China Unveils $2.94 Trillion Plan for New Energy by 2030

China has released its most ambitious energy transition blueprint to date — the 15th Five-Year Plan for Building a New Energy System — with total investment in key energy projects and emerging business forms expected to exceed 20 trillion yuan ($2.94 trillion) by 2030, according to the National Energy Administration (NEA). The plan, jointly issued on June 25 by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the NEA, aims to initially establish a clean, low-carbon, secure, and efficient new energy system within five years.

A Milestone in Installed Capacity

The announcement coincides with a historic achievement: China’s installed power generation capacity has surpassed 4 billion kilowatts as of the end of May 2026 — a global record and the first time any country has reached this threshold. As Xinhua News reported, this exceeds the combined installed capacity of the United States, the European Union, India, Japan, and Russia.

“4 billion kW is a milestone figure,” said Deng Weisi of China Southern Power Grid Dispatch and Control Center. “This scale has exceeded the combined installed capacity of the US, EU, India, Japan, and Russia.”

The pace of growth is staggering. It took China 33 years (1978–2011) to reach 1 billion kW, but only two years to leap from 3 billion to 4 billion kW. Yang Kun, Executive Vice Chairman of the China Electricity Council, told Xinhua that “4 billion kW is not just a numerical leap, but a concentrated manifestation of energy security, green transition, and technological self-reliance.”

Investment and Targets

NEA Director Wang Hongzhi announced at a State Council press conference on June 26 that annual investment in power generation and grid infrastructure during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026–2030) is estimated at 3 trillion yuan — double the level of the previous plan period. Grid investment alone will exceed that of the 14th Five-Year Plan by 30%, as the Global Times reported.

By 2030, the plan targets:

• Total installed capacity of 5.4 billion kW
• New energy installed capacity exceeding 50% of total, making it the dominant source
• Non-fossil energy contributing 50% of total power generation
• Non-fossil energy consumption reaching 25% of total energy consumption
• Coal and oil consumption to peak

Structural Transformation Underway

China’s energy mix has undergone a dramatic shift. In 2010, coal accounted for over 60% of installed capacity and non-fossil sources just 25%. By May 2026, coal had fallen to 32%, while non-fossil energy surged to 62% and renewables to 61%. In 2025, renewable energy generated 3.99 trillion kWh — 38% of total generation — with wind and solar each exceeding 1 trillion kWh. Every third kilowatt-hour of electricity in China now comes from renewables.

Hou Wenjie, Director of Statistics and Digital Intelligence at the China Electricity Council, stated: “During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China will continue to increase new energy development, expand ‘green electricity’ supply, build a new power system adapted to high-proportion new energy, and promote all new electricity consumption to be supplied by clean power.”

Six-Pillar Strategy

The plan outlines 14 specific measures across six major systems: an advanced new energy infrastructure system, a resilient energy security guarantee system, a green and low-carbon consumption system, a self-reliant technology innovation system, an efficient modern governance system, and a diversified international cooperation system.

Three key priorities were identified: strengthening oil and gas security, accelerating new power grid construction, and promoting AI-energy bidirectional empowerment. The plan also introduces a novel focus on “computing-power coordination,” recognizing that the rapid growth of artificial intelligence will dramatically increase electricity demand.

Jin Heping, Chairman of the Data Center Committee at the China Communications Industry Association, noted: “To seize the initiative in the AI era, China’s highly cost-advantageous green energy is its biggest advantage.”

Energy Storage and Hydrogen Surge

China’s new energy storage capacity has reached 136 million kW/351 million kWh by end of 2025 — a 40-fold increase from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period. The country also leads globally in hydrogen, with 860 planned wind-solar hydrogen production projects capable of producing approximately 10 million tons per year. By 2030, the plan targets 40 million basic electric vehicle charging facilities nationwide.

Coal’s Continued Role

Despite the rapid renewables expansion, the plan pragmatically acknowledges coal’s ongoing role. “Coal is our greatest confidence for stable energy supply,” Wang Hongzhi said. “We must base ourselves on this national condition and do a good job of building coal bases.” The approach reflects a dual priority: building new clean capacity before retiring existing coal plants, ensuring energy security even as the transition accelerates.

Global Implications

As the State Council noted, China has built the world’s largest and fastest-growing renewable energy system. The country’s wind and solar installed capacity accounts for nearly half of the global total, with new additions representing 60% of worldwide installations. China now possesses the world’s largest and most complete new energy industrial chain.

Sun Chuanwang, a professor at Xiamen University’s School of Economics, told the Global Times: “AI is set to deeply empower the entire energy supply chain, transitioning from single-point applications to large-scale integration across multiple scenarios.”

The Road Ahead

The 15th Five-Year Plan period is widely described as the “decisive phase” for China to reach its carbon peak before 2030. With energy sector emissions accounting for over 80% of China’s CO2 output, the success of this plan will be critical to meeting the country’s dual carbon goals. The World Economic Forum has observed that China’s energy trajectory demonstrates how sustained planning and industrial policy can build a system capable of absorbing energy shocks while advancing decarbonization.

As Ren Yuzhi, NEA Spokesperson and Director of Planning, declared: “During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, we will accelerate low-carbon transformation with greater efforts and more concrete measures, making green the distinctive foundation of high-quality development.”