In 2020, China announced its climate goal: to achieve 1,200 gigawatts (GW) of generated green energy by 2030. Now, in 2025, it is official: this goal was achieved at least 6 years sooner. By combining different energy sources, the country was able to achieve this goal and prove to the world that it is possible to transition to a green energy source. And according to some sources, these changes are just the beginning of an even bigger step taken by China. The next move is planned to be achieved in 2028, but for it, the asian country will need the world’s help.
The first goal was successfully achieved by the end of 2024
According to some sources, the goal set by the Chinese government in 2020 was successfully achieved in December 2024, exactly 6 years before the estimated date for this part of the process to become a country powered by green energy. This information was confirmed by the International Energy Agency (IEA), which revealed that the world is also about to achieve a global goal.
Due to the Chinese advances, a key to the COP28 resolution is now possible to be achieved by 2030. With the improvement of solar, wind, and other renewable energy sources, we are close to meeting the global renewable energy capacity expected by the resolution.
With China’s efforts leading the world’s production of green energy, we will be able to triple the global renewable energy capacity to 11,000 GW by 2030. But according to some sources, this achievement was possible due to an unexpected move made by the government.
From a desperate scenario to the largest green energy generation in the world
According to some sources, in 2020, the expectations about the possibilities for 2030 in terms of green energy were not positive. The local market was in crisis, with low revenue and subsidiary payments delayed.
Besides the expectations, China kept the efforts to find advances in green energy, and even became a reference for the SMR in the world, helping other countries to deploy the same technology. And with a good policy and external factors being favorable to Chinese industry, the scenario changed, and the goal was achieved.
Growth expectations are even higher
With the improvement made, China will deploy other sites with renewable energy solutions. Due to these new sites, the asian country will have four times the capacity of the European Union and five times more than the United States.
Nowadays, the country has more than 300GW of storage capacity in operation, under construction, or in the works. Some of the most impressive changes were made in 2021, with the production of 55 GW of solar energy and 47 GW of wind energy. But it was in 2023 that the real change was made. With solar and wind energy in their best year, the subsidies necessary to maintain the growth were no longer needed. The projects became self-sustainable, calling the attention of investors and developers, who decided to build new units anywhere they could. Besides the results, some say they must change the goals and keep improving.
Manufactured equipment and low-cost financing may be the key
According to the IEA, in the next five years, China must consolidate itself as the first growth market in terms of green energy. The expectation is that 47% of China’s electricity will come from renewable sources by 2028. Most of this development came with the government’s net-zero target and incentives for a “five-year plan”, but the biggest differential is the availability of locally manufactured equipment and low-cost financing, as China is the biggest producer of these technological devices. But looking to the future, other countries are aiming to achieve their personal goals and developing devices like this, which may be a game-changer.