🔌 No grid, no power: China’s State Grid plans to invest 4 trillion yuan (~$574bn) in power networks by 2030 – around 40% more than in the previous five-year period.
🌬️ Renewables wasted: Wind and solar capacity are expanding faster than the grids. In several provinces, clean power goes unused because transmission and distribution can’t keep up.
🏗️ West to East: The core project is ultra-high-voltage transmission from western regions to eastern industrial hubs and megacities, moving power from wind- and sun-rich areas to where demand is.
🧠 Grids for AI & data centres: Grid expansion is also a prerequisite for new data centres, e-mobility and rising electricity demand from digitalisation.
🔋 Storage as the bottleneck: China aims to more than double battery storage capacity to 180 GW by 2027. Without storage, grid expansion alone is not enough.
Background
Global energy investment will reach around $3.3tn in 2025. China is now the world’s largest energy investor, spending more than the EU and the US combined. Solar, at roughly $450bn per year, is the single largest investment category, and spending on power generation, grids and storage is now about 50% higher than on fossil fuels.
Power plants and storage are being built faster than infrastructure. Globally, only about $400bn per year goes into grid expansion. China’s goal: make electricity usable.
➡️ No grids, no energy transition, no AI infrastructure, no energy security.
The China Survival Guide for Western Businesses
Entity setup, WeChat strategy, hiring your first local team. 12+ years on the ground in Shanghai.
