At the 2026 Qinghai Clean Energy Development Forum held on July 16, the China Electricity Council (CEC) released the latest data on China's CSP industry. The data shows that as of the end of June this year, China has completed and commissioned 24 CSP projects with an installed capacity of 2.1 million kW, ranking second globally behind Spain only; 26 projects are under construction with an installed capacity of 3.2 million kW. China has become the absolute main force driving global CSP capacity additions.
CSP possesses unique advantages of energy storage, grid regulation, and grid support. In recent years, China's CSP industry has been developing at a speed far exceeding the global average.
In December 2025, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration issued the "Several Opinions on Promoting Scaled Development of CSP," which explicitly proposed that by 2030, China's total CSP installed capacity should strive to reach approximately 15 million kW.
Yang Kun, Executive Vice Chairman of the China Electricity Council and President of the CEC CSP Branch, stated that during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, China's CSP industry will enter a fast track of development, accelerating toward low-cost, high-efficiency, and large-capacity stages, with the clean and stable advantages of CSP becoming even more prominent. As installed capacity continues to grow, CSP will play a greater role in the new-type power system.
The development of the CSP industry cannot be separated from the drive of technological innovation. Currently, China has reached an internationally leading position in fourth-generation CSP technology, having successfully mastered mainstream CSP technologies including tower, trough, and Fresnel systems, and has built a globally leading complete CSP industry chain. The localization rate of technical equipment exceeds 95%, with core materials and equipment for high-temperature heat absorption, thermal storage, and heat collection achieving independent controllability, while power station operation and maintenance technologies continue to improve.
In June, the CGN Golmud 350 MW CSP demonstration project—ranking first globally in both single-unit thermal storage capacity and heliostat field area—officially broke ground. The trough mirror field of this project fully adopts the "Yuanyao No. 1," the world's first set of 8.6-meter aperture molten salt trough collectors independently developed by CGN, with an annual average photothermal efficiency of over 17%. The key equipment of "Yuanyao No. 1" has all achieved domestic production, with 100% controllability of core technologies.
Furthermore, technological progress has laid a solid foundation for cost reduction and efficiency improvement in the CSP industry. According to reporters' understanding, the current unit kilowatt cost of CSP stations has dropped from approximately 30,000 yuan ten years ago to 15,000 yuan, and the grid-connected electricity price has decreased from 1.15 yuan/kWh for the first batch of demonstration projects to approximately 0.6 yuan/kWh. It is expected that during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, CSP station costs will further decline, and industrial competitiveness will continue to strengthen.