Status of renewable energy development
By 2013, China surpassed the United States in total electric power generation capacity, reaching 1,234 gigawatt-electric (GWe) after an 8% increase from the previous year This capacity is projected to more than double by 2030, or possibly even sooner.
Between 2005 and 2013, renewable energy projects in China significantly expanded, with total installed renewable capacity increasing to 380 GWe by 2013 This represents a more than threefold growth since 2005, highlighting the rising importance of renewable energy in the country's energy landscape.
With an installed hydroelectricity generating capacity of
280 GWe 9 at the end of 2013, China remains the world’s leading investor in hydro (CNREC, 2014) As a result,
9 This includes more than 50,000 small-scale hydroelectricity facilities with a total installed capacity of around 67 gigawatts.
ENERGY AND THE PRESENT ENERGY SITUATION hydro accounted for nearly three-quarters of the total installed renewable power generation capacity in China.
Ten provinces in China contribute over 70% of the country's total hydroelectric power production, with one-third of all provinces and a quarter of the population depending on small hydroelectric systems for their energy needs Notably, China holds the title for the largest capacity of small-scale hydroelectric power in the world.
China's distributed energy capacity reached 34.3 GWe, with small hydro contributing 26.7 GWe, although not all small hydro is classified as distributed energy This approach not only enhances rural incomes but also supports irrigation efforts.
Most of China's hydroelectricity projects are developed by state-owned enterprises, with Sino Hydro Group responsible for 65% of them Private companies face challenges in penetrating this market, but Hanergy stands out as a notable exception This private firm specializes in hydroelectric, wind, and solar energy and has successfully built several hydroelectric plants, including Jin’anqiao, Mujing, Huangtian, Wulanghe, and Kunlong.
Currently, the installed capacity of hydroelectric power is only about 40% of its technical potential, significantly lagging behind the average in developed countries The goal was to achieve an installed capacity of 420 GWe by 2020, which included 70 GWe from pump storage To meet this target, the construction of over 50 large-scale dams on major rivers such as the Jinsha, Yalong, Dadu, Lancang, and Yarlung Tsangpo is essential.
Wind power investments have surged in recent years, with total installed capacity reaching 91.4 GWe by the end of 2013, establishing China as the global leader in wind energy usage The difference between newly installed capacity and new grid additions has decreased over the past three years, with 77.1 GWe of the total capacity now integrated into electricity distribution grids.
After the six-fold growth of total generation capacity between 2008 and 2013, wind power had become the third largest source of Chinese power production after
Figure 2: Cumulative renewable power plant capacity in China
Installed renewable power generation capacity (GW e )
Hydro Wind on-grid Solar PV (on-grid) Biomass Geothermal & Ocean
Source: IRENA analysis based on CNREC (2013a,b;2014)
Note: Excludes distributed solar PV capacity which reached 5 gigawatts in 2013 (CNREC, 2014)
Since 2013, China has held the title of the largest total electric power production capacity in the world, with expectations to more than double this capacity by 2030 Despite thermal and hydro sources accounting for only 2.5% of the total, the industry shows significant potential for growth From 2010 to 2012, the average newly added capacity was 15 GWe annually, while the size of wind parks has also expanded, with the average unit capacity reaching 1.4 megawatts-electric (MWe) in 2012—double the capacity recorded in 2005.
As of 2013, there were wind turbine projects in development that could add 60.2 GWe of capacity If completed and integrated into the grid within the next 2-3 years, these projects are anticipated to nearly double China's total installed on-grid wind power generation capacity (CREIA, 2014a).
Private and foreign ownership in the wind energy sector is minimal, representing only 5% and 1% of the total capacity, respectively In contrast, state-owned entities dominate the market, holding approximately 80% of total wind capacity, while Sino-foreign joint ventures contribute to 14%.
North China accounts for about 70% of the total in- stalled wind capacity Hebei and Gansu provinces also have high installed capacities: 7.1 GWe and 6.3 GWe, respectively (CNREC, 2013a; Perera, 2014).
Wind power is the third largest source of electricity in China, although it still only accounts for 2.5% of the total
By the end of 2012, China had successfully installed 390 MWe of offshore wind power, predominantly located in Jiangsu Province and Shanghai City, with all facilities connected to the grid Notably, two-thirds of this capacity was situated in intertidal zones, with the Donghai Bridge near Shanghai being the largest site, boasting a capacity of 102 MWe The remaining projects primarily consisted of small prototypes aimed at demonstration and testing purposes, highlighting China's commitment to advancing offshore wind energy.
150 MWe in Jiangsu Rudong Other installations are the second phase of the 65.6 MWe Donghai Bridge project, with 8.6 MWe installed in 2011 (GWEC, 2014b; WP, 2013).
China has experienced a significant rise in solar photovoltaic (PV) projects, with installed generation capacity skyrocketing from 0.8 GWe in 2010 to 7 GWe by 2012—a nearly tenfold increase Notably, in 2012, approximately 4 GWe was added, surpassing the total capacity installed over the previous five years.
Figure 3: China wind power capacity growth, 2008-2013
New installed New installed (connected to the grid)
In early 2013, a revised target of 35 GWe for solar energy capacity was set, reflecting a significant 40% increase from the previous goal of 21 GWe This adjustment was influenced by the conclusion of a 16 US cents per kWh feed-in tariff for large grid-connected photovoltaic projects, leading to a record annual increase in installed solar capacity.
13 GWe by 2013 This makes the total installed capacity
19.6 GWe including 16.3 GWe of ground-mounted solar
PV systems and 3.1 GWe of distributed solar.
Following the strong momentum seen in 2013, a new target was set in May 2014 of 70 GWe by 2017 in the con- text of the Action Plan on Prevention and Control of Air
Pollution This target indicates that the record growth of
To achieve the new solar energy target, a consistent generation of 13 GWe per year is required over the next four years In 2013, the increase in distributed solar PV capacity was approximately 800 MWe, highlighting the need for significant growth in installations for 2014.
8 GWe of distributed solar PV as opposed to 6 GWe ground-mounted utility-scale solar PV farms (CREIA,
2014b) It highlights the importance of distributed solar
In western China, the development of utility-scale solar PV is significant, with distributed solar PV comprising approximately 38% of the total installed capacity (Haugwitz, 2014) During the first half of 2014, only 2.3 GWe of ground-mounted utility-scale capacity was installed, while around 1 GWe of distributed generation solar PV was added, alongside an additional 3 GWe that was commissioned within the same timeframe Meeting the established targets for solar energy expansion remains a critical focus.
2014 are to be achieved, considerable efforts need to be made in the near future.
Qinghai, Xinjiang, Tibet, Inner Mongolia, Sichuan and
Gansu Provinces account for the largest share of in- stalled solar PV capacities, given they represent more than two thirds of the national solar energy resource potential (CNREC, 2013a).
Concentrated solar power (CSP) has only recently been introduced in China In 2011, there were five approved projects under construction Their total capacity is
342.5 MWe and all of them use parabolic trough tech- nology Plants are located across Gansu, Inner Mongo- lia, Ningxia and Qinghai (Eurobserv’er, 2014; ESTELA,
2012) Expected installed capacity growth to 2018 is
1.4 GWe, mainly driven by the 12 th five-year plan (FYP)
(2011-2015) (for which the target is 1 GWe), the ample availability of low-cost financing and flexibility from hybridisation with coal or storage (IEA, 2013c) By 2020,
China aims to have 3 GWe of installed CSP capacity.
Base year renewable energy situation
In 2010, China's total primary energy consumption reached 100 exajoules (EJ), equivalent to 3,410 million tonnes of coal equivalent (Mtce), excluding approximately 5 EJ for non-energy use The final energy demand stood at 57 EJ (1,950 Mtce), with 59% utilized by the industrial sector, 21% by buildings, and 13% by transportation Electricity constituted 20% of the total final energy consumption, predominantly consumed by industry, while district heat production rose to 3 EJ in the same year.
It provides about 4% of the TFEC in each of the industry and building sectors About 70% of the total district heat demand was consumed in the industrial sector.
Over the past three decades, the sectoral breakdown of Total Final Energy Consumption (TFEC) has undergone significant changes In the 1980s, the building sector dominated energy demand, representing over 50% of TFEC, while the transport sector contributed a mere 5-6% Meanwhile, the industrial sector accounted for approximately 40% of total energy consumption.
Today, industrial energy consumption constitutes over 50% of China's total energy demand, while the transport sector's share has surged to 15%, significantly impacting the building sector, which now represents only 30% of energy use.
In 2010, renewable energy sources, both modern and traditional, contributed to 13% of the Total Final Energy Consumption (TFEC) Distinguishing between traditional and modern biomass usage can be challenging; estimates of traditional biomass use in China vary significantly, ranging from 1 EJ to 8 EJ When traditional biomass is excluded, modern renewable energy sources represent 7% of the TFEC (IEA, 2013a).
Renewable energy use is concentrated in the end-use sectors When excluding electricity and district heat
11 According to CNREC (2013a), the total primary energy consump- tion of China in 2012 was 3,620 Mtce, which is approximately
Primary energy consumption encompasses the direct use of energy carriers, such as crude oil, without any conversion, resulting in figures that exceed those of Total Final Energy Consumption (TFEC), which focuses on energy used for specific sectors like transport and appliances In the building sector, renewable energy accounted for 16% of consumption, while its usage in industry and transport remains minimal In terms of power generation, renewable sources contributed to 19% of electricity, but only 1% of the district heating sector relied on renewable energy in 2010.
Industry accounts for 62% of China’s total final energy consumption, the highest share amongst large economies, but industry sector has the least share of renewables in its fuel mix
The industrial sector in China is the largest consumer of energy, representing 62% of the total final energy consumption (TFEC) However, this share is expected to decrease to between 50% and 55% by 2030.
Today, for nearly all bulk materials, such as cement, steel and textile fibres, China accounts for the largest share of production worldwide The high importance of industry
Excluding power and district heat demand from the renewable energy share highlights the contribution of renewable technologies to the total fuel use in various sectors, emphasizing their impact beyond typical end-use boundaries In the context of the Chinese energy system, this distinction is particularly relevant, as the iron and steel sector emerges as the largest industrial energy consumer, representing 40% of China's total final energy consumption (TFEC) Other significant industrial energy users include non-metallic minerals at 18%, chemicals and petrochemicals at 12%, and machinery at 6% (IEA, 2013a).
The industrial sector has a significant demand for steam across various processes, yet the utilization of combined heat and power (CHP) systems remains relatively low Instead, a considerable portion of process heat is generated through traditional boilers.
In China most existing CHP production is based on coal
Many industrial and municipal heating systems are linked to power plants that provide steam to nearby facilities or district heating networks While investments in new capacity are enhancing the overall efficiency of these systems, numerous industrial setups still rely on outdated and inefficient coal boilers In China, the average efficiency of district heating boilers ranges from 60% to 65%, with heat losses in district heating pipelines estimated between 20% and 50%.
Besides their comparative lack of energy efficiency, these older forms of CHP also make the reduction
Industry fuels Industry electricity Transport fuels Transport electricity Buildings fuels Buildings electricity
According to IRENA estimates based on IEA data, addressing pollution and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions presents a significant challenge However, there is a substantial opportunity for GHG reductions by implementing localized, customer-based combined heat and power (CHP) systems at individual industrial sites and in new commercial and residential developments These systems can leverage more efficient and cleaner energy sources, including natural gas, renewable energy, and waste fuels.
The application of cleaner forms of CHP at the local level could increase energy efficiency and help reduce air pollution
Over three-quarters of the energy consumption in the transport sector is attributed to road transport, while domestic navigation contributes an additional 8% Rail transport, pipeline transport, and domestic aviation collectively make up 13% of the transport sector's total final energy consumption (TFEC) In 2011, highways accounted for more than half of the traffic, with 1,676 billion passenger-kilometres out of a total of 3,098 billion Additionally, aviation represents approximately 15% of total passenger transport.
Railways are increasingly gaining importance, with their share of total passenger transport reaching 30% in 2011
Nearly half of total freight movements were via naviga- tion in 2011, with road transport accounting for a third and railways about 20% of the total (LBNL, 2013).
As of 2011, the total number of vehicles on the road, excluding motorcycles and tractors, reached 93.6 million, with passenger vehicles accounting for 74.8 million and trucks making up 17.9 million of the civilian motor vehicle stock The demand for transportation is rapidly increasing, evidenced by the sale of 18.5 million vehicles in 2011 Future growth projections remain uncertain, with estimates varying widely.
25 million and 75 million cars in the long term (Econo- mist, 2012) By 2030, the vehicle stock will have reached
500-600 million vehicles, according to some estimates
(Wang et al., 2013) Ma et al (2012) project that the ve- hicle population in China will increase to 294 million in
2030, with an average annual growth rate of 11%.
By 2030, intercity passenger transportation is projected to reach approximately 7.6 trillion passenger-kilometers, nearly tripling the volume from 2010 The aviation sector's share of total passenger transportation is anticipated to double, while freight traffic volume may also see a twofold increase compared to 2010 Additionally, the share of railways in transportation is expected to decline from 30% to 19%, whereas water transport's share is likely to rise from 23% to 33%, and highways are predicted to account for 48% of the total share (Ma et al., 2012).
The building sector is the third largest energy consumer, following industry and transport, with residential energy use comprising 86% of total consumption, while the commercial sector accounts for the remaining portion Energy consumption in buildings can be categorized into urban residential, rural residential, and commercial sectors.
Space heating constitutes approximately 30% of total residential energy consumption, escalating to at least 50% in commercial buildings In rural areas, cooking represents over half of the total energy demand The analysis of this data significantly varies based on the methods used to account for biomass energy usage.