CHINA MONTHLY ENERGY UPDATE JANUARY 2026

Authored by Caroline Wang, China Lead, Climate Energy Finance 

Previous CEF monthly updates here. 

Got questions or feedback? Please reach out: caroline@climateenergyfinance.org     

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CHINA POWER STATISTICS UPDATE – DECEMBER 2025

Renewables dominate new capacity additions despite rebound in fossil builds 

China added 543 GW of new power generation capacity in January–December 2025, marking a 27% year-on-year increase in total additions. Renewable energy sources continued to dominate new builds, accounting for 82% of all capacity added during the year, while zero-emissions capacity (renewables plus nuclear) represented 83% of total additions (see Figure 1). 

• Solar power led capacity growth, with 315 GW installed in 2025, accounting for 58% of total new additions. Solar installations rose 14% yoy, consolidating solar’s position as the primary driver of China’s power capacity expansion. 

• Wind power additions reached 119 GW, or 22% of total new capacity, increasing sharply (+50% yoy) as developers accelerated installations toward year-end. 

• Fossil fuel capacity additions totalled 95 GW, representing 17% of new capacity. Fossil additions rose 75% yoy, reflecting continued investment to support system reliability and peak demand management. 

• Hydropower additions were limited to 12 GW (2% of new capacity), declining 16% yoy, consistent with reduced rainfall conditions. 

• Nuclear power additions remained modest at 2 GW, with no new capacity added in December. 

In December alone, China added 97 GW of new capacity. Wind (36.8 GW) and solar (40.2 GW) together accounted for 79% of monthly additions, highlighting the continued year-end surge in variable renewable installations. 

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TOTAL CAPACITY CONTINUES TO SHIFT TOWARD ZERO-EMISSIONS SOURCES 

By end-December 2025, China’s total installed power capacity reached 3,891 GW, up 16% yoy. 

• Renewable energy capacity expanded to 2,290 GW, accounting for 59% of total installed capacity and growing 24% yoy. 

• Zero-emissions capacity reached 2,352 GW, or 60% of the national power mix, also up 24% yoy. 

Technology-specific trends include: 

• Solar power capacity rising to 1,202 GW, up 35% yoy, making it the largest single source of installed capacity. 

• Wind power capacity reaching 640 GW, growing 23% yoy. 

• Fossil power capacity increasing to 1,539 GW (+6% yoy), with its share of total capacity declining to 40%. 

• Hydropower and nuclear capacity reaching 448 GW and 62 GW respectively, each growing around 3% yoy. 

Overall, the 2025 data confirms that China’s power-sector expansion remains structurally led by wind and solar, even as fossil capacity additions continue to play a complementary role in supporting system stability during the transition. 

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CHINA’S POWER GENERATION MIX IN JANUARY–DECEMBER 2025

China generated 10,436 TWh of electricity in January–December 2025, up 5.3% yoy, with growth driven overwhelmingly by clean energy sources. 

Zero-emissions power generation (renewables plus nuclear) reached 4,329 TWh, rising 15.1% yoy and lifting its share of total generation to 41%, up from around 39% a year earlier. By contrast, fossil power generation declined slightly, confirming the continued structural decoupling of electricity demand growth from fossil output. 

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FOSSIL GENERATION CONTINUES TO PLATEAU

Total fossil power generation fell 0.7% yoy to 6,107 TWh, supplying 59% of total electricity generation in 2025. 

• Coal-fired generation declined 0.9% yoy to 5,802 TWh, accounting for 56% of total generation. 

• Gas-fired generation rose modestly to 288 TWh (+1.8% yoy), maintaining a 3% system share. 

• Other fossil generation remained marginal at 17 TWh. 

In December, fossil generation fell 2.9% yoy to 565 TWh, reinforcing the broader trend of flat-to-declining fossil output despite rising total power demand. 

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CLEAN POWER DRIVES ALL NET GROWTH

Clean electricity sources delivered all net growth in China’s power generation in 2025. 

• Solar power recorded the fastest growth, surging 41.0% yoy to 1,193 TWh, lifting its share of total generation to 11%. December solar output reached 91 TWh, up 40.8% yoy. 

• Wind power generation rose 13.6% yoy to 1,128 TWh, also supplying 11% of total electricity. December output increased 13.9% yoy to 114 TWh. 

• Hydropower generation grew 3.7% yoy to 1,327 TWh, accounting for 13% of generation, supported by improved hydrological conditions later in the year. 

• Nuclear power output increased 7.9% yoy to 482 TWh, maintaining a stable 5% share. 

• Bioenergy generation rose modestly to 198 TWh. 

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VARIABLE RENEWABLES AND SYSTEM TRANSITION

Variable renewable generation (wind and solar) reached 2,321 TWh, expanding 26.2% yoy and supplying 22% of total electricity in 2025. In December alone, variable renewables generated 205 TWh, up 24.4% yoy, highlighting the growing role of wind and solar even during winter months. 

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KEY TAKEAWAY

China’s full-year 2025 power generation data reinforce an ongoing structural shift in its power system: all net growth in electricity generation is being delivered by clean sources, while fossil generation continues to plateau and decline. Solar remains the standout growth driver, wind and hydro provide scale and balance, and nuclear expands steadily. With zero-emissions power now supplying 41% of total generation, China’s power system transition is increasingly being reflected not just in capacity additions, but in actual electricity output. 

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