{
  "id": 4795861,
  "title": "China says solar power capacity surpasses coal for first time",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/01/china-says-solar-power-capacity-surpasses-coal-for-first-time-4795861",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-01T04:21:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today-freemalays",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/world/2026/09/01/china-says-solar-power-capacity-surpasses-coal-for-first-time"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "China has marked a significant milestone in its energy transition, as its installed solar power capacity has recently surpassed that of coal-fired power, according to the National Energy Administration (NEA). This development comes as the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases pledges to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. On July 31st, China's installed solar power capacity reached an impressive 1.286 billion kilowatts, marking a first-time record. This surpassed the coal-fired power capacity, which stood at 1.285 billion kilowatts. The NEA stated that solar power has maintained a trend of rapid growth and is increasingly playing a prominent role in guaranteeing electricity supply and driving the energy transition. While coal has been a key power generation source for China for decades, its generation fell by nearly 2% in 2025, despite rising global energy demand. This marks the first decline in six years, as some analysts noted that it was the first time on record that coal generation dropped while power demand rose. China has seen explosive growth in its renewable installations, with coal's share in its energy mix gradually decreasing in recent years. In 2024 alone, China installed a record-breaking 315 gigawatts of solar power and 119 gigawatts of wind power capacity, accounting for over 80% of total newly installed power generation capacity, as reported by the China Electricity Council.",
  "summary": "China has seen explosive growth in its renewable installations, with coal's share in its energy mix edging down in recent years.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "China says solar power capacity surpasses coal for first time",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/01/china-says-solar-power-capacity-surpasses-coal-for-first-time",
        "published": "2026-09-01T04:21:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}