The installed capacity of China’s renewable power reached a record high in October at 1.4 billion kilowatts (kW), up nearly 21% year-on-year and constituting nearly half of the country’s total, indicating the country’s accelerated transition to a greener energy structure, experts said. Meanwhile, energy companies are entering a phase of accelerated competition where technology-driven firms that intensify investments in research to enhance product performance and production efficiency will ride the tide, they said. Data from the National Energy Administration (NEA) showed that hydropower installations had a combined capacity of 420 million kW, wind power was at 404 million kW, photovoltaic (PV) stood at 536 million kW, and biomass power was at 44 million kW. By the year-end, the total capacity of renewable energy installations in China is expected to exceed 1.45 billion kW, with wind and PV capacities together surpassing 1 billion kW.
Zou Ji, CEO of the non-profit Energy Foundation and President of EF China, said that the country leads the global production capacity and market share in multiple areas of new energy, such as PV, offshore wind energy, batteries, electric vehicles and ultra-high-voltage direct current transmission. “China is responsible for more than 75% of the global PV supply chain, and its export volume of such products has increased significantly in accordance with global growth,” said Jiang Yali, Solar Analyst at energy research provider BloombergNEF. Driven by China’s decarbonization goals and buoyed by increasing market demand, China has a complete life-cycle supply chain in PV facility manufacturing, enjoying an obvious scale effect. Meanwhile, the technology of PV power generation is developing rapidly, which greatly promotes cost reductions, giving the country a leading role in the global PV supply chain, Jiang said.
Zou said China’s most new energy related technical capabilities have reached an internationally competitive level with relatively low costs. China’s rapid development in the new energy industry is supported by a robust manufacturing sector. However, currently, industries such as power batteries and other low-carbon-related equipment manufacturing sectors are experiencing short-term overcapacity. To stay competitive, experts suggested enterprises should intensify investments in research, focusing on product quality improvement and efficiency. “While the new energy industry is poised for continued high growth in 2023, it faces a series of challenges. Prices in the photovoltaic and energy storage industry chains are consistently decreasing, indicating periods of temporary overcapacity,” said Zhu Gongshan, Chairman of Golden Concord Holdings, a major PV company. He further said that as the renewable energy industry gears up for a shakeout, those focussing on specialized products and high-quality development driven by technological innovation will stand out, adding that enterprises should intensify research efforts, the China Daily reports.
