A third consecutive year of falling coal consumption and a renewable energy spending spree has made China the new global leader on climate change, some environmental groups claim.

Key points: Figures from China's national bureau of statistics revealed a 4.7 per cent fall in coal consumption in 2016

Figures from China's national bureau of statistics revealed a 4.7 per cent fall in coal consumption in 2016 Greenpeace spokesman Li Shuo says "China has transformed itself from [a] climate bad boy"

Greenpeace spokesman Li Shuo says "China has transformed itself from [a] climate bad boy" The country has embarked on a $474b renewable energy program

Figures from China's National Bureau of Statistics this year revealed a 4.7 per cent year-on-year fall in coal consumption in 2016.

Coal production dropped even more, and the latest figures confirm a three-year trend of declining coal use for the country's massive electricity grid.

"China has transformed itself from climate bad boy into a reluctant leader, and at the Paris climate change talks, really a true leader," said Greenpeace East Asia's spokesman Li Shuo.

As part of commitments made in the global Paris Climate agreement, China will introduce a cap on coal and seek to peak its carbon dioxide emissions by 2030.

To achieve this, the country has embarked on a $474 billion renewable energy program, with huge wind and solar farms under construction across the country.

China's 1.35 billion people produce double the amount of CO2 emissions as the world's second largest polluter, the United States.

Coal burning is the major cause, and it is separately the main contributor to air pollution that regularly chokes China's major cities.

"I think people here probably can't wait that long before solving the air pollution problem, so I think the domestic pressure itself is already large enough for China to take action," said Professor Qi Ye, a climate change specialist at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

China under the microscope

China's shift towards renewable energy sources has come into focus since Donald Trump became US President.

Mr Trump has said he has "an open mind" on existing US commitments to reduce carbon emissions under the Paris accord.

His rhetoric is in stark contrast to his predecessor, Barack Obama, who brokered a deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2014 to commit both countries to emissions cuts.

"I think international pressure, particularly from the United States, does not really make much of a difference," Professor Qi said.

"President Xi Jinping made it very clear, it's not about what others ask us to do, we really want to do these things."

Doubts have been raised about China's green push due to new coal-fired power plants nearing completion, despite a worsening overcapacity problem.

Earlier this year central authorities cancelled another 104 planned coal power projects.

Government figures have also revealed close to one fifth of wind and solar energy capacity is going to waste, as wind and solar farm developments outpace the ability to connect them to the grid.

Overall though, there is a consensus that China's use of coal for energy generation has most likely peaked.

"For the thermal seaborne coal export market, I think this highlights a dire outlook," said Tim Buckley, a renewable-energy advocate with the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

"Our industry in Australia needs to understand the magnitude of the transformation underway," he said.