China's renewable energy sector expanded steadily in the first half of the year, with new installations accounting for over 70% of total additions and power generation exceeding 40% of total output for the first time.

New renewable energy capacity reached 117 GW in January-June, representing 73.9% of all new installations, according to the National Energy Administration (NEA). Solar led with 72.07 GW, followed by wind at 38.62 GW, hydropower at 6.03 GW and biomass at 0.6 GW.

By end-June, total renewable energy installed capacity stood at 2,455 GW, up 13.7% year on year and accounting for 60.7% of China's total power generation capacity. Solar capacity reached 1,274 GW, wind 679 GW, hydropower 454 GW and biomass 48 GW.

Combined wind and solar capacity hit 1,951 GW, or 48.3% of total installed capacity, with solar capacity nearly matching coal-fired power capacity of 1,275 GW.

Renewable energy generated nearly 2 TWh in the first half, up about 9% year on year and accounting for 41.2% of total electricity output. This exceeded the combined electricity consumption of the tertiary sector (991.6 TWh) and residential use (731.5 TWh).

Wind and solar power generation totaled 1.25 TWh, up 9.3% year on year and accounting for 24.6% of total electricity consumption, roughly 1.3 times the tertiary sector's usage. The 159.8 TWh increase in renewable generation covered 61.9% of the growth in total electricity consumption.

Hydropower: New grid-connected capacity reached 6.03 GW in the first half, including 3.03 GW of conventional hydropower and 3 GW of pumped storage. Total hydropower capacity stood at 454 GW by end-June, with conventional at 385 GW and pumped storage at 69 GW. Power generation from hydropower plants above designated size totaled 588.6 TWh, with average utilization hours at 1,452.

Wind power: New grid-connected capacity reached 38.62 GW, including 37.78 GW of onshore and 0.84 GW of offshore wind. Total wind capacity hit 679 GW by end-June, up 18.5% year on year, with onshore at 630 GW and offshore at 48.41 GW. Wind power generation totaled 598.4 TWh, with an average utilization rate of 90.9%.

Solar power: New grid-connected capacity reached 71.77 GW, including 29.55 GW of utility-scale and 42.22 GW of distributed solar. Total solar capacity stood at 1,272 GW by end-June, up 15.8% year on year, with utility-scale at 696 GW and distributed at 576 GW. Solar power generation totaled 655.5 TWh, with an average utilization rate of 91.4%.

Biomass power: New capacity reached 0.6 GW in the first half, with total installed capacity at 47.91 GW, up 2.6% year on year. Power generation totaled 115.8 TWh.

Concentrated solar power: New capacity reached 0.3 GW in the first half, with total installed capacity at 2.12 GW by end-June, up 39.5% year on year. Power generation totaled 0.85 TWh.