In 2007, cumulative wind installations in China exceeded 5 gigawatts (GW), the goal originally set for 2010 by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's top economic planner. The Commission had set the target in its 2006 mid- and long-term development plan for renewable energy. The plan's target for 2020 was 30 GW, a level that is now projected to be reached by 2012, eight years ahead of schedule.
In March, the NDRC revised its mid-term target, doubling it from 5 GW to 10 GW for 2010. Yet this new goal is still too modest, with wind installations likely to reach 20 GW by 2010 and 100 GW by 2020. China is witnessing the start of a golden age of wind power development, and the magnitude of growth has caught even policymakers off guard.
I would have thought that it would take about twenty five to thirty years before the world would switch to alternative energy in a large way. The run up in oil prices is now accelerating that change even faster, that should not be a surprise with the large run up in oil prices.
Expect "real exceeds expectations" to continue as long as oil prices move higher. Oil, gas, uranium, and coal will eventually become too expensive to use as any form of energy.
