According to the Chinese Ministry of Ecology and Environment, China’s carbon intensity, which measures the amount of CO2 emitted to generate one unit of GDP, decreased by 18.8% over the 2015-2020 period, exceeding the targeted 18% reduction. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China's carbon intensity declined by 1% in 2020, as the country reduced its coal use to from 57.7% of energy consumption in 2019 to 56.8% in 2020. The share of gas, hydropower, nuclear power and wind power increased by one percentage point to 24.3% of consumption.
In September 2020, China presented plans to scale up its updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) to the Paris Agreement, targeting a peak in CO2 emissions before 2030 and carbon neutrality before 2060. The country is currently working on a new five-year plan (2021-2025) that will determine its near-term decarbonisation plans. The country’s CO2 emissions from energy combustion have almost quadrupled since 1990, reaching 9.7 GtCO2 in 2019.