China's energy sector has reached a historic inflection point. According to the latest data from the National Energy Administration, as of the end of July this year, the country's installed photovoltaic power generation capacity reached 1.286 billion kilowatts, surpassing coal power (1.285 billion kilowatts) for the first time to become the largest power source category in the country. This milestone means solar power now accounts for 31.5% of the nation's total installed power generation capacity.
However, it's worth noting that installed capacity does not equal actual power generation. Data reveals that from January to July this year, China's photovoltaic power generation reached 802.4 billion kilowatt-hours, accounting for 13% of total societal electricity consumption. This means that one out of every eight kilowatt-hours of electricity consumed nationwide now comes from solar power, with a growing number of households and factories relying on green solar energy. This aerial photo, taken on September 2, 2025, shows the Hangjinqi Shuofang New Energy base in the Kubuqi Desert.
For a long time, benefiting from resource endowments and stable, reliable output capabilities, coal power has firmly held the position of the country's largest power source, supporting China's rapid industrialization and urbanization. With the national strategy for clean energy development, diverse clean energy sources including solar, hydro, and wind power have risen rapidly, fundamentally reshaping the power structure. As early as the end of 2025, the combined installed capacity of wind and solar power had reached 47.3%, historically surpassing the total installed capacity of thermal power. New energy completed its transformation from a "supplementary energy source" to a "mainstream power source." Now, with photovoltaic installed capacity surpassing coal power, this marks a landmark event among the world's major economies, signaling another critical step forward in China's energy transition. This solidifies the foundation for building a new-type power system centered on new energy and provides a Chinese model for other countries undertaking their own energy transitions.
The rapid rise of photovoltaic power generation is the result of a dual drive: robust electricity demand and hardcore technological progress, underpinned by long-term national macro-strategy. On the demand side, China's economy continues to improve, with social electricity consumption maintaining steady growth. In the first half of this year, total societal electricity consumption reached 5,099.9 billion kilowatt-hours, a year-on-year increase of 5.3%. New business formats represented by internet data services and battery charging/swapping services experienced explosive growth in electricity demand, with consumption reaching 49.4 billion and 81 billion kilowatt-hours respectively, growing at an impressive 44.0% and 56.9%. The surge in electricity demand from the computing power industry is the most vivid microcosm of the current energy consumption landscape. The National Energy Administration estimates that during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, the country's annual new computing power electricity consumption will exceed 100 billion kilowatt-hours, reaching 800 billion kilowatt-hours by 2030, approximately 6% of total societal electricity consumption. By comparison, residential electricity consumption accounted for about 15% of the total in 2025, meaning future computing power alone will consume about one-third of the electricity used by households.
Facing an ever-expanding electricity demand, expanding power supply must deeply tap into clean energy potential. This is both a practical necessity for high-quality economic development and an essential path toward achieving the dual carbon goals. Committing to peak carbon emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060 represents China's solemn promise to the world, and the green, low-carbon energy transition is the main battleground for realizing this goal. The "New Power System Construction 15th Five-Year Plan" issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration sets a clear blueprint: by 2030, a green, low-carbon power supply structure will be basically established, with non-fossil energy generation accounting for 50% of the total. Toward this end, China is coordinating a multi-energy approach, with various clean energy projects accelerating implementation. Just last month, the State Council's executive meeting approved four nuclear power projects including the Zhejiang Jinqimen Nuclear Power Phase II, continuously improving a supply system that coordinates nuclear, hydro, wind, and solar power.
Against a more complex and volatile international geopolitical environment, ensuring energy security based on national conditions and firmly holding the "rice bowl" of energy in our own hands makes developing clean energy an unavoidable requisite. The "15th Five-Year Plan" outlines deployment of a new energy security strategy, accelerating the construction of a clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient new energy system, and focusing on building a strong energy nation. From wind and solar power bases in the "Three Norths" region and integrated water-wind-solar demonstration projects in the southwest, to coastal nuclear power clusters and offshore wind power bases, major clean energy projects are being strategically deployed nationwide, continuously consolidating an autonomously controllable energy supply foundation. Under the strong guidance of top-level design, photovoltaic power generation, with its renewable and low-carbon advantages, is entering a golden period of development. In the first half of this year, 71.77 million kilowatts of new photovoltaic capacity was connected to the grid; during midday summer peak hours, solar power output can now cover one-third of the nation's electricity demand. As of the end of July this year, the country's installed photovoltaic capacity reached 1.29 billion kilowatts, an increase of 16.1% year-on-year.
Behind the rising photovoltaic installed capacity lies the support of China's self-reliant and self-strengthening hardcore technological strength in the PV industry. According to officials at the National Energy Administration, China holds a globally dominant position in core manufacturing segments including polysilicon, silicon wafers, cells, and modules, having built a complete industrial loop covering equipment manufacturing, technology R&D, and power station operation and maintenance. Today, 8 out of every 10 photovoltaic modules globally are manufactured in China, with core technologies firmly in the world's first tier. China's complete industrial chain advantages have driven down global PV costs, dramatically lowering the threshold for clean energy development worldwide. The PV industry has become a shining business card of "Made in China." The strength of the domestic industry not only supports rapid domestic PV development but also continues to release momentum for foreign trade. Data shows that in the first half of this year, exports of the "new three" foreign trade items — electric vehicles, lithium batteries, and photovoltaic products — grew by 13.3%, 39.9%, and 36.5% respectively, delivering China's green development achievements to global markets.
The popularization of photovoltaics is also giving rise to new cross-industry integration models, opening broad prospects for green prosperity. Innovative models such as "PV + agriculture" and "PV + ecological governance" are taking root across the country, mutually empowering green energy and rural revitalization. The Qinghai Talatan PV Park has pioneered a distinctive "PV panels + Tibetan sheep" model. Photovoltaic installed capacity surpassing coal power for the first time is far more than a simple industry narrative. It represents a remarkable achievement driven by multiple factors: the effective implementation of the national energy security strategy, the deep reshaping of the energy structure, and breakthroughs in independent industrial innovation. Coal power will continue to play an important role in guaranteeing supply and providing baseline support in the power system, but solar power's ascension to the top marks China's bold march into a cleaner, safer, and more sustainable electricity era. As a major leader in global green transition, China's PV practice not only injects sustained green momentum into Chinese-style modernization but also contributes a substantial and powerful Chinese solution to global climate change response and low-carbon energy transition.
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