China says solar power capacity surpasses coal for first time

China’s installed solar energy capacity has surpassed that of coal-fired power for the first time, the national energy body said Tuesday, hailing the milestone.

Installation of solar photovoltaic panels on the roofs of the Hongqiao Passenger Rail Terminal in Shanghai, China, in 2010. Photo: Climate Group, via Flickr.

China, the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases that drive climate change, has pledged to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.

“As of the end of July this year, China’s installed solar power capacity reached 1.286 billion kilowatts,” the National Energy Administration (NEA) said.

“For the first time, photovoltaic installed capacity surpassed coal-fired power, becoming the largest power source category in China,” it added.

The country’s coal-fired power installed capacity, the energy body said, stood at 1.285 billion kilowatts.

Solar generation rose 15.5 percent on-year in the first seven months of 2026 to 802.4 billion kilowatt-hours, about one-eighth of the country’s total, the NEA said in another statement.

It did not detail in these statements what the total generation of coal-powered energy was for the first seven months of this year.

Lamma power station. File photo: Tom Grundy/HKFP.

The NEA said China’s installed solar power capacity and power generation “have maintained a steady trend of rapid growth”, with it playing an “increasingly prominent role” in guaranteeing electricity supply and driving the energy transition.

Coal has been China’s key power generation source for decades and a key driver of its planet-warming emissions.

But the country’s coal-fired power generation fell by nearly two percent in 2025, despite rising energy demand in the world’s largest emitter, data reviewed by AFP showed in February.

It marked the first decline in six years, with some analysts saying it was the first time on record that coal generation dropped at the same time as power demand rose.

China has seen an explosive growth in its renewable installation, with coal’s share in its energy mix edging down in recent years.

The country installed a record 315 gigawatts of solar power and 119 gigawatts of wind power capacity last year — over 80 percent of total newly installed power generation capacity, according to the China Electricity Council.