China invested $940 billion in clean energy in 2024, approaching the global investment of $1.12 trillion in fossil fuels.
(International Energy Agency)
China dominates the global clean-energy technology arena and is by far the world’s largest investor in renewable energy, as well as the top EV and battery maker. The nation produces about 80 per cent of all solar panels made globally, 70 per cent of wind turbines and more than 60 per cent of EVs sold.
Clean-energy technologies contributed 7.2 per of China’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2022, rising to 9 per cent of GDP in 2023, and a record 10 per cent of GDP in 2024 – and this is likely to rise further in 2025, according to an analysis released by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) on Feb 19 2025.
Electric vehicles (EVs), batteries and solar continued to dominate the economic contribution of clean energy in China, attracting more than half of all investment in clean-energy technologies, according to an analysis by CREA for the Carbon Brief news site, a London-based climate and energy policy outlet.
Overall, clean-energy technology sectors, which also include nuclear, wind, hydropower and railways, accounted for 26 per cent of overall China GDP growth in 2024, the analysis found.
“The finding is significant because it shows that clean-energy investment can be a major driver of economic growth and investment,” said co-author Lauri Myllyvirta, lead analyst at CREA and a senior fellow at Asia Society Policy Institute.
This stands in stark contrast to the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back support for renewable energy and EVs as well as slash funding for climate research.
“It also matters for the world and for the global climate effort that clean energy is so central to China’s economic growth, because it provides a strong motivation for the country’s leadership to sustain the rapid growth of the sector,” Mr Myllyvirta said. This will help China peak and then decline its carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, which are the largest of any nation.
China’s huge level of production in green technology, both for domestic consumption and export, has dramatically cut the price of such technology, with the clear climate benefit of poorer nations being able to afford them.
China’s economy grew 5 per cent in 2024. Without the contribution from the clean-energy sectors, growth would have been 3.6 per cent, according to the analysis.
Clean-energy sectors contributed 13.6 trillion yuan (S$2.5 trillion) to China’s economy, or just above 10 per cent of total GDP. The authors included the value of production of green goods, investment in new manufacturing plants, clean-energy power generation and the value of export in their calculations.
Source:
The Straits Times, Feb 20, 2025. [Extract]. https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/clean-energy-bolsters-chinas-gdp-growth-in-2024-study
Carbon Brief, Feb 19, 2025 [Full Report]. https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-clean-energy-contributed-a-record-10-of-chinas-gdp-in-2024/
China Environment News 