Beijing, as the capital of China, is under the high pressure of climate change and pollution. The consumption of non-renewable energy is one of the most important sources of the CO2 emissions, which cause climate changes. This paper presents a study on the energy system modelling towards renewable energy and low carbon development for the city of Beijing. The analysis of energy system modelling is organized in two steps to explore the alternative renewable energy system in Beijing. Firstly, a reference energy system of Beijing is created based on the available data in 2014. The EnergyPLAN, an energy system analysis tool, is chosen to develop the reference energy model. Secondly, this reference model is used to investigate the alternative energy system for integrating renewable energies. Three scenarios are developed towards the energy system of Beijing in 2030, which are: (i) reference scenario 2030, (ii) BAU (business as usual) scenario 2030, and (iii) RES (renewable energies) scenario 2030. The 100% renewable energy system with zero CO2 emissions can be achieved by increasing solar energy, biomass and municipal solid waste (MSW) and optimizing heating system. The primary fuel consumption is reduced to 155.9 TWh in the RES scenario, which is 72% of fuel consumption in the reference scenario 2030. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.