Jiangsu becomes China's first province with 100 GW of solar power capacity

State Grid Jiangsu Electric Power announced on Aug 18 that the province's cumulative photovoltaic (PV) installed capacity had exceeded 100 GW, reaching 100.08 GW and accounting for over 38 percent of its total power generation.

This made Jiangsu the first Chinese province to hit that mark, with PV now surpassing coal, gas, and wind as its largest electricity source.

Since the start of the 14th Five‑Year Plan (2021-25), driven by the dual carbon goals, Jiangsu has added more than 70 GW of PV capacity — a several‑fold increase from the baseline. The jump from 90 GW in January 2026 to over 100 GW took less than seven months, highlighting the accelerating pace of growth.

Distributed PV systems accounted for most of this capacity, with 69.29 GW installed — nearly 70 percent of the provincial total and the highest in the nation.

Given the province's scarce land resources, Jiangsu followed a distinctive path focused on land‑based distributed PV, supplemented by centralized and offshore projects, using rooftops in industrial parks, public buildings, and rural homes. This model offers useful lessons for similar regions.

A provincial plan for 2026-30 has been issued, targeting 120 GW of cumulative distributed PV by 2030 and 160 GW by 2035. It promotes both village‑wide and park‑based large‑scale deployment, prioritizing centralized grid connection and scattered access, while focusing on industrial parks, whole‑village household projects, public buildings, and transport.

To ease grid connection pressures, State Grid Jiangsu piloted a model where local governments coordinate rooftop resources and introduce state‑owned and private firms for unified project filing, while power utilities build supporting grids and encourage medium‑voltage convergence connections.

Pilot village‑wide projects are underway in 48 villages across 12 cities, covering 731 users with a total of 22 MW and shifting distributed PV from unregulated growth to orderly expansion.

To ensure large‑scale PV can be connected and absorbed, the utility strengthened trunk grids, upgraded distribution networks, and streamlined online services for household and commercial applications, achieving low‑voltage connection with no site visits, no approvals, and no upfront investment for end users.

During this summer's peak demand, new energy has emerged as a key source of power, with its share of Jiangsu's new energy generation surging from 9.8 percent in 2022 to nearly 40 percent this year.

On July 31, the grid hit a record load of 160.9 GW — the fourth new high this summer — with solar and wind providing critical support during midday consumption peaks.