Clean energy surges past fossil fuels in China, India

In China, solar output grew by 168 terrawatt-hours.

Fossil fuels fell in China and India in the first half of the year, as clean sources in both countries grew faster than electricity demand.

In China, solar output grew by 168 terrawatt-hours (TWh), accounting for 85% of the increase in the country’s electricity growth and 55% of global growth in solar.

Wind generation increased by 79 TWh (+16%), more than double the global average of 7.7%, accounting for 40% of China’s electricity generation growth.

Amongst low-carbon sources, nuclear generation grew by 24 TWh (+11%), whilst hydro declined by 11 TWh (-1.9%).

In India, solar generation rose by a record of 17 TWh (+25%) which lifted its share of the electricity mix to 9.2%, up from 7.4% in H1 2024.

Meanwhile, wind generation also increased strongly by 11 TWh (+29%), against just 0.5 TWh (+1.3%) last year.

Other low-carbon sources, including nuclear (+14%) and hydro (+17%), also grew.

Further, coal generation fell by 22 TWh (-3.1%), whilst gas generation declined by 7.1 TWh (-34%).