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China’s carbon neutral goal
TechPolicy

State Grid rolls out carbon neutrality action plan to accelerate China’s clean energy drive

  • The world’s largest utility is the first state-owned enterprise to unveil its own carbon neutrality initiative
  • It plans to build a diversified clean energy supply system in the next five to 10 years

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Solar panels and wind turbines cover this area near the city of Yancheng, in the eastern coastal province of Jiangsu. State Grid Corp of China plans to accelerate development of clean energy infrastructure, including wind and solar power for generating electricity. Photo: EPA-EFE
Yujie Xue

State Grid Corp of China, the world’s largest utility, published on Monday its carbon neutrality action plan, which aims to maximise the buildout of wind and solar energy infrastructure across the country.

It is the first state-owned enterprise to unveil such a plan, following President Xi Jinping’s pledge in September last year that China would scale up its voluntary emissions targets under the Paris climate agreement – hitting peak emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060.

State Grid will “build a diversified clean energy supply system” in the next five to 10 years, according to the action plan published on its website. The company plans to step up the development of clean energy infrastructure, including wind, solar and hydro power for generating electricity.

The plan also sharpens the company’s focus on improving the efficiency of existing infrastructure, while developing innovative energy technology.

Aerial photo shows State Grid technicians in eastern China’s Zhejiang province checking transmission lines on a giant power supply pylon in October. Photo: Xinhua
Aerial photo shows State Grid technicians in eastern China’s Zhejiang province checking transmission lines on a giant power supply pylon in October. Photo: Xinhua

By 2025, the proportion of primary energy consumption across China that does not use fossil fuels will reach about 20 per cent, according to State Grid’s estimates. By 2030, it expects that consumption to reach 25 per cent.

On the energy consumption side, State Grid said it will focus on the promotion of electric energy to replace coal and fossil fuels in industrial manufacturing, construction and transport. By 2025, State Grid expects the proportion of electricity in final energy consumption to reach 30 per cent. That would increase to 35 per cent by 2030, it said.

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