POWER December 2012 - 57

POWER IN CHINA
Renewable Energy Development
Thrives During China's 12th
Five-Year Plan
China's 12th Five-Year Plan calls for expanding the use of renewable energy in
all forms throughout the country. From solar and wind to biomass gas and
briquettes, China has a true " all of the above " renewable energy policy.
By Zeng Ming, Lü Chunquan, Ma Mingjuan, Peng Lilin, Yan Binjie, Li Na, and Xue Song, North China Electric Power
University, Beijing
R
enewable energy, in all its forms, is an
important part of China's sustainable
electricity system development. Accelerating
the development and use of renewable
energy has become an effective and efficient
way for China to respond to the increasingly
serious problems of increasing energy supply
while minimizing environmental impact.
This article examines the renewable energy
portion of China's 12th Five-Year Plan, from
development to implementation over the period
2011 to 2015 and provides an update on
renewable energy accomplishments made during
the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010). For
each renewable technology, practical suggestions
are provided that would further strengthen
the plan's goal of bringing electricity to all
while reducing China's use of fossil fuels.
China's Renewable Program
Renewable energy plays an important part in
China's overall energy plan. Its use has many
favorable outcomes, such as wide resource
distribution, high exploitation potential, reduced
environmental impact, and sustainable
use. China's rapid economic and social development
has made energy demand growth,
resource depletion, and environment pollution
increasingly serious. The development
and use of renewable energy has become an
important means for China to guarantee its
energy security and to strengthen environmental
protection. Therefore, accelerating
the development and use of renewable energy
is a necessary way for China to simultaneously
address the serious problems of energy
supply and environmental protection.
The renewable energy goals set for the
12th Five-Year Plan are substantial, as was
discussed in an earlier article ( " China's 12th
Five-Year Plan Pushes Power Industry in New
Directions, " January 2012, available in the
POWER archives at www.powermag.com).
Renewable energy development is key to
54
China achieving its goal of 11.4% of primary
energy consumption from non-fossil sources
in 2015 and 15% in 2020. It's also necessary
to speed up renewable energy policy changes
and to promote the sustainable development
of its renewable energy industry. The current
plan builds on the success of the 11th FiveYear
Plan, during which the 2005 Renewable
Energy Law was made effective, renewable
energy markets were established, renewable
resource evaluations were completed, and
many renewable projects began construction
(Table 1). Today, many renewable energy
technologies have been commercialized, and
the markets for their use are quickly expanding.
China's renewable energy industry has
now entered the next stage of development:
comprehensive, fast, and large scale.
Technology and Market Challenges
Renewable energy, in its many forms, is now
an important part of China's national energy
development strategy. However, significant
challenges remain before China can reach its
renewable energy goals.
Technical and economic problems of renewable
energy development are still China's
most fundamental problems. In recent years,
renewable energy technology has improved
rapidly, but most renewable energy industries
Table 1. Major indicators of renewable energy development during the
11th Five-Year Plan. Source: State Council (www.gov.cn)
Energy source
Hydropower
Small hydropower
Wind power
Photovoltaic
Biomass
Biogas (109 m3)
Rural biogas users
(105 households )
Solar water heaters (105 m2)
Geothermal systems
Ethanol
Biodiesel
Total utilization
(million tons of coal/year)
NA = not applicable.
www.powermag.com
POWER | December2012
11th Five-Year
Plan (2005)
117.93
38.50
1.26
0.07
2.00
Gas supply
80
1.8
Heating
8,000
200
Fuel (105 tons)
102
5
16,600
200
20
NA
180
50
28,600
12
58.5
11.5
15,000
400
16,800
460
16
18.1
190
4
140
4
31.8
17.3
11th Five-Year Plan
target (end of 2010)
Generation (GW)
190.00
50.00
10.00
0.30
5.50
216.06
58.40
31.00
0.80
5.50
13.0
8.7
89.7
62.8
22.4
11th Five-Year
Plan (actual)
Average annual
growth (%)

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POWER December 2012

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