China surpasses US, EU, India, Japan, Russia in energy capacity

China’s installed power generation capacity reached 4.01 billion kilowatts (kW) at the end of May 2026, reported the National Energy Administration of China on Thursday (25.Jul.2026).

The volume represents growth of 11% compared to the same period last year and exceeds, combined, the generation potential of the United States, European Union, India, Japan and Russia.

The advance keeps China as the world leader in the sector and was driven mainly by the expansion of renewable sources. Non-fossil sources already account for 62.2% of the country’s installed capacity. The share of coal plants fell from 61.2% in 2010 to 31.7% in May this year. In the same period, the share of renewable energy increased from 23.6% to 60.5%.

The growth of the electrical system has also accelerated. It took China about 8 years to double its generation capacity from 1 to 2 billion kW, 5 years to reach 3 billion and just over 2 years to reach the 4 billion mark.

According to the China Electricity Council, the result is a consequence of policies to encourage the energy transition, the fall in the costs of renewable technologies and the strengthening of the national industry.

Over the past 10 years, the price of solar modules has fallen by more than 90%, while onshore wind has come to compete on cost with coal generation. Furthermore, China currently concentrates much of the world’s manufacturing of equipment for the solar and wind sectors.

The expansion of generation was accompanied by the reinforcement of transmission infrastructure. The country has already completed 46 ultra-high voltage line projects, used to transport energy produced in western China to the main consumer centers in the eastern and central regions.