EDF and the Chinese electricity producer China Datang Corporation (CDT) signed a cooperation framework agreement in the presence of Xi Jinping, President of the People's Republic of China and François Hollande, President of the French Republic.
Through this agreement, both companies express their willingness to co-develop thermal power projects in China and internationally. Furthermore, the two groups intend to explore potential technical cooperation in the field of thermal engineering. This agreement will also strengthen the link between EDF and CDT in the field of R&D dedicated to promote clean energy technologies.
This agreement is following a first one concluded in 2006 by the two companies, which allowed EDF to take a 35% stake in the supercritical coal-fired plant of Datang Sanmenxia Power Phase II (DSPC), located in the region of Henan in the north of China. This is the most technologically advanced thermal coal project EDF is involved in.
Coal is a dominant component of the energy mix in Asia and in China. The generation capacity of the region from this fossil source is expected to reach 1,500 GW in 2020. The extensive use of coal in this part of the world requires advanced technologies to reduce its impact on the environment. Thanks to investments made in R&D and development of new projects, the Chinese industry is now world leader for high performance coal fired power plants with low CO2 emissions.
