Two wind turbines developed by the Chinese wind power company Sinovel have been put into service in Karlstad, west Sweden on Feb 29.

The turbine is 150 meters high with a rotor diameter of 113 meters and a 3-megawatt power rating. CRC Wind Power AB is headquartered in the second largest Swedish city Gothenburg and spent SK 84 million ($12.85 million) to buy the two turbines.

They are expected to generate 15,000MWh of electric power annually to meet the electricity demand of 3,000 households.

The CRC chairman Claes Bühler said that, "as Sinovel is a world leading wind turbine manufacturer, it deserves to be the primary choice for Swedish wind power developers." Bühler also mentioned that he believes the company develops trusted and efficient green power generation products.

"The project demonstrates a broad prospect for the China-Sweden collaboration in the clean energy sector," said Zhang Weihua, consul-general of the Consulate-General of China in Gothenburg when addressing the launching ceremony.

Sinovel's senior vice-president, Li Lecheng said, "If the grid connection meets no problems and the local users accept the technology and quality of Sinovel turbines, the project will pave the way for Chinese turbines entering the European market."

Edited by Chen Zhilin and Tom McGregor