China Gets More Electric

In a move that sent ripples through global energy markets this week, China recorded its first annual drop in coal power generation in over a decade.

China’s coal-fired electricity generation fell 1.6% last year.

Their modest yet historic decline signals that the world’s top greenhouse gas emitter may be turning a corner on carbon emissions.

China is still the world’s largest coal consumer, and for years, coal has powered everything from steel mills to electric vehicle factories.

But the last few years have brought a surprising twist: an unprecedented surge in clean energy helped bend the emissions curve.

One in every three kWh consumed in China now comes from green sources.

More wind and solar installations were deployed in China last year than in the rest of the world combined.

China accounted for two-thirds of the $2.1 trillion the world spent on the energy transition in 2025.

The sheer size and scale of some of China’s energy projects are hard to wrap your head around.

We’re talking about solar farms that are visible from space and are the size of multiple Manhattan islands.

They are building floating wind turbines with wingspans the length of multiple football fields and, individually, capable of powering small cities.

China is building a new $168 billion hydropower system that, once completed, is expected to generate more electricity than any other in the world.

The longest ultrahigh-voltage power line stretches more than 2,000 miles from the far northwest to the populous southeast. That’s the equivalent of transmitting electricity from Idaho to New York City.

However, China also continued to increase coal mining and expand the build-out of coal power plants.

While adding new coal plants might sound like it complicates China’s energy transition and runs counter to the country’s ambitions for energy independence, the risks of increased greenhouse gas emissions and increased coal use are not guaranteed.

Just because the capacity is there doesn’t mean the country plans to use it.

Coal capacity is increasingly an insurance policy to help de-risk against the impact of unexpected weather that could hinder solar and wind power generation.

Where these trends go from here is unclear.

But the thing that makes this shift to renewables and the resulting drop in coal use even more impressive is that China’s annual electricity consumption surpassed 10 trillion kWh for the first time in 2025, up 5% year over year.

In context, China’s annual power consumption now exceeds the combined total of Europe, Russia, India, and Japan. It is also more than twice the amount that the US sucks up in wattage.

Data centres, electric vehicle charging, new electric transit and commuter trains have added to the demands on China’s grids.

Increasingly, that demand is met by low-carbon or carbon-neutral energy sources.

China will need to maintain its world-leading pace of renewable energy deployment to meet its growing power demand without burning more coal.

BYD aims to sell 1.3 million cars outside China in 2026. bloomberg.com

Chery agreed to buy Nissan’s plant in South Africa, including the land, buildings and associated assets. bloomberg.com

Chery plans to launch its first EV with a solid-state battery. electrive.com

Geely’s Lotus division expects a surge in Canadian sales after the EV tariff is slashed. autonews.com

Xiaomi’s next-gen SU7 Max variant achieved a driving range of 4,264 km during the 24-hour endurance test. cnevpost.com

The Cybertruck was America’s best-selling electric pickup in 2024. Then sales were cut in half. insideevs.com

Chinese state media shuts down Elon’s claim that Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system will be approved for use in China next month. electrek.co

Tesla scrapped its Autopilot driver-assist feature that used to come standard on new vehicles, as it attempts to steer customers toward its newly subscription-only Full Self-Driving (FSD) system. theverge.com

Tesla is finally doing unsupervised robotaxi trips in Austin, Texas. theverge.com

SpaceX has lined up four banks to lead its initial public offering as Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite firm moves forward with plans for the biggest-ever IPO. bloomberg.com

Lemonade is launching an insurance product for users of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system, promising to cut per-mile rates by “approximately 50%.” techcrunch.com

Zipline’s airborne delivery service is making fans in Texas happy by delivering retail purchases, groceries, and food from partners like Walmart, Chipotle, Blaze Pizza, and Wendy’s. Their drone system can handle packages weighing between 5.5-8 pounds delivered in minutes. theverge.com

Xpeng produces 1st robot prototype developed to automotive standards. cnevpost.com

FedEx’s CEO said regular humanoid robots won’t make the cut for work at his warehouses. businessinsider.com

Airbus to test China’s battery-swapping humanoid robots in aircraft assembly. interestingengineering.com

The US is in talks with Chevron and other crude producers about a plan to quickly revive output in Venezuela at a fraction of the estimated $100 billion cost for a complete rebuilding. bloomberg.com

Venezuela’s collapse in oil production stems from nationalizations that drove out technical expertise, sanctions that blocked investment and buyers, and the heavy, expensive-to-extract crude it produces. investopedia.com

Rebuilding the industry would require a decade of work and $80 billion–$100 billion in investments, according to analysts—and that assumes political stability.

Duke Energy has powered up a 50 MW Battery Energy Storage installation at the former Allen coal plant to help stabilize the grid and drive down energy costs across the Carolinas. electrek.co

An oil tanker sanctioned for transporting Russian oil is drifting in the Mediterranean Sea after reportedly running into trouble off the coast of Algeria. bloomberg.com

Germany is using heated bricks to replace gas-fired industrial boilers. electrek.co

Countries including the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands will pledge to jointly develop 100 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity in the North Sea and step up security of such infrastructure amid growing threats of sabotage. bloomberg.com

The Donald’s quest to demolish the US offshore wind projects is facing some serious blowback in federal court. politico.com

The Donald’s administration unlawfully suspended the federal EV charger infrastructure program, a US judge rules. reuters.com

ChargePoint is adding public EV chargers at rental car locations in Wisconsin. electrek.co

CATL expects to launch its first sodium-ion batteries in vehicles in the second quarter of 2026. electrek.co

Volvo’s EX60, with fast-charging capabilities and a brand-new electric architecture, made its official debut this past week. theverge.com

GM plans to relocate Buick Envision production from China to Kansas in 2028. At the same time, it will likely shut down production of the Chevrolet Bolt EV, which is built in the same plant. bloomberg.com

Stellantis shares are down roughly 43% since the merged company’s inception 5 years ago. cnbc.com

VW ended 2025 with more cash in its automotive division than forecast as the company delayed projects and investments in an overhaul of its EV strategy. bloomberg.com

The Honda Civic is still alive and well in Canada’s Civic Nation, and it holds the top-selling car spot for 2025. autonews.com

Ford launched a new F-Line E electric semi truck that will roll onto Western European roads this summer, with a 26-ton rating and up to 1,820 lb-ft of torque. electrek.co

Ford is considering importing BYD batteries for global models, excluding US-bound hybrids. autoblog.com

Ford has a block heater problem. ctvnews.ca

Toyota has an infotainment display problem. reuters.com

Renault plans to bring the Duster back to India. reuters.com

Mitsubishi’s new EV is a high-performance, near-300kW hatchback bound for the Australian market. drive.com.au

Waymo robotaxis can now be hailed by the public in Miami. techcrunch.com

The US National Transportation Safety Board is opening an investigation into Waymo after its robotaxis illegally passed stopped school buses in Austin, Texas, at least 19 times since the start of the school year. techcrunch.com

Chinese ambassador pitches new EVs as a first step toward new Canadian jobs and cheaper cars. thecanadianpressnews.ca

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