World · power build
China's power build: how much it adds each year against the US and Europe
China added 533 GW of generating capacity in 2025, net of closures: 65% of the world's net additions and 14 times the US's 39 GW (Ember, CC BY 4.0). Its National Energy Administration counts 542 GW of new capacity in 2025 and 4,103 GW installed at the end of August 2026, up 11.1% on a year.
Updated 12 October 2026 · data build 2026-10-10 · how we know · corrections
China added 533 GW in 2025: 65% of the world's net new capacity
Net change in installed generating capacity per year, all sources, GW. Measured
Source: Ember, yearly electricity data (CC BY 4.0) · as of 2026-10-10 · our difference of consecutive years · Compiled by StackPath
Solar was 59% of China's net additions; coal still grew 70 GW
Net change in installed capacity by source, 2025, GW (Ember). Measured
| Source | China | United States | EU-27 | India |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar | 315.1 | 34 | 56.3 | 37 |
| Wind | 119.4 | 6.2 | 12.3 | 6.4 |
| Coal | 69.9 | -3.9 | -5.2 | 9.2 |
| Gas | 21.6 | 3.8 | 4.7 | -4.7 |
| Hydro | 4.8 | 0 | 0.8 | 1.6 |
| Nuclear | 1.6 | 0.1 | -1.8 | 0.6 |
Negative numbers mean closures exceeded additions.
Download CSV ↓Source: Ember, yearly electricity data (CC BY 4.0) · as of 2026-10-10 · Compiled by StackPath
On gas the order reverses: Global Energy Monitor counts 52 GW of gas plants under construction in the US against 24 GW in China (GEM, Aug 2026), much of the US share for data centres. See the US gas build.
China's own count: 4,103 GW installed, up 11.1% in a year
Cumulative installed generating capacity from the National Energy Administration's monthly releases. NEA rounds to 0.1 billion kW (10 GW). Reported
| As at | Total GW | Solar GW | Wind GW | Year-on-year | Release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-11-30 | 3,790 | 1,160 | 600 | 17.1% | NEA, 2025-12-26 |
| 2025-12-31 | 3,890 | 1,200 | 640 | 16.1% | NEA, 2026-01-29 |
| 2026-06-30 | 4,040 | 1,270 | 680 | 10.8% | NEA, 2026-07-22 |
| 2026-07-31 | 4,080 | 1,290 | 690 | 11% | NEA, 2026-08-25 |
| 2026-08-31 | 4,103 | 1,299 | 693 | 11.1% | NEA, 2026-09-24 |
Each figure is re-checked against the cached release text on every build (all found). Growth slowed from 16.1% a year at end-2025 to 11.1%.
Download CSV ↓Source: National Energy Administration (nea.gov.cn) · NEA 2025 market report (542 GW added) · as of 2026-10-12 · Compiled by StackPath
Power-rich, chip-short: China holds 4% of planned AI campus power in Epoch's sample
AI data-centre power operating and planned (Epoch AI), and the share of AI computing capacity on Chinese-designed chips. Measured
Source: Epoch AI, Frontier Data Centers and AI chip owners (CC BY 4.0) · as of 2026-10-11 · Compiled by StackPath
Our reading. Epoch sees less of China than of the US, so China's AI campus figure is a floor. Even so, the data point one way: China's limit on AI is chips, not electricity, while the US limit is connection and firm supply. Europe has neither China's build rate nor the US's campuses. For the full comparison see where AI can plug in and the AI compute race.
Epoch tracks a sample of the largest AI data centres (93 sites at 11 Oct 2026), mostly in the US; China's sites are under-covered because less is public. Shares are of Epoch's sample, not of all data centres. Ember capacity changes are net: retirements are subtracted. EIA's 53 GW for the US in 2025 and NEA's 542 GW for China are gross additions.
Questions people ask
- How much power capacity did China add in 2025?
- 542 GW of new generating capacity, according to China's National Energy Administration (gross, 2026-06-18), of which 434 GW wind and solar. Ember's data give a net increase of 533 GW after closures: solar 315 GW, wind 119 GW, coal 70 GW, gas 22 GW.
- Is China building more power than the US?
- Yes: about 14 times more net capacity in 2025 (533 GW against 39 GW, Ember). On gas alone the order flips: Global Energy Monitor counts 52 GW of gas under construction in the US against 24 GW in China (Aug 2026).
- How much generating capacity does China have?
- 4,103 GW at the end of August 2026, up 11.1% on a year, of which 1,299 GW solar and 693 GW wind (NEA, 2026-09-24). The US had 1,333 GW at end-2025 (Ember).
- Does China's power advantage help it in AI?
- On these numbers chips look like the tighter constraint, not power (our reading). Chinese-designed chips (Huawei, Cambricon) were 3.6% of the AI computing capacity Epoch AI tracks at 2025-12-31, and Epoch's sample of the largest AI campuses puts 0.85 GW of AI data-centre power in China against 15.2 GW in the US. Epoch sees less in China, so its figure is a floor.