BEIJING – China’s wind and solar energy capacity has surpassed that of mostly coal-powered thermal for the first time, the national energy body said on April 25.
China, the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases that drive climate change, has pledged to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.
While around 60 per cent of China’s energy comes from coal, the country is also a renewable energy powerhouse, building almost twice as much wind and solar capacity as every other country combined, according to research published in 2024.
“In the first quarter of 2025, China’s newly installed wind and photovoltaic power capacity totalled 74.33 million kilowatts, bringing the cumulative installed capacity to 1.482 billion kW,” the national energy body said.
That surpassed the installed capacity of thermal power (1.451 billion kW) for the first time.
President Xi Jinping said on April 23 that “no matter how the international situation changes”, the country’s efforts to combat climate change “will not slow down”.
Mr Xi also said China would announce its 2035 greenhouse gas reduction commitments, known as Nationally Determined Contributions, before COP30 in November and that it would cover all greenhouse gases, not just carbon dioxide.
