Shandong has passed a major milestone in its energy transition: renewable energy now accounts for more than half of the province’s total installed capacity, reaching 125 gigawatts, according to a government press briefing held on May 15. Officials from the Shandong Energy Bureau highlighted the province’s continued rapid growth in renewables.
Source: Dazhong News · Economic Herald
Shandong has passed a major milestone in its energy transition: renewable energy now accounts for more than half of the province’s total installed capacity, reaching 125 gigawatts, according to a government press briefing held on May 15. Officials from the Shandong Energy Bureau highlighted the province’s continued rapid growth in renewables. Solar capacity stands at 85.14 GW—the highest in China—while wind power has reached 26.69 GW, ranking fifth nationwide. Utilization rates are also strong: in 2024, wind power hit 96.4% and solar 98.5%, both outperforming the national averages.
To further support renewable integration, Shandong recently issued its 2025 Action Plan for High-Level Renewable Energy Utilization, which outlines eight key initiatives aimed at boosting consumption and grid flexibility.
One major focus is rebalancing the mix of solar and wind. The province plans to shift the current solar-to-wind ratio from 3.2:1 to 2.6:1 by the end of the year. The goal is to take better advantage of the complementary nature of wind and solar generation, smoothing out power output fluctuations—particularly solar’s midday peaks and overnight lulls.
Shandong is also stepping up its investment in energy storage. Around 1 GW of new compressed air energy storage is expected to come online this year, alongside more than 2 GW of additional electrochemical storage. The province is backing independent storage projects and encouraging the adoption of emerging technologies such as sodium-ion batteries and flywheel systems. Officials say reforms to storage market mechanisms are also underway, aimed at improving system flexibility.
Efforts to boost green electricity consumption are gaining pace as well. The province is encouraging industrial users to shift electricity use to periods of high renewable generation. It has also rolled out plans to develop “green power industrial parks” that prioritize clean energy consumption. In addition, Shandong is promoting the co-location of data centers with renewable power projects—part of a broader push to drive new demand with a lower carbon footprint.
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