In 2024, China invested $940 billion in clean energy, approaching the $1.12 trillion spent globally on fossil fuels
For the first time, clean energy technologies have surpassed 10% of China’s GDP. Solar, wind, batteries, electric vehicles, and other cleantech sectors collectively reached this milestone, generating a total of 13.6 trillion yuan—approximately $1.9 trillion—through sales and investments. The cleantech sector’s growth has outpaced the real estate market, underscoring its increasing strategic role in the Chinese economy.
These findings come from an analysis by Carbon Brief, conducted by researchers at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
Clean energy technologies rival fossil fuels
One key indicator of China’s clean energy dominance is the comparison of investment volumes with global fossil fuel spending.
In 2024 alone, China invested $940 billion in clean energy, a figure close to the $1.12 trillion invested worldwide in fossil fuels. This puts China’s renewables, EVs, and battery sectors on par with the total global fossil fuel market, highlighting the country’s rapid energy transition.
What’s driving China’s cleantech boom?
China’s cleantech industry is growing three times faster than the overall economy, despite its contribution to GDP growth declining from 40% in 2023 to 26% in 2024. The slowdown stems from weaker investment growth—up only 7% in 2024, compared to 40% in 2023—and falling renewable component prices. Without clean energy, China’s GDP growth would have been 3.6% instead of 5%.
EVs, batteries, and solar are the primary drivers of this boom, accounting for 75% of cleantech’s added value and attracting over half of all investments.
- Electric and hybrid vehicles contributed 3 trillion yuan to GDP, with 1.4 trillion yuan in factory investments and 122 billion yuan allocated to charging infrastructure.
- The solar sector generated 2.8 trillion yuan, including 1 trillion yuan for power generation, 779 billion yuan for panel manufacturing, 607 billion yuan from exports, and 386 billion yuan from electricity sales.
