China installed 44.8 GW of solar power in the second quarter of 2023, a 153% year-over-year growth, according to the National Energy Administration (NEA).

The country’s cumulative solar installations stood at 471 GW at the end of the quarter.

In the first half of the year, China installed renewable energy capacity of 109 GW, accounting for 77% of the country’s newly installed capacity. This included 5.4 GW of hydropower, 22.9 GW of wind, 78.4 GW of solar, and 1.7 GW of biomass.

The country has a cumulative installed capacity of 418 GW for hydropower and 390 GW for wind power, reflecting China’s diversified approach toward green energy solutions. Biomass power generation also contributed significantly to the country’s clean energy portfolio, with a cumulative installed capacity of 43 GW.

China installed 87.4 GW of solar capacity in 2022, an increase of 60.3% YoY but falling short of the  108 GW target set for the year. The failure to reach this target was partly due to the impact of Covid-19 lockdowns, which posed challenges to the country’s solar sector. Additionally, the phasing out of the subsidy regime had a significant effect, making 2022 the first year without incentives for the Chinese solar industry.

Despite this, China established itself as a clean energy leader adding 141 GW of renewable energy capacity in 2022, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency. The installed capacity of operational energy storage projects in China had reached 8.7 GW by the end of 2022, an increase of more than 110% YoY.

China targets adding a staggering 160 GW of solar and wind energy capacity to its existing infrastructure in 2023. The country’s overarching goal is to increase the contribution of wind and solar power in its total electricity consumption from 13.8% in the previous year to 15.3% and the share of non-fossil fuel energy to 18.3% from 17.4% in 2022.