Abu Dhabi: Participation in the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) is set to see a significant boost with China announcing its interest to join the agency.
The announcement was made at the third assembly of the international organisation.
Liu Qi, Vice-Minister of the National Energy Administration of China, said Irena plays a significant role in the promotion of renewable energies, provision of support services and strengthening of human resources in the sector.
“China looks forward to becoming a full member of Irena soon, as well as working alongside all countries for greater achievements in global renewable energy development,” announced
China will join 160 other participating countries in Irena, of which 105 are full members of the agency and 55 are at different stages of joining.
Adnan Z Ameen, director-general at the Irena, said China’s decision to join Irena is “a milestone in international efforts to promote renewable energy”.
China is currently the world’s largest energy producer, with total installed electrical power generation capacity of 1,140 gigawatts (GW). It is already known to be the world leader for installed capacity of hydro and wind power, with 249 GW of hydro and 63 GW of wind, and is adding more hydro and wind capacity every year than any other country. In addition, China’s installed generating capacity of solar photovoltaic has reached 7 GW, a tenfold increase in just over two years.
