China's lithium battery and photovoltaic industries continue to lead the global clean energy market, with both sectors posting double-digit growth in key metrics in 2024, according to data released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) on Thursday.
The lithium battery sector expanded significantly, with total output reaching 1,170 gigawatt-hours (GWh), a 24 percent year-on-year increase.
This growth propelled the industry's total value to surpass 1.2 trillion yuan (about 165 billion U.S. dollars), driven in part by a record 260 GWh of energy storage batteries, which surged by 40 percent year on year.
At the same time, the installed capacity of lithium batteries in new energy vehicles (NEVs) and energy storage systems saw a sharp increase, rising 48 percent to exceed 645 GWh.
1,200,000,000,000 Chinese Yuan equals 164,922,496,800.00 United States Dollar
Meanwhile, the photovoltaic industry also exhibited solid growth, with production across several key stages rising by over 10 percent year on year. Output of polysilicon -- the primary material used in solar panels -- along with silicon wafers, cells, and modules all saw notable increases, ensuring that the sector's total output value remained in the trillion-yuan range (over 137 billion U.S. dollars).
In terms of export, photovoltaic cells and modules saw respective growths of more than 40 percent and 12 percent, further solidifying China's role as a dominant player in the global solar energy market.
China's lithium battery, photovoltaic industries post double-digit growth in 2024
Iran's UN ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani on Tuesday urged the UN secretary-general and the Security Council to condemn the United States for inciting violence and threatening to use force against his country.
In a letter addressed to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Somali UN ambassador Abukar Dahir Osman, who serves as the rotating president of the Security Council for January, Iravani accused U.S. President Donald Trump of openly inciting violence in Iran, citing Trump's post on social media platform Truth Social.
"This reckless statement explicitly encourages political destabilization, incites and invites violence, and threatens the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national security of the Islamic Republic of Iran," Iravani said in the letter.
He also called on the UN secretary-general and the Security Council "to fulfill their Charter-based responsibilities by unequivocally condemning all forms of incitement to violence, threats to use force, and interference" in Iran's internal affairs by the United States.
Iran is also urging all UN member states to refrain from provocative and irresponsible statements or actions that violate the UN Charter, including the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of Iran, the letter said.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Iran's mission to the UN accused the U.S. of trying to stage "regime change" in the country, using sanctions, threats, engineered unrest and chaos to manufacture a pretext for military intervention.
With U.S. officials repeatedly threatening to intervene, Chief Commander of the Iranian Army Amir Hatami has stressed that the Iranian armed forces are in a state of full readiness, warning that any miscalculation by "enemies" would trigger a decisive response.
Iran's Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh has also said that the country will respond forcefully to any attack and "defend the country with full force and until the last drop of blood."
The United States virtual embassy in Iran on Tuesday urged U.S. citizens to leave the country.
According to media reports on Wednesday, the U.S. is withdrawing some of its personnel from its military bases in the Middle East as a precaution amid heightened regional tensions.
Qatar has also confirmed that personnel are departing U.S. bases there over "regional tensions."
Meanwhile, media reports quoted anonymous sources saying that Iran has warned neighboring countries hosting U.S. forces that U.S. military bases could be targeted if the U.S. intervenes in the ongoing unrests.
Iran calls on UN chief, Security Council to condemn U.S. for inciting violence
