Chinese Version 中文翻译--Draft 2 - China Briefing Draft - 18/06/26

China leads the world in planned utility-scale solar and wind capacity, with over 500GW already under construction. However, the transition has shifted from a 'capacity race' to a 'system integration' phase, where transmission bottlenecks and a continued reliance on coal-fired power for grid stability lead to increasing curtailment, particularly in the northwest and northern regions. While green hydrogen and local consumption offer paths for industrial decarbonization, there is a risk that these technologies may be used to justify the continued expansion of coal-based chemical industries.

• China's planned utility-scale solar and wind capacity is larger than the rest of the world combined, with over 500GW of the total 1,360GW planned capacity already in the construction phase. As of June 2026, China has 664GW of planned utility-scale solar capacity, representing about one-third of the global total, and 698GW of planned wind capacity, which is more than 2.5 times that of Brazil, the second-ranked country.
• Renewable energy development is highly concentrated in six provinces and regions in the northwest and north—Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Qinghai, Ningxia, and Shaanxi—which hold 714GW of planned capacity, over half of the national total. This concentration has led to severe curtailment issues; in 2025, solar curtailment rates in Qinghai, Xinjiang, and Gansu reached 10%–17%, while wind curtailment in the six northern/northwestern regions ranged between 4% and 9%.
• The transmission system remains heavily dependent on coal power. Since 2021, wind and solar have consistently accounted for only about one-fifth of the electricity transmitted via Ultra-High Voltage Direct Current (UHVDC) lines, while coal power accounts for 42%. Future plans for 11 UHVDC channels serving renewable energy bases include 129GW of wind and solar but also 40GW of coal power, suggesting coal continues to play a core role in transmission rather than a purely auxiliary one.
• The '15th Five-Year Plan' for New Energy System Construction sets a target for wind and solar to exceed 50% of total power installed capacity by 2030, a goal likely to be met by the end of 2026 based on current pipelines. The plan also targets 300GW of new energy storage by 2030 and 2 million tons of green hydrogen annual production by 2030.

APA

于爱群, Norman, J., & 黄烨 (n.d.). Chinese Version 中文翻译--Draft 2 - China Briefing Draft - 18/06/26. Global Energy Monitor. https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/2026-07/GEM%20China%20Wind%20%26%20Solar%20brief%20July%202026%20-%20Chinese.pdf

Chicago

于爱群, James Norman, and 黄烨. Chinese Version 中文翻译--Draft 2 - China Briefing Draft - 18/06/26. Global Energy Monitor, n.d. https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/2026-07/GEM%20China%20Wind%20%26%20Solar%20brief%20July%202026%20-%20Chinese.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=于爱群 |last2=Norman |first2=James |last3=黄烨 |title=Chinese Version 中文翻译--Draft 2 - China Briefing Draft - 18/06/26 |publisher=Global Energy Monitor |url=https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/2026-07/GEM%20China%20Wind%20%26%20Solar%20brief%20July%202026%20-%20Chinese.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ndchinese, author = {于爱群 and Norman, James and 黄烨}, title = {{Chinese Version 中文翻译--Draft 2 - China Briefing Draft - 18/06/26}}, institution = {Global Energy Monitor}, url = {https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/2026-07/GEM%20China%20Wind%20%26%20Solar%20brief%20July%202026%20-%20Chinese.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }