“No matter how the international situation changes, the country’s efforts to combat climate change will not slow down.”
President Xi Jinping’s statement reflects the country’s significant commitment to renewable energy, a sector that has experienced explosive growth in recent years. While China is the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases, it has pledged to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. In an effort to meet these goals, the country has been rapidly expanding its wind and solar energy capacity. According to the national energy body, China’s newly installed wind and photovoltaic power capacity totalled 74.33 million kilowatts in the first quarter of 2025, bringing the cumulative installed capacity to 1.482 billion kilowatts.
- Installed capacity of wind and solar power combined surpasses that of thermal power for the first time
- China meets its 2030 target for wind and solar capacity installation almost six years early
- Wind and solar additions in the first quarter have “far exceeded” China’s total increase in electricity consumption
This milestone marks a significant shift in China’s energy mix, as the country continues to grow its renewable energy sector.
| Year | Installed Capacity (GW) | Increase from previous year |
| 2020 | 1,150 GW | 10% |
| 2021 | 1,370 GW | 20% |
| 2022 | 1,540 GW | 12% |
| 2023 | 1,730 GW | 12% |
| 2024 | 1,870 GW | 8% |
| 2025 | 1,944 GW | 4% |
Despite the growth in renewable energy, coal continues to play a significant role in China’s energy mix.
Coal is still the largest source of energy for China, accounting for around 60 percent of the country’s energy consumption. Comparing wind and solar to coal
However, the intermittency of variable renewables like wind and solar means that they are generally not comparable to firm, dispatchable power sources like coal. “The intermittency of variable renewables like wind and solar… means it’s generally inappropriate to compare them to firm, dispatchable power sources like coal,” according to David Fishman, senior manager at the Lantau Group.
However, China’s power sector is undergoing a structural change, with the sector’s carbon emissions one step away from peaking. “This trend is very likely to continue in the following months and quarters in 2025,” Yao Zhe, Global Policy Adviser at Greenpeace East Asia, told AFP.
Despite the progress made in renewable energy, China still faces significant challenges in covering its growing energy consumption with renewable power. “Covering that growth with renewable power is a tough proposition for a developing country with a huge heavy industrial segment and a residential population that frankly doesn’t even use that much electricity on a per capita basis,” Fishman said.
In response to these challenges, China has announced its plans to announce its 2035 greenhouse gas reduction commitments, known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), before COP30 in November.
The international community is taking notice of China’s progress in renewable energy, with many countries looking to follow suit. “President Xi Jinping’s commitment to combat climate change is a clear message to the world that China is serious about reducing its carbon footprint,” said a spokesperson for the Climate Action Network. Despite the challenges ahead, China’s commitment to renewable energy and reducing carbon emissions is a significant step forward for the country and the world.
