China’s National Energy Administration announced on Monday that the nation’s wind and solar power generation has surged across the country, and is now almost equivalent to the nation’s household demand for electricity. Although it is important to note, in China, residential electricity demand is only a small fraction of the nation’s overall power consumption, which means China is still heavily reliant on fossil fuels.

According to the NEA, in 2022, wind and solar energy jumped 21% to 1,190 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity.

Although China reports that wind and solar are now almost capable of supplying all residential demand for electricity, in 2020, only 17% of electricity use was classified as residential, with industry accounting for 60% of all electricity demand, according to data from the International Energy Agency.

In accordance with Beijing’s ambitious plan to produce 33% of the nation’s electricity from renewable sources by 2025 in order to reduce carbon emissions, China has been amping up its rollout of solar and wind generation. Thirty Chinese provinces have recently unveiled plans for more renewable energy installation programs.

In December, Chine unveiled a new $11 billion clean energy project, to be built in the nation’s seventh largest desert in inner Mongolia. It will be the world’s largest renewable electricity generation facility of its kind in a desert area, with an overall installed capacity of 16 million kW, according to a statement by the company constructing it.

Some analysts point out however, that as the Chinese economy reopens this year, it will expand much faster now that it is no longer being hampered by Covid restrictions. As it expands, so will the demand for electricity, which will mean even with increased wind and solar capacity, the nation will likely need to expand its use of fossil-fuel based energy generation to fuel the growth of its economy.