China expects to add a record 500 gigawatts (GW) in renewable energy capacity to its national grid this year as the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI) increases demand for electricity to power computing centres.
According to a report from the State Grid Energy Research Institute on Friday, over a quarter of that new capacity – or a record 140GW – will come from wind power, a source of energy that US President Donald Trump has suggested China does not use.
“They make about 95 per cent of them, the wind turbines. I have never seen a wind farm in China,” Trump said at the signing of his landmark legislation, the One Big Beautiful Bill, also on Friday.
“Why is that? Somebody check that out.”
The increase in wind power capacity is equivalent to about six times the capacity of the Three Gorges Dam and is 77 per cent more than the amount added last year.
Meanwhile, newly installed solar power capacity is expected to reach 380GW this year, up 35.5 per cent from last year.
If realised, it would be the first time for new renewable energy installations to exceed 500GW.
