Yibin: The world’s first megawatt-class high-altitude wind power system designed for urban deployment, the S2000 Stratosphere Airborne Wind Energy System (SAWES), has successfully completed a test flight in Yibin, Southwest China’s Sichuan Province.
According to Emirates News Agency, this achievement marks a key breakthrough as China’s high-altitude wind energy technology advances from experimental validation toward engineering-scale application. The SAWES system offers several environmental advantages, including a simpler structure, lower land requirements, and reduced environmental impact compared with conventional wind farms, as noted by experts.
The S2000 SAWES is an integrated airborne wind energy system, combining an airship platform and wind turbines into a single unit. The dimensions of the system are 60 meters in length, 40 meters in width, and 40 meters in height. During its test flight, the S2000 ascended to an altitude of 2,000 meters in about 30 minutes and generated 385 kilowatt-hours of electricity. It also achieved grid-connected power generation, making it the world’s first high-altitude wind power device to be formally connected to the power grid.
Dun Tianrui, Chief Executive Officer and chief designer of the system’s main developer, Beijing-based start-up SAWES Energy Technology, stated that the S2000 model can be deployed at altitudes up to 2,000 meters, with a single-unit power output of around 3 megawatts. “At its current output level, one hour of operation can generate enough electricity to fully charge approximately 30 top-spec electric vehicles from zero to full,” he said.