Well not quite, but most new electricity demand in the year 2024 to 2025 was met by renewables, creating the first reduction in fossil fuel power generation in ten years.

It’s still a long way from net-zero, and China remains on track to surpass even the US in historical emissions in record time, with coal staying top of the energy sources chart, but there is a shift as the country pours resources into renewables.

Renewables covered 84% per cent of electricity demand growth in 2024 and exceeded it in early 2025 according to government figures. Whilst fossil fuels, especially coal, supplied over 80 per cent of primary energy and most of the electricity in 2024, renewable growth allowed a 2 to 3 per cent

China now seems committed to as ‘dual-track system’ that keeps it as world’s largest consumer of coal while also heavily investing in a transition to renewable energy. In early 2025, a milestone was reached when solar and wind capacity in China surpassed coal and gas power. Fossil furl therefore remains dominant in overall energy generation but appear to be peaking.

China has a target for ‘carbon neutrality’ by 2060.

Another, reported, result of this growth in new capacity generation is that China is no longer importing energy from Russia, the consequences of which remain to be seen.

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