China's Overseas Investments in the Wind and Solar Industries

The paper analyzes 124 Chinese overseas investments in wind and solar energy across 33 countries, identifying that these investments are primarily driven by excess domestic manufacturing capacity, state-owned bank financing, and host-country incentives. While concentrated in developed nations like the US and Germany, investments also reach developing countries such as Ethiopia and Pakistan, with a significant portion focused on electricity generation via joint ventures.

• China has made at least 124 investments in the solar and wind industries across 33 countries over a ten-year period. Of these, 81 were in the solar industry, 41 in the wind industry, and 2 spanned both. For the subset of investments where data was available, 54 investments totaled nearly US$40 billion in value, and 53 investments added nearly 6,000 MW of installed capacity.
• The majority of these investments focused on electricity generation, with wind farms and solar projects predominantly established through joint ventures. Other investments targeted manufacturing facilities and the creation of sales and marketing offices.
• Investments were primarily concentrated in developed nations, specifically Australia, Germany, Italy, and the United States, though some developing nations including Ethiopia, Pakistan, and South Africa also received investment.
• Chinese overseas investment is driven by a combination of 'push' factors, such as manufacturing capacity exceeding domestic demand and support from state-owned banks, and 'pull' factors from host countries, including bilateral cooperation agreements, feed-in tariffs, and tax breaks.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). China's Overseas Investments in the Wind and Solar Industries. https://www.wri.org/research/chinas-overseas-investments-wind-and-solar-industries

Chicago

World Resources Institute. China's Overseas Investments in the Wind and Solar Industries. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/chinas-overseas-investments-wind-and-solar-industries.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=China's Overseas Investments in the Wind and Solar Industries |url=https://www.wri.org/research/chinas-overseas-investments-wind-and-solar-industries |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendchinas, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{China's Overseas Investments in the Wind and Solar Industries}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/chinas-overseas-investments-wind-and-solar-industries}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }