Reviewing the potential benefits of reducing curtailments on renewable power generation in China

This research paper examines the impact of renewable energy curtailments in China through a water-energy-carbon nexus lens. The study finds that reducing these curtailments—particularly for wind power—would significantly lower carbon emissions and reduce water consumption compared to fossil-fueled thermal generation.

• Reducing renewable energy curtailments in China would lead to significant savings in water resources and reductions in carbon emissions because wind and solar power emit no carbon and require substantially less water than fossil-fueled thermal generation.
• Among the different renewable energy sources, removing barriers to wind power would result in the greatest environmental benefits, followed by the removal of barriers for hydropower and solar power.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2020). Reviewing the potential benefits of reducing curtailments on renewable power generation in China. https://www.sei.org/publications/review-climate-water-china/

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Reviewing the potential benefits of reducing curtailments on renewable power generation in China. 2020. https://www.sei.org/publications/review-climate-water-china/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Reviewing the potential benefits of reducing curtailments on renewable power generation in China |date=1 June 2020 |url=https://www.sei.org/publications/review-climate-water-china/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2020reviewing, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Reviewing the potential benefits of reducing curtailments on renewable power generation in China}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2020}, month = jun, url = {https://www.sei.org/publications/review-climate-water-china/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }