One in every three kilowatt-hours in China now comes from green energy

The construction site of the Jinqimen nuclear power project in Xiangshan county, Ningbo, east China's Zhejiang Province, Dec. 15, 2025. (Photo/Zhang Yongtao)

China's electricity consumption is expected to reach a record high in 2025, with total power use projected to exceed 10 trillion kilowatt-hours nationwide, according to the latest data released by the National Energy Administration. The figure, a global first, will surpass the combined consumption of the European Union, Russia, India and Japan.

Clean energy plays a growing role in meeting this record-breaking demand. Since the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), China has built the world's largest renewable energy system. One out of every three kilowatt-hours of electricity is generated from green energy sources.

Between 2021 and 2025, renewable energy's share of China's total installed power generation capacity increased from 40 percent to around 60 percent. Annual new installations of wind and PV power successively surpassed the 100-million-, 200-million- and 300-million-kilowatt milestones.

During this period, several major projects were completed and put into operation, including the Baihetan hydropower station; domestically developed third-generation nuclear power units Hualong One and Guohe One, and the fourth-generation high-temperature gas-cooled reactor. The expansion of hydropower and nuclear power has further strengthened the country's green electricity supply capacity.

Workers conduct inspections at the Xiong'an 500-kilovolt ultra-high voltage substation ahead of its commissioning in Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province, Dec. 6, 2025. (Xinhua/Yang Shiyao)

This year, multiple ultra-high voltage (UHV) transmission lines entered service, enabling the transmission of green electricity thousands of miles within milliseconds. In 2024, cross-regional UHV DC channels transmitted approximately 420 billion kilowatt-hours of clean energy, a 70 percent increase from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020).

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China has stepped up the development of main grids, distribution networks, and microgrids, significantly enhancing the power grid's capacity to integrate new energy sources.

Currently, the country's installed capacity of new types of energy storage exceeds 100 million kilowatts, more than 30 times the level at the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period, accounting for over 40 percent of the global total.

This year, China is expected to issue approximately 2.9 billion green electricity certificates, with trading volume exceeding 750 million, surpassing the combined total of all previous years.

Wind turbines in Gaoqiao village, Shunde township, Hukou county, Jiujiang city, east China's Jiangxi Province, Dec. 3, 2025. (Photo/Zhang Yu)

The National Energy Administration recently stated that by 2030, new energy sources will account for more than 50 percent of China's total installed power generation capacity.