China's green power met all growth in electricity demand in 2025

illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day, reviewed by our editorial team. Read the full piece on CGTN or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: In 2025, China’s renewable energy generation fully met the country’s additional electricity demand, marking a historic milestone where economic growth did not drive fossil fuel consumption
• Wind, solar, hydro, and other green sources accounted for all new electricity needs, with distributed solar capacity surpassing 100 million kilowatts for the second consecutive year

🔭 The context: China added record-breaking renewable capacity in 2025, 82.7% of all new power installations nationwide, contributing to a total installed renewable capacity of 2.337 billion kilowatts
• Both wind and solar power exceeded one trillion kilowatt-hours, each supplying over 10% of the national electricity mix
• The growth reemphasizes China’s role as a global leader, with over 60% of worldwide renewable capacity additions in 2025

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Meeting new electricity demand entirely with renewables prevents additional fossil fuel emissions, reducing CO2 output and accelerating China’s low-carbon transition
• Expanding green power also supports industrial decarbonization, zero-carbon infrastructure, green transportation, and ecological restoration, mitigating climate change impacts while enabling sustainable economic growth

⏭️ What’s next: China plans to install ~300 million kilowatts of new wind and solar capacity in 2026, alongside 50 million kilowatts of energy storage
• Large-scale desert-based renewable projects, coordinated clean energy and ecological development, and offshore wind expansion will continue driving its low-carbon energy transition

💬 One quote: Renewable energy is expected to remain the main driver of China’s green and low-carbon energy transition in the years ahead.” – China Renewable Energy Development Report, 2026

📈 One stat: Renewable energy supplied 38.3% of China’s total electricity generation in 2025, a 9.6% increase year-on-year, with wind and solar each surpassing one trillion kilowatt-hours

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