Wind turbines and solar panels have overtaken fossil fuels to generate 30% of the European Union’s electricity in the first half of the year, a report has found.
Power generation from burning coal, oil and gas fell 17% in the first six months of 2024 compared with the same period the year before, according to climate thinktank Ember. It found the continued shift away from polluting fuels has led to a one-third drop in the sector’s emissions since the first half of 2022.
Chris Rosslowe, an analyst at Ember, said the rise of wind and solar was narrowing the role of fossil fuels. “We are witnessing a historic shift in the power sector, and it is happening rapidly.”
The report found EU power plants burned 24% less coal and 14% less gas from the first half of 2023 to the first half of 2024. The shift comes despite a small uptick in electricity demand that has followed two years of decline linked to the pandemic and Ukraine war.
“If member states can keep momentum up on wind and solar deployment then freedom from fossil power reliance will truly start to come into view,” said Rosslowe.
Power plants in the European Union burned 14 percent less gas and 24 percent less coal from the first six months of 2023 to the first six months of this year, the report found, even though there was a small increase in demand for electricity following the war in Ukraine and the pandemic.
“Wind and solar generated 30% of the EU’s electricity in the first half of the year, compared to 27% from fossil fuels. Together, wind and solar surpassed fossil generation in thirteen Member States, with four of these hitting the milestone for the first time in 2024 over a January-June period: Germany, Belgium, Hungary and the Netherlands,” the report said.
If renewables like hydropower are included in the calculation, the total clean energy contribution to the EU’s power mix would be 50 percent, reported The Guardian.
“[S]ustaining the EU’s electricity transition at this pace will require dedicated policy focus to ease barriers to wind and solar integration. Adequate support on grid connections and other enablers of swift development will be needed to ensure that economic, security and climate benefits are delivered across Europe,” the report said.
While Europe has been one of the largest polluters historically, it also has some of the most ambitious goals for creating a green energy economy.
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