Wind Outpaces Nuclear in China

China’s push to install more wind energy capacity has started paying off. Data from the China Wind Energy Association (CWEA) revealed that in 2012, wind energy overtook nuclear power for the very first time to become the country’s third largest source of electricity. The leading two are coal and hydro-electric power.

Since 2007, electricity generation through nuclear power has risen by approximately ten percent annually. In comparison, the development of wind energy has grown by an astonishing 80 percent per year.

Wind farms across China produced 100.4 terawatt hours of electricity in 2012 – that represents two percent more than that generated by nuclear power. Ambitious renewable energy targets have spurred the growth of China’s wind energy initiative, and the gap with nuclear power is expected to widen significantly over the coming years.