New Delhi [India], September 19 : Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday lauded China's rapid progress in renewable energy, noting that the country installed a record 256 GW of solar capacity in the first half of 2025, more than the rest of the world combined.
In a post on X, Tharoor wrote, "China just installed a mind-boggling 256 GW of solar capacity in the first half of 2025--more than the rest of the world combined! This highlights their aggressive leadership in the global clean energy race."
https://x.com/ShashiTharoor/status/1968747512875159808
He noted that India, with its vast potential, could learn from Beijing's aggressive push into renewables. "India, with its vast solar potential, has the opportunity to follow this lead, create a global power grid, and become self-sufficient in energy -- maybe even an energy exporter."
Urging large-scale adoption, Tharoor added, "Let's blanket every bit of barren land from the Thar desert to the Deccan Plateau with #SolarPower for #CleanEnergy! #ClimateAction."
His remarks came as official data showed that China's installed capacity of wind and photovoltaic power reached 1.482 billion kilowatts by the end of March, surpassing thermal power capacity for the first time in history, according to Xinhua.
The National Energy Administration said, "As new installations continue to grow rapidly, wind and solar capacity will maintain the lead over thermal power."
In the first quarter of 2025, electricity generated from wind and photovoltaics reached 536.4 billion kilowatt-hours, accounting for 22.5 per cent of China's total power use, a rise of 4.3 percentage points compared to the same period last year.
Xinhua reported that China's total installed renewable power capacity stood at about 1.41 billion kilowatts at the end of 2024, representing more than 40 per cent of total electricity capacity and overtaking coal-fired power installations.
The country's new energy sector has seen rapid growth in recent years as part of Beijing's efforts to decarbonise the economy.
Since 2013, wind power capacity has grown sixfold, while solar power capacity has increased more than 180 times. China's annual new installations now account for more than 40 per cent of the global total, significantly contributing to worldwide green development.