China's wind, solar energy capacity surpasses thermal power for first time

An aerial drone photo taken on Jan. 6, 2025 shows a partial view of the Shichengzi photovoltaic power station in Hami City, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo by Feng Yang/Xinhua)

China's installed capacity of wind and photovoltaic power reached 1.482 billion kilowatts by the end of March, exceeding that of thermal power for the first time in history, official data showed Friday.

As new installations continue to grow rapidly, wind and solar capacity will maintain the lead over thermal power, the National Energy Administration said.

In the first quarter of this year, electricity generated from wind and photovoltaics reached 536.4 billion kilowatt-hours, accounting for 22.5 percent of China's total power use, up 4.3 percentage points from the same period last year.

Official data showed that China's total installed renewable power capacity reached about 1.41 billion kilowatts at the end of 2024, accounting for over 40 percent of its total electricity capacity and surpassing coal-fired power installations.

The country's new energy industry has experienced rapid growth in recent years as it steps up efforts to decarbonize the economy.

Since 2013, the country's wind power installed capacity has grown sixfold, while solar power installed capacity has surged more than 180 times. Its annual new installations account for more than 40 percent of the global total, significantly contributing to world's green development.