China

Beach at sunset

China announces 3-year plan to combat ocean litter and clean up coastal areas

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment and three other government bodies have announced a campaign that aims to substantially clear the garbage in coastal areas by 2025, with ongoing, regular clean-ups established by 2027, Chinese news site Sixth Tone reported. It also calls for measures to be bolstered to prevent inland waste from reaching the sea.

China announces 3-year plan to combat ocean litter and clean up coastal areas Read more

Aerial view of large solar farm

The world’s largest solar farm just came online in China’s Xianjiang autonomous region

The world’s largest solar farm, in the desert in northwestern Xinjiang, is now connected to China’s grid. The 3.5-gigawatt, 33,000-acre solar farm is outside Urumqi, Xinjiang’s capital.
Assuming an EV consumes about 3,000 kWh per year, 6.09 billion kWh could power 2.03 million EVs annually.

The world’s largest solar farm just came online in China’s Xianjiang autonomous region Read more

Car HUD

Chinese scientists discover way to make batteries more efficient

A new water-based battery design is safer and more energy-efficient than traditional lithium-ion batteries, researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences claim. Today’s lithium batteries have enabled the rise of EVs, but their flammable organic electrolytes make them a fire risk, and their energy density puts a cap on EV driving range. The new water-based design replaces those combustible components with a safer, more stable water-based electrolyte that can pack way more energy into the same space.

Chinese scientists discover way to make batteries more efficient Read more

Car being assembled in factory

Chinese fossil car production plunges amid surging EV demand

A Financial Times story reports that the asset value of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle factories has plummeted as legacy carmakers scale back production because of the growing popularity of electric vehicles. China’s 2023 ICE vehicle production is down a staggering 37% from its peak of 17.7 million in 2017, in a major win for climate action.

Chinese fossil car production plunges amid surging EV demand Read more

Vast solar farm

Utility solar dethrones coal as the cheapest power source in Asia

According a new analysis from Wood Mackenzie on the levelized cost of electricity for the Asia Pacific region, the cost of renewables reached a historic low in 2023. Renewable energy costs in Asia last year were 13% cheaper than coal and are expected to be 32% cheaper by 2030. Utility solar is now the cheapest power source in 11 out of 15 APAC countries. New-build solar project costs are expected to fall by another 20% by 2030.

Utility solar dethrones coal as the cheapest power source in Asia Read more

Traffic in a Chinese city

25% of new car sales in China were fully electric in 2023 for the first time ever

Electric vehicles sales in China, the world’s largest automotive market, are surging. All plugin models accounted for 37% of the market in 2023, up from just 6% at the end of 2021. Full electrics (BEVs) alone accounted for 25%. Plugins are expected to cross the 50% mark for plugins and electric by 2026, with BEVs likely to account for over a third of sales, if current trends persist.

25% of new car sales in China were fully electric in 2023 for the first time ever Read more

Human ear

Chinese scientists develop novel gene therapy that allows deaf children to hear for the first time

The scientists from Shanghai’s Fudan University implanted new genetic code into a harmless virus and then injected the viruses into the children’s cochlea. They say the experiment has sparked hearing in four out of five children who received the treatment.

Chinese scientists develop novel gene therapy that allows deaf children to hear for the first time Read more