China aims for a fast-paced energy transition

From clothes to smartphones, our way of life is connected to China. The world’s factory and leading emitter of greenhouse gases, its choices are decisive for the future of the climate. In 2018, China enshrined in its Constitution its goal of working toward “ecological civilization.”

Wind, solar, electric batteries… Green technologies are an essential element. Their massive development on national soil allows it to increase its energy sovereignty through the electrification of its industry, domestic heating and means of transport. China also wants to reduce its dependence on coal, present in its soil, but a source of air pollution that is less and less tolerated by the population.

For the moment, green energies do not replace coal-fired power plants. But the Chinese strategy is “the construction of a massive stock of clean infrastructure which should make it possible, in a second step, to reduce emissions without disrupting economic growth”, explains expert Joseph Dellatte, of the Institut Montaigne.

The revolution in its energy mix by 2060, represented in the graphs below, is off to a solid start. This strategy is finally a lever for industrial conquest. China produces about 80% of the world’s photovoltaic solar panels and more than 70% of the wind turbines and electric vehicle batteries. Conclusion: no energy transition can be done without it.

By 2060, more than 85% of energy consumed in China should be low-carbon

Source: Tsinghua University’s Institute of Climate Change.

This strategy is finally a lever for industrial conquest. China produces about 80% of the world’s photovoltaic solar panels and more than 70% of the wind turbines and electric vehicle batteries. Conclusion: no energy transition can be done without it.