China’s renewable energy transition broke into record-setting. No country is setting up renewable energy at a pace like China does. Based on the Climate Energy Finance think tank, China will reach its 2030 target this very month. This has been attained 6.5 years ahead of schedule.
In the first five months of 2024, China added capacity worth 103.5 gigawatts. Solar power commanded the top, at 79.2 gigawatts, followed by wind at 19.8 gigawatts. Hydro managed 3.4 gigawatts, despite a year-over-year drop. China installs at least 10 gigawatts of new solar and wind power every fortnight.
China builds hundreds of wind and solar farms in western regions, including the Gobi Desert. Electricity is generated from the current and it is sent 3,000 miles to eastern cities to be distributed. This strategy compensates for the low rooftop solar installations of the urban areas.
Among many, there are peculiar installations like the floating dual-rotor wind turbines in urban areas. They are powerful enough to spin through hurricanes. This innovation helps the urban areas to contribute to the renewable energy surge.
China deploys energy storage methods to stabilize its renewable power supply. In this league, it includes pumped hydro facilities, utility-scale batteries, and new coal-fired power plants. Despite that, renewable generation is set to overtake coal-fired output by year’s end.
China’s renewable energy transition swiftly weans it off coal. Despite being the world leader in installed coal power capacity, the percentage of electricity produced by coal falls. Clean energy will further ramp up, showing serious intentions from China towards a greener future.
