BEIJING, Sept. 19 -- China's installed capacity of wind and solar power surged in the first eight months of the year, data from the National Energy Administration (NEA) showed.

By the end of August, the installed capacity of solar power in the country expanded 44.4 percent year on year to 510 million kilowatts, while that of wind power stood at about 400 million kilowatts, representing a yearly increase of 14.8 percent, the data showed.

The country's installed power generation capacity totaled about 2.76 billion kilowatts by the end of last month, rising 11.9 percent year on year, the NEA said.

China has enhanced its investment in renewable energy over the years as part of its pursuit of green development.

In the first eight months, China's major power companies invested 187.3 billion yuan (about 26.11 billion U.S. dollars) in solar power projects, soaring 82.7 percent year on year. Their investment in nuclear and wind power projects reached 52.2 billion yuan and 114.9 billion yuan, surging by 56.9 percent and 38.7 percent from a year ago, respectively, according to the NEA.