In the spring of 2025, China’s “two sessions” political event, held annually from March 4–11, offered important clues about the country's future climate policy. Despite China’s increasing recognition of environmental and climate challenges, the event revealed a more muted climate ambition this year. Analysts suggest that economic concerns continue to take center stage, overshadowing climate action in the year ahead.
Held in Beijing, the “two sessions” bring together thousands of delegates from across China, including members of the Communist Party, industry leaders, and experts. The event serves as a crucial moment for outlining the year’s policy direction across multiple sectors, from energy to climate to social governance.
This year, the “two sessions” focused on defining China’s energy landscape, reaffirming clean energy priorities, and making clear its ongoing reliance on coal—while signaling an urgent push for economic growth. So, what were the key takeaways on China’s 2025 climate policy? In this article, Carbon Brief breaks down the important signals from the sessions, including: a new energy target for 2025, clean energy initiatives, and China’s stance on global “green trade barriers.”
A Major Political Moment
The “two sessions”—an acronym for the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC)—is not just a political event but a reflection of China’s evolving priorities. The sessions feature a high-profile speech by China’s premier outlining economic goals, along with reports from bodies such as the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), which lays out plans for energy, climate, and industrial growth. While much of the focus in 2025 remained on economic recovery, the sessions also provided a snapshot of China’s climate strategy.
The government’s work report remains the centerpiece, with much attention paid to the annual GDP target, energy strategies, and ambitious decarbonization efforts. However, this year’s report underlined a significant shift—economic growth, particularly through domestic consumption, was set as the main engine for 2025. But where does climate policy fit in the grand scheme?
Low Energy Targets Raise Concerns
China set a target to reduce energy intensity (the amount of energy consumed per unit of GDP) by 3% by 2025. While this target might seem modest, it signals a deeper issue. As Greenpeace’s Yao Zhe pointed out, China’s energy efficiency has stagnated in recent years. “The decarbonization effects of renewable technology deployment have been offset by rapid economic growth,” she said.
In fact, China is already lagging behind its carbon intensity targets, and there are concerns that the energy sector will continue to rely on fossil fuels. With the new methodology for calculating energy intensity, analysts like Lauri Myllyvirta of CREA suggest that fossil fuel consumption could rise by 1.9% in 2025, causing a corresponding spike in CO2 emissions.
Dual-Carbon Goals and Coal: A Fragile Balance
In 2025, China reaffirmed its commitment to achieving its “dual-carbon” goals—reaching peak carbon emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. But this year’s report placed a much heavier emphasis on economic growth, signaling a delicate balancing act between decarbonization and energy security.
There was no surprise in China’s continued reliance on coal for energy security. Despite the push for a green transition, the government remains focused on ensuring sufficient energy supply, which includes expanding coal production in the short term. For example, China will trial “low-carbon upgrade” initiatives for coal-fired power plants and maintain fossil-fuel infrastructure in support of national energy security.
Green Development Meets Economic Growth
The 2025 work report lists several climate initiatives, including scaling up renewable energy projects, promoting clean energy technologies, and improving the power grid infrastructure to accommodate rising renewable generation. Specific goals include building zero-carbon industrial parks and integrating more industries into the national carbon market.
However, the government’s broader emphasis is on fostering domestic consumption to drive GDP growth, especially through sectors like real estate and construction. At the same time, it has earmarked billions of dollars in incentives for clean technologies, such as new-energy vehicles (NEVs). These vehicles, along with expanding hydrogen energy and renewable energy technologies, are seen as essential components of China’s long-term economic strategy.
Yet, some analysts point out that China’s insistence on growing certain high-emission sectors, like construction, could undermine its carbon reduction targets. “The big question mark is real estate and construction,” said Myllyvirta. “While the government may seek stable growth in these sectors, it is unclear how this will affect emissions.”
What Does This Mean for Global Climate Action?
China’s 2025 “two sessions” underscore that economic growth remains the central priority, with environmental goals often taking a backseat. This is a reality that will have global implications, especially as China is the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Although China is making strides toward green development, its continued reliance on coal and fossil fuels, as well as its heavy focus on economic recovery, suggests that climate action may be sidelined in favor of more immediate concerns.
For the international community, this raises the question of how China will balance its environmental goals with its economic growth. While renewable energy technologies are gaining importance, the government’s lack of urgency in curbing carbon emissions highlights the tension between global climate leadership and national economic priorities.
China’s climate path in 2025 signals that clean energy will continue to play a crucial role in its future development, but the journey toward climate neutrality will remain slow and fraught with economic pressures. For the world, it’s clear: China's evolving climate strategy is one to watch closely, as it holds significant influence over global decarbonization efforts.
Tensions Shape Climate Policy
The trade tensions that shaped the political atmosphere during last year’s two sessions have only intensified in the months since, particularly as issues like export controls and tariffs have escalated. This is reflected in China’s 2025 work report, which acknowledges the “increasingly complex and severe” geopolitical challenges that threaten to impact trade, technology, and scientific progress. The report points out that such tensions may have far-reaching consequences for China's economic and environmental strategies.
In response, the Chinese government has vowed to take "active steps" to counter what it perceives as “green trade barriers”—a reference to growing protectionist measures in global markets. One key example is the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which imposes tariffs on products from countries with less stringent carbon regulations. China has expressed concerns over such measures, which it views as discriminatory against its industries.
However, in a press briefing during the two sessions, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi expressed optimism, suggesting that both China and the EU possess the “capacity and wisdom” to resolve these disagreements through dialogue and consultations. Wang also reiterated China’s commitment to supporting the development of green sectors in African nations, building on the work outlined in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which includes fostering high-quality, sustainable projects across partner countries.
Extreme Weather: A Growing Challenge for China’s Economy
The two sessions also saw a continued recognition of the toll extreme weather events have taken on China’s economic growth. The government’s work report highlighted the need for improved preparedness and response to natural disasters such as floods, droughts, and typhoons—issues that have become increasingly frequent and severe in recent years. Although the report did not explicitly link these events to climate change, it did acknowledge their impact on energy goals and economic performance.
The NDRC report, in particular, noted that “frequent extreme weather events” were a contributing factor to China’s failure to meet its energy-intensity reduction target in 2024. This serves as a stark reminder of the growing vulnerability of China’s infrastructure and economy to the physical impacts of climate change. A recent analysis by Carbon Brief further confirmed that, of the 114 attribution studies for extreme weather events in China, a significant majority (88) found that climate change had either increased the severity or likelihood of these events.
Political Signals and Policy Priorities
Beyond the speeches and official reports, side meetings and interactions at the two sessions provide important political signals. In 2025, President Xi Jinping met with a delegation from Jiangsu, an economically dynamic province known for its strength in manufacturing and technological innovation. At this meeting, Xi stressed the importance of upgrading traditional industries and fostering innovation for the future. However, he also cautioned against creating "industry bubbles," a reference to unsustainable growth in certain sectors. Xi’s comments reflected the delicate balance the government seeks to strike between economic growth and sustainable development.
Xi’s remarks align with broader trends in China’s climate and energy policy. Minister of Ecology and Environment (MEE) Huang Runqiu emphasized the importance of low-carbon development in meetings with provincial delegations. During a press conference in the “minister’s corridor,” Huang called for accelerating China's transition to a greener economy, focusing on low-carbon innovation and more sustainable industrial practices.
Additionally, the two sessions saw more than 700 policy proposals related to China’s ecological transition, with a particular focus on the energy sector and the development of the carbon market. Among these proposals, the US-based NPC Observer newsletter highlighted two bills calling for the establishment of a “climate change response law,” which would create a legislative framework for carbon reduction across multiple sectors.
Legislation and Future Steps
As the two sessions drew to a close, National People’s Congress (NPC) Chairman Zhao Leji confirmed that lawmakers would continue working on significant environmental legislation in the coming year. This includes ongoing development of China’s environment and ecology code, which is expected to address key issues such as pollution control and resource conservation. Additionally, the atomic energy law will likely see further revisions, underscoring China’s continuing reliance on nuclear energy as part of its broader energy strategy.
These legislative steps indicate that while China faces significant geopolitical and climate challenges, its policy direction remains focused on balancing economic growth with environmental responsibility. The debate over how to achieve this balance will continue to evolve in the coming months, but the two sessions in 2025 have provided important clues about the government’s priorities for the year ahead.