China's Zhejiang sees robust green power trading amid low-carbon drive

HANGZHOU, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- East China's Zhejiang Province saw robust trading of green electricity last year, as part of the country's drive to deliver on its dual carbon promises.

Its trading volume of green electricity reached 8.2 billion kWh in 2023, surging by nearly 219 percent year on year, according to the Zhejiang electricity trading center.

About 26 percent of the trading volume involved green electricity transmitted from Qinghai, Gansu, Xinjiang and other provincial regions.

Green electricity refers to electricity with zero or near-zero carbon dioxide emissions in its production process, which is important for achieving carbon neutrality for a company as well as the transformation and upgrading of the entire industry.

Green electricity trading serves as a vital means of achieving dual carbon goals and building a new energy system. Last year, the province organized 95 such trading sessions, attracting over 16,000 trading participants, said Zhuang Xiaodan, an official with the trading center.

In recent years, the coastal province has beefed up green energy development. By the end of 2023, its installed capacity of new energy sources, including wind and solar power, exceeded 30 percent of its total installed power generation capacity for the first time.

Electricity generated from new energy sources in Zhejiang totaled 40.6 billion kWh in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 31 percent, data showed.

China has committed to the dual carbon goals of peaking carbon emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060.