Opinion | China’s clean energy transition solves several problems at once
By increasing investment in renewables, China’s economy stands to benefit from more sustainable growth rates and improved terms of trade
Reduced consumption of crude oil coupled with lower prices could cut China’s energy import bill by half a per cent of GDP. The clean energy push will increase investment and lower supply-side costs, killing two birds with one stone. Cheap and abundant renewable energy is the most important pillar of China’s long-term prosperity.
China’s initial industrialisation was dependent on imported energy. But renewables are giving the country the means to turn its own industrial power into energy; China will no longer need to rely on imports to power its economy.
In 2024, China’s primary energy resource consumption was equivalent to 5.96 billion tonnes of standard coal. Its electricity consumption was 9.8 trillion kilowatt hours (kWh), of which solar reportedly generated 834 billion kWh – up 44 per cent from the year before – and wind generated 992 billion kWh, up 16 per cent.