Bringing Wind Power to China’s Energy Mix

With China’s wind power industry growing steadily since 2000, it was clear to the German government that China no longer needed its financial assistance. 

“We’d seen that in 2002 if China wanted to largely develop its wind power, it needed to build up its manpower,” DuBois says. 

“In Germany we think it is in our own interest if China’s wind farms work appropriately and save CO2 instead of just standing there.” 

He moved his family to Beijing in 2005 and to run the program in China. 

“Basically the program is a training center We think it is very important because the development in this sector in China is so rapid, that there is not enough time for people to learn why things are done in certain ways.” 

He attributes his Friendship Award to good fortune and says he could not have won it without the help of his Chinese colleagues. 

Wang Weisheng, director of the Renewable Energy Department at the China Electric Power Research Institute, says: “It is very rare for such an international cooperative project to last so long.  Though he speaks little Chinese, he truly understands our needs and requirements.  So, he acts perfectly as the bridge between the Chinese side and the German side. 

The Sino-German training program is due to end in October next year, but DuBois has no plans to leave China, which he now considers home. 

“I would like to be part of the change in renewable energy and to contribute my full potential in China,” he says.