On 28 October, China submitted the update for its first NDC entitled “China’s Achievements, New Goals and New Measures for Nationally Determined Contributions” for the period until 2030 and the Low-Emission Development Strategy (LEDS) “Mid-Century Long-Term Low Greenhouse Gas Emission Development Strategy” for the period until 2060 to the UNFCCC Secretariat.
The update to China’s first NDC for the implementation period until 2030 is the first NDC update China handed in since 2016. In the document, China announces increasing and expanding its mitigation in the medium and short term: According to the first updated NDC, the CO2 emission peak should be reached before 2030, carbon intensity should be reduced by at least 65 % compared to 2005, primary consumption of non-fossil energy sources should reach a share of 25 % by 2030, forest areas should be expanded by 6 billion cubic metres, and energy capacity from solar and wind should reach 1,200 GW by 2030. The pledges and goals formulated in the update to the first NDC correspond to announcements made by Chinese president XI Jinping in September 2020 during a declaration at the UN General Assembly.
In the LEDS, China describes its strategy to become carbon neutral before 2060 and to increase the share of non-fossil energy sources to at least 80% by then. Contrary to previous announcements, China’s long-term peaking goal will comprise no other GHGs than CO2.
