China expects to install up to 108GW of solar this year, nearly double the capacity it installed last year.
Those figures have been forecasted by China’s National Energy Administration, according to state TV broadcaster CCTV’s Morning News programme yesterday, in what would constitute a landmark acceleration of solar deployment in China.
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China installed 54.88GW of solar last year, a new record for the country, but a total that perhaps underwhelmed compared to initial forecasts after material price hikes caused numerous projects to be delayed into 2022.
With a slew of delayed projects now expected to complete this year, China’s NEA forecasts that around 121GW of solar projects are currently under or awaiting construction, 108GW of which will be connected to the grid this year.
That would constitute a 96% leap in installations year-on-year and be markedly higher than the up-to-99GW forecasted by the China Photovoltaic Industry Association earlier this year.
Major developments from energy groups in China are driving the surge. Datang Group has confirmed plans to commence the construction of 6.65GW of solar this year, while the State Power Investment Corporation’s 1.3GW PV project in Hubei is also under construction.
In the first four months of the year the NEA stated that 16.8GW of solar had been connected to the grid, more than double (126.7%) the figure connected in the first four months of 2021.
