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Concerns grow over increased Chinese investment in European and UK energy sectors
15/9/2026
8 min read
Feature
Concerns are increasing over the scale of Chinese investment into continental European and UK energy infrastructure and installations, as new data is released that underlines the potential influence posed on their operations. That includes influence by Chinese government-run companies, in what – needless to say – remains a one-party state, write Andreia Nogueira, Liz Newmark and Keith Nuthall.
In 2025 Chinese greenfield project energy investments in Europe (including the UK), grew sixfold, year-on-year, to €1.2bn ($1.38bn), according to a May report from US-based researchers the Rhodium Group and the Germany-based Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS). One specific project highlighted is the Red Rock-ESB 50:50 joint venture Inch Cape offshore wind farm, currently under construction off the North Sea coast at Edinburgh, Scotland, which secured €754mn in investment in 2025.
Red Rock is a subsidiary of SDIC Power, which is traded on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, but 51.32% of its shares are owned by the Chinese state. ESB is 97.1% owned by the Irish government. Other China-linked investments highlighted in this research is Red Rock’s Benbrack onshore wind farm, also in Scotland, and DAS Solar’s solar module factory in France.
The EU has also been collecting data. A European Commission report noted: ‘China’s investment stock in the EU stood at €79.8bn in 2024, and Chinese FDI [foreign direct investment] flow amounted to €10.6bn in 2024 (versus €6.4bn in 2023). The top three areas were the automotive sector; entertainment, media and education; and energy and basic materials.’