Investments in energy transition have resulted in a reduction of emissions from industry in China, according to new figures.
The 0.3 per cent fall is the first in the world largely brought about by clean energy growth, climate experts say.
They say it is an encouraging sign that suggests the large-scale energy transition China – which accounts for approximately 35 per cent of global emissions – has been investing heavily in has started to translate into measurable outcomes.
The analysis for Carbon Brief shows that, in 2025, emissions from fossil fuels increased by an estimated 0.1 per cent, but this was more than offset by a seven per cent decline in CO2 from cement.
Head of international programme at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) Gareth Redmond-King said: “We know net zero is the only solution to limiting increasingly dangerous climate change impacts, but we also know net zero represents exceptionally good business, something not lost on China.
“That their emissions may now be reaching a tipping point is huge news for net zero, although it should surprise no-one who has been paying attention to the sheer scale of China’s investment in clean energy - both for deployment at home, and to supply global markets. Such an important moment should surely put an end to critics of climate action in the west seeking to use China as an excuse to weaken low-carbon polices in their own countries."
Dr Ella Gilbert, a climate scientist formerly of the British Antarctic Survey, said: "Cutting emissions to net zero is the only scientific solution to tackling climate change. So falling emissions from one of the world’s biggest polluters is huge news. And it shows that the backwards USA is not the only nation that matters when it comes to greenhouse gases. While a decline in Chinese emissions is great news, humanity needs to do much more, much faster.”
Dr Kathryn Brown, science director at the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, said: “The UK government’s national security advisors warned recently of the serious threats posed to the UK by ecosystem collapse and global biodiversity loss. Climate change - the major driver of that - can only be halted by cutting planet-warming emissions to net zero. Our chances of achieving that have been given a significant boost by news that the world’s biggest emitter, China, has seemingly turned the corner on their carbon dioxide emissions.
“Whilst we are still a long way off, China’s progress should serve to bolster our global efforts as the only way to protect and expand our planet’s natural systems, which remain crucial to every aspect of our lives, from the air we breathe, to the food we eat.”
China is expected to overachieve its goal to peak emissions before 2030, and the installation of 300 GW of solar in 2024 has allowed renewable growth to cover all new electricity demand, reducing reliance on coal.
China, still the world’s largest emitters of CO2, will now need to cut its carbon intensity by around 23 per cent over the next five years in order to meet one of its key commitments under the Paris Agreement.
