The world's clean energy superpower also emits the most CO2. But coal-fired power may have peaked as China electrifies its economy with ever more renewables.
China is undergoing a renewable energy revolution. In 2025 alone, it added nearly 450 gigawatts (GW) of clean energy capacity, which was more solar and twice as much wind as the rest of the world combined.
Before 2010, China had only limited renewable energy. Today, electricity generated by huge wind and solar farms that stretch out across mountains, deserts, on rooftops and off the coast, account for a quarter of electricity production.
The country achieved the goal of adding 1,200 GW of wind and solar capacity to the grid by 2030 five years ahead of schedule. China also produces over 80% of the world's photovoltaic panels, helping drive down costs and accelerating the clean energy transition globally.
Its quest to rid itself of dependence on foreign oil and gas has been the chief inspiration for the rapid expansion of domestic energy sources and electrification, says Tim Buckley, director of Australian think tank Climate Energy Finance.
