Carbon neutrality and renewable energy development in China

ABSTRACT Building a new type of power system with wind and solar as the dominant body of sources is expected to play the key role for China to achieve carbon neutrality. Transiting from the fossil fuel dominating power system to a renewable dominating system requires both the technology progress and the institutional changes. The total direct investment cost of China’s power system decarbonization is estimated to be about 67.6 trillion yuan, which consists of new wind and solar power capacity, energy storage facilities, and transmission lines. The electricity storage technology is the key factor to affect the transitional costs. Meanwhile, institutional changes are needed to adapt to the high penetration of wind and solar to cope with the new challenges the renewable brings, namely the flexibility, adequacy and affordability. China’s market-oriented reform should move to the direction of establishing a real unified national market system to achieve the integration of high percentage of renewables.