- Non fossil energy share to rise by about 1 percentage point each year to 2028.
- 15% increase in coal power capacity meeting top efficiency standards.
- Strong focus on renewables, storage, green grids and low carbon industry.
China’s National Energy Administration has released a three year action plan for 2026 to 2028 aimed at strengthening energy conservation and reducing carbon emissions across the energy sector.
The plan sets out clear targets to increase the share of non fossil energy consumption by around 1 percentage point annually while lifting the proportion of coal fired power capacity meeting high efficiency benchmarks by 15%. The measures form part of China’s broader strategy to peak carbon emissions before 2030 and reach carbon neutrality before 2060.
A key pillar of the roadmap is the large scale rollout of renewable energy. New solar and wind capacity will be deployed in coal mining subsidence zones, oil and gas fields and industrial parks. The plan also promotes building integrated photovoltaics as part of efforts to expand clean power generation within urban and industrial environments.
China will also support the development of green industrial clusters that combine solar, wind, hydrogen and energy storage. These integrated systems are expected to play a central role in lowering emissions in heavy industries such as steel.
Energy storage is identified as a priority area, with policies to accelerate both conventional and long duration storage technologies. At the same time, grid infrastructure will be modernised to improve distribution networks, strengthen inter provincial renewable power trading and refine green electricity certification systems.
The plan targets the creation of zero carbon and low carbon coal and oil extraction zones, alongside the rollout of zero carbon industrial parks. It also addresses the full energy value chain including production, supply, storage and market systems, with tighter controls on energy use and emissions in coal, oil and gas and coal fired power generation.
On the demand side, the plan highlights the need to replace fossil fuels with non fossil energy across major consuming sectors such as transport and construction. In transport, China will prioritise upgrades to high power charging infrastructure, starting with stations that exceed 40% utilisation during peak holiday periods, to support the transition to cleaner mobility.
The roadmap also promotes coordination between emerging sectors such as computing power and green electricity, signalling a broader push to align digital growth with low carbon energy supply.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
