China continues to consolidate its position as global green energy champion after wind and solar power overtook coal as the biggest contributor to its energy mix, as of June this year, according to data from the country’s National Energy Administration (NEA).

China has been investing heavily into renewable energy and two thirds of all solar panels in operation today are working in China. Together wind and solar are close to making up 40% of China’s generating capacity. Nevertheless, China remains dependent on coal-fired power stations to power its fast economic growth.

Rystad Energy’s analysis forecasts that by 2026, solar power alone will surpass coal as China’s primary energy source, with a cumulative capacity expected to exceed 1.38 TW, which is 150 GW more than coal.

Despite coal’s early dominance, with around 50 GW of annual installations before 2016, since 2020, the annual installations of wind and solar energy have consistently exceeded 100 GW, three to four times higher than coal additions. In 2023, China set a record with 293 GW of wind and solar installations, supported by gigawatt-scale renewable hub projects from NEA’s first and second batches connected to the grid.

As bne IntelliNews reported, developed countries have already used up all their carbon budget, with the US and EU being amongst the worst offenders. However, developing markets, especially China and India still have plenty of emissions available in their budgets and are creating more space for their green transitions thanks to the fast adoption of renewable power sources.

China remains the biggest emitter of CO₂  in the world, accounting for 27% of the total, closely followed by the US and emissions are currently at an all-time high and not slowing down.

Conversely, China’s coal power sector is moving in the opposite direction. Last year, approximately 40 GW was added, but this figure plummeted to 8 GW in the first half of 2024, according to Rystad estimates. The government is actively supporting renewables while pressuring the coal power sector to become cleaner, focusing on phasing out smaller plants, upgrading existing ones to reduce emissions, and enforcing more stringent standards for new projects.

In 2023, a record 216 GW of new solar capacity was installed. With 105 GW added in the first half of this year, Rystad expects China to exceed 230 GW of new solar capacity in 2024. Wind power capacity also saw significant growth, with an overall increase of 75 GW last year. From January to June 2024, 25 GW of new wind capacity was added, with estimates suggesting another 50 GW will come online in the second half of the year.