China wastes less renewable energy in Q1

BEIJING - China wasted less renewable energy in the first quarter of this year, the country's top energy regulator said Tuesday.

The country's curtailment rate for wind power stood at 8.5 percent in the first three months, down 8 percentage points from a year ago, while that for solar power fell by 5.4 percentage points to reach 4.3 percent, according to the National Energy Administration.

China wasted almost no hydropower during this period.

Electricity generated from renewable energy in the first quarter went up 14 percent year on year to reach 344.2 billion kilowatt hours, accounting for 22 percent of the total electricity generated, 1.4 percentage points up from a year ago.

The country saw an additional renewable energy installed capacity of 15.35 million kilowatts in the first quarter.

A United Nations report released earlier this month showed that China was the world's biggest investor in renewable energy last year.