Most New Wind, Solar Facilities Are in China

Most of the largest wind and solar facilities being built are in China, according to research out Thursday (Reuters, subscription).

What’s going on: “China is building 339 gigawatts (GW) of utility-scale wind and solar, or 64% of the global total, a report from U.S.-based think tank Global Energy Monitor (GEM) found. That is more than eight times the project pipeline of the second-place U.S., with 40 GW.”

The pace of growth makes the global goal of tripling renewables capacity by the end of 2030 feasible, and it puts China six years ahead of schedule on its objective to install 1,200 gigawatts of wind and solar by 2030. It is on track to do the latter by this month.
In May, solar rose to 12% of China’s power generation, while wind increased to 12%. Hydropower was at 15%, nuclear at 5% and biomass at 2%.

The hurdle: “Absorbing the boom in renewables remains a challenge for China’s coal-centered grid, and faster development of transmission lines is needed.”

What it could mean: “If current rapid wind and solar deployment continues, then China’s CO2 output is likely to continue falling, making 2023 the peak year for the country’s emissions,” wrote Lauri Myllyvirta, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute.