The Chinese offshore wind sector received a shock to the system in late May, when the National Energy Administration (NEA) suddenly announced it would end its generous feed-in tariff (FIT) scheme and replace it with auctions held by provincial governments.

One of the rules for the new tenders is that bids must be below the old FIT rate of 850 yuan ($133) per MWh — potentially rendering many projects in the 36GW pipeline unprofitable and forcing developers to significantly cut costs.