China seen accelerating wind, solar power installation under 5-year plan, reaching 2030 renewable target ahead of time
- While China has not unveiled the national targets for 2025, plans by 30 provinces suggest its 2030 targets are likely to be surpassed early
- China may revise its 2030 targets to account for speedier installation pace under the current five-year plan, Refinitiv’s Jin says
China is expected to achieve its 2030 target of installing renewable energy capacity ahead of schedule by about five years, after at least 30 provinces unveiled their respective programmes under the national five-year plan, climate analysts said.
The provinces are set to install more than 300 gigawatt (GW) of wind power and 550GW of solar power under the plan, taking their combined capacity for both sources to 1,500GW by the end of the period, according to Jin Boyang, a senior analyst at data provider Refinitiv. That would surpass Beijing’s goal of 1,200GW by 2030.
“There’s a chance that China might increase its renewable target for 2030 by the end of 2025, if not sooner,” given the expected pace of installation, said Jin.
While China has not set its national-level targets under the 2021-2025 plan, a National Energy Administration (NEA) report last week suggests the central government is accelerating its efforts this year to add more renewable sources to its future energy mix.
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China would have a total installed capacity of 430GW of wind energy, 490GW of solar energy and 423GW of hydropower by the end of 2023, the NEA said on December 31 when disclosing the sector’s key tasks for the new year. Nuclear power capacity could reach 2.89GW, it added.
The combined capacity of 920GW from wind and solar power in 2023 would represent more than 70 per cent of China’s 2030 goal.