China Adds 40 GW Of Solar To Grid In 2020

China has brought about 40 gigawatts (GW) of new solar power into operation in 2020, taking its total installed solar capacity to 240 GW.

As per Wang Bohua, vice-chairman of the China Photovoltaic Industry Association (CPIA), China’s total solar capacity had increased more than fivefold since 2015 and could double in the next five years to almost 500 GW. Solar capacity additions have slipped back since hitting a record 53 GW in 2017, with the state grappling with a subsidy payment backlog in excess of 200 billion yuan ($30.55 billion) as well as grid access problems for many projects. But the 40 GW figure simply underscores the massive impact the country continues to have on the sector, as Chinese numbers impact not just global numbers massively, but also the state of its domestic manufacturing firms, a number of which are top exporters too.  Slow additions in China can force them to drop export rates too.

Solar accounted for about 10% of China’s total generation capacity at the end of 2019.

With China declaring a target to be carbon neutral by 2060, Solar will continue to remain in the spotlight, with massive additions still to come, on the back of falling costs and larger solar parks.

Wang told an industry conference that China’s solar capacity growth was expected to reach an average of 70 GW a year during the 2021-2025 “five-year plan”, and could even be as high as 90 GW, according to a CPIA presentation. ($1 = 6.5463 yuan)

China is doing a lot to achieve its bid as reported by us earlier, CPIA announced back in July 2020 that manufacturers in the country churned out 15.7 percent higher production of solar panels, at 59 GW in the first six months of this year. The Chinese numbers are in stark contrast to the slowdown in India, where fresh capacity creation while dominating the energy mix, has fallen well behind the highs seen in 2017.