What is the potential of solar PV in China?

The researchers first found that the physical potential of solar PV, which includes how many solar panels can be installed and how much solar energy they can generate, in China reached 99.2 petawatt-hours in 2020.

What is the future of solar energy in China?

China has already made major commitments to transitioning its energy systems towards renewables, especially power generation from solar, wind and hydro sources. However, there are many unknowns about the future of solar energy in China, including its cost, technical feasibility and grid compatibility in the coming decades.

Is solar PV a resource for China's decarbonization?

This is more than twice the country’s total consumption of energy in all forms, including not only electricity but also fuels consumed directly by vehicles, factories, building heating and more. The findings show solar PV is an enormous resource for China’s decarbonization.

How to simulate solar energy output in China?

To simulate the PV electricity output in China, a numerical simulation model based on a physical mechanism is used, called the Global Solar Energy Estimator (GSEE) . Required inputs are total horizontal solar irradiance (RSDS in CMIP6), the fraction of diffuse irradiance and ambient temperature (TAS in CMIP6).

Does solar power generation increase in China?

Table 1. The regional annual and seasonal mean changes in PV power generation over entire China (Unit:%). In general, the SSP126 scenario shows a larger increase in PV electricity generation compared to other scenarios, though a slight decrease (∼2 %) is found in the west and northwest of China.

How many solar farms were detected in China?

We successfully detected about 500 solar farms covering the area of 2000 square kilometers or 770 square miles in total, equivalent to the size of whole Shenzhen city or two and a half or New York city. Figure 8 visualized the locations of all detected solar farms in China marked by blue dots.