China has emerged as the undisputed powerhouse of the global renewable energy transition. With record-breaking deployments of solar, wind, and energy storage, the country is reshaping global clean energy economics. Yet, beneath this extraordinary scale lies a complex and often chaotic system marked by grid stress, market distortions, and policy contradictions.

Unmatched Scale in Renewable Deployment

In 2025 alone, China added more renewable capacity than the combined installations of the United States, Europe, and India. Vast solar bases in desert regions and massive onshore wind corridors have turned once-inhospitable landscapes into energy hubs. This expansion has dramatically reduced global solar module prices, benefiting emerging markets and accelerating worldwide adoption.

According to multiple global energy assessments, Chinese manufacturers now dominate the supply chain for solar modules, inverters, and lithium-ion batteries. This dominance has directly influenced renewable project economics across Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Grid Congestion and Curtailment Challenges

Despite its capacity additions, China continues to struggle with integrating renewable power into its national grid. Renewable-rich provinces often face curtailment due to insufficient transmission infrastructure and limited inter-provincial power trading.

These challenges mirror issues discussed in international markets, including India’s storage and grid balancing strategies, recently covered in SolSetu’s analysis on energy storage and renewable integration .

Policy Push vs. Market Reality

China’s renewable growth is strongly policy-driven, supported by long-term national targets for non-fossil energy dominance. However, local implementation varies widely. Provincial incentives often prioritize capacity installation over actual energy utilization, leading to inefficiencies.

This policy-driven expansion contrasts with market-led transitions emerging in other regions, such as the India–ASEAN clean energy corridor highlighted in this SolSetu international report .

Energy Storage: The Missing Stabilizer

While China leads globally in battery manufacturing, deployment of grid-scale storage still lags behind renewable capacity additions. Energy storage is increasingly recognized as the critical stabilizer needed to convert installed capacity into reliable, dispatchable power.

Lessons from China’s experience are now influencing storage-focused policies worldwide, reinforcing the global narrative that renewables must be paired with flexibility solutions to achieve true energy security.

Global Impact Beyond Borders

China’s renewable surge has global consequences. Low-cost exports have accelerated clean energy transitions but also triggered trade tensions and calls for domestic manufacturing protection in Europe and North America.

For emerging economies, however, China’s scale has made renewable energy financially accessible, supporting the global trend where renewables are becoming the world’s primary source of new power capacity — a shift recently examined in SolSetu’s global renewable outlook .

Conclusion

China’s renewable energy expansion is both a triumph and a warning. Its sheer scale proves that rapid decarbonization is technically and economically possible. At the same time, grid integration challenges and policy inefficiencies underline the importance of planning, flexibility, and market alignment.

As countries worldwide accelerate their clean energy transitions, China’s experience serves as a powerful case study — demonstrating that building renewable capacity is only the first step toward a stable and sustainable energy future.