A report by clean energy think tank Ember has highlighted China’s swift transition to renewable energy, reshaping the global energy landscape.
According to the report, the country’s rapid expansion of renewable energy sources, grid infrastructure, and energy storage, along with the electrification of transport, buildings, and industry, is steering China towards a peak in fossil fuel consumption.
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Concurrently, this shift is contributing to reduced costs and hastening the adoption of clean electro-technologies in other nations. These simultaneous developments are setting the stage for a worldwide peak and subsequent decrease in the use of fossil fuels for energy.
Last year, wind and solar electricity generation in China increased by 25% compared to the previous year. In the first half of 2025, this growth continued with a further 27% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
This surge has contributed to a 2% reduction in fossil fuel generation and positioned wind and solar as the leading sources of clean electricity, surpassing nuclear, hydro, and bioenergy combined.
The country reached $625bn in clean energy investment last year, accounting for nearly 31% of the global total.
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By GlobalDataEnergy storage capacity has tripled in three years to 2024, and grid investments have reached a record high of $85bn, an increase from $68bn in 2019.
Experts suggest that China’s move away from a fossil fuel-centric development model is driven by the need to adapt to 21st-century challenges.
Since 2018, the concept of an ‘ecological civilisation’ has been constitutional, aiming to harmonise economic, social, and environmental objectives.
The report also said that the clean energy transition is reducing China’s reliance on imported fossil fuels, cutting energy costs, fostering economic growth, and creating jobs and export markets.
In 2024, the clean energy sector contributed $1.9tn to the national economy, about one-tenth of China’s GDP. The sector’s growth rate is three times that of the overall economy.
Chinese companies also lead in clean energy technology innovation, accounting for approximately 75% of global patent applications.
China’s investments are driving down costs for critical technologies such as wind turbines, solar panels, storage batteries, and electric vehicles, benefiting emerging markets that are now surpassing Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries in wind and solar generation share and electrification.
