Since the beginning of 2019, the Energy Research Institute at China’s National Development and Reform Commission and the World Resources Institute have researched on the potential for distributed clean energy in the Yangtze River Delta region in East China and a roadmap for scaling it up, with support from Energy Foundation China. Their findings were presented in this report in March 2021.

The report summarizes how Denmark and Germany have developed distributed renewable energy, evaluates how big the development potential of distributed solar PV and decentralized wind power is in the Yangtze River Delta region under different scenarios, and puts forward a promising vision that distributed solar PV and decentralized wind power together meet 48 to 69 percent of the region’s incremental energy demand by 2035. The report also proposes a viable pathway for the further development of distributed renewable energy from perspectives of policy, market tools, standards, and innovative business models. Researcher hope the report can help the region realize its full potential of clean energy and advance decarbonized development of regional energy.