China targets clean, low-carbon energy system by 2030

New energy vehicles are being charged at the energy station of an integrated photovoltaic generation-storage-charging-discharging project in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning province. (Photo/Zou Xinjiang)

China recently released a plan for building a new energy system during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030). According to the plan, China aims to basically establish a clean, low-carbon, secure and efficient new energy system by 2030.

Wang Hongzhi, head of the National Energy Administration, outlined four key features China's energy sector will boast after five years of development.

First, it will be more secure and resilient. The country's total energy production capacity is expected to reach 5.8 billion tons of standard coal equivalent, with steadily improving self-sufficiency and more diversified and controllable energy imports.

Second, it will feature a far-better-balanced energy mix. New energy sources are targeted to exceed 50 percent of the country's installed power generation capacity, becoming the dominant form. Concurrently, non-fossil energy is projected to generate 50 percent of total electricity, taking the lead as China's main power source.

Third, the energy system will undergo profound transformation. China will accelerate the construction of robust, resilient, green, low-carbon, integrated, intelligent, and efficient new energy infrastructure. This transformation includes establishing a fundamentally new type of power system.

Fourth, it will become more innovation-driven. The modernization of the industrial chain will advance significantly, and market and pricing mechanisms suited to the new energy system will become more mature.

The plan addresses significant challenges: ongoing geopolitical conflicts disrupting global oil/gas supply chains internationally, and domestically, the rapid integration of wind and solar power creating hurdles for grid stability.

Wang noted that China's energy demand will continue to grow during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. China will always prepare for worst-case scenarios and apply systems thinking, and always place energy security at the top of its agenda.

Photo shows a wind farm in Yuexi county, Anqing, east China's Anhui province. (Photo/Xiong Fengxia)

To this end, China will focus on three priorities: further developing and expanding reserves of fossil energy resources, substantially increasing the supply of non-fossil energy, and broadening international energy cooperation.

Investment in major energy projects and emerging business models is expected to maintain steady growth during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, with total investment projected to exceed 20 trillion yuan ($2.94 trillion).

According to Wang, these projects fall into three broad categories.

The first category aims to strengthen energy security and mainly includes projects involving oil and gas, coal, supporting power sources, and coal-to-oil and coal-to-gas conversion. Investment in these areas is expected to continue rising steadily.

The second category focuses on advancing the green and low-carbon transition. China will roll out a 10-year action plan to double non-fossil energy output. Investment in the power grid during the 15th Five-Year Plan period is expected to be more than 30 percent higher than during the 14th Five-Year Plan period.

The third category is intended to foster new quality productive forces. China will develop a number of green hydrogen, ammonia and methanol production bases; expand scenarios for direct green power supply to multiple users; and promote new industries and business models such as new energy storage, integrated energy services, virtual power plants, and the coordinated development of computing power and electricity resources.

According to Du Zhongming, director general of the Department of Electricity of the National Energy Administration, fixed-asset investment in China's power grid is expected to exceed 5 trillion yuan($737.4 billion) during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, with efforts focused on building a new-type power grid around three priorities.

First, upgrade the new architecture of the power grid. During the period, China plans to put into operation 15 new ultra-high-voltage direct-current transmission corridors dedicated to green electricity, increasing west-to-east power transmission capacity to more than 420 million kilowatts.

Second, make breakthroughs in core new technologies. China will accelerate the application of technologies such as grid-forming systems and long-duration energy storage, while implementing an "AI + power grid" initiative.

In Dongying, east China's Shandong province, offshore production is in full swing at the Shengli Oilfield. (Photo/Zhang Can)

Third, provide better and more efficient services. Efforts will be made to continue optimizing grid connection and power transmission services for new energy projects and significantly enhance the system's ability to regulate and balance supply and demand.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China's annual increase in electricity consumption is expected to reach around 600 billion kilowatt-hours.

"We will act on the guidance of boosting computing power with electricity and driving power industry development via computing demand," said Wang. "We will coordinate energy resource allocation and computing infrastructure construction to advance the synergy between computing and power systems on multiple fronts."