In the last 20 years, the People’s Republic of China (hereafter, “China”) has strengthened
its position on the global stage as an energy innovator, as illustrated by the stories
of solar power and, more recently, electric mobility. This is the result of several
decades of increasing policy focus on technology innovation, which underpin China’s
ambitions to become a producer of knowledge and foster innovation-driven socio-economic
development. Looking forward, clean energy innovation will play a crucial role to
achieve China’s objectives of carbon peaking by 2030 and neutrality by 2060, and ranks
among core government priorities for the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).
This report builds on the IEA Energy Sector Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality in China
chapter on “Innovation for carbon neutrality”, and provides complementary and new
analysis and information. It maps the institutional and policy landscape of clean
energy innovation in China and shows trends for selected metrics to track and explain
progress of technology development.