Lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity in China
China: Lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity was 525.34 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour in 2025. ▼ Falling
Lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity in China, 2000–2025
Source: Ember (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour.
Analysis
In 2025, lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity in China stood at 525.34 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.
The figure is down 5.4% on the previous year and down 21.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity in China peaked at 790.92 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour in 2003 and was at its lowest, 525.34 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour, in 2025.
China ranks 88th of 213 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 774.33 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 747.06 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 790.92 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 10 |
| 2010s | 684.51 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 619.63 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 752.36 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 10 |
| 2020s | 575.98 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 525.34 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 606.29 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour | 6 |
Countries ranked near China
- 85 Haiti 534.88 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour compare
- 87 Jordan 529.79 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour compare
- 89 Australia 525.18 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour compare
- 90 Gabon 523.08 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour compare
- 91 Papua New Guinea 513.74 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour compare
More climate change data for China
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 6.2% (2100)
- Population growth -0.2% (2025)
- Population, total 1.41 billion (2025)
- Urban population growth 0.5% (2025)
- Urban population 933.17 million (2025)
- Urban population 66.3% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 285.09 billion tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity in China?
- Lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity in China was 525.34 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour in 2025, according to Ember (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 790.92 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour in 2003.
- What is the lowest lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 525.34 grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour in 2025.
- How does China rank for lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity?
- China ranks 88th out of 213 countries with data for 2025.
- Is lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 21.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Ember (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Lifecycle carbon intensity of electricity. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Greenhouse gases emitted per unit of generated electricity, measured in grams of CO₂ equivalents per kilowatt-hour.