The other shareholders are a Thai company, EGCO (Electricity Generating Public Company Limited), which holds 35%, and a Lao State company, LHSE (Lao Holding State Enterprise), which holds 25%. NTPC company operates the power plant on a 25-year concession agreement concluded with the government of Laos.
