The drop in fossil fuel generation was driven by wind and solar growth as well as the recovery of hydropower.

The drop in fossil fuel generation was driven by wind and solar growth as well as the recovery of hydropower.

Fossil fuels provided less than a quarter of the EU’s energy for the first time in April.

The good news comes from energy think tank Ember which found that the proportion of electricity generated by fossil fuels in the bloc fell to a record low of 23 per cent last month - a sharp drop of 22 per cent compared to April 2023 despite an increase in demand. It also surpasses the previous record low of 27 per cent from May 2023.

Wind and solar growth as well as the recovery of hydropower drove the fall in fossil fuel generation and increased the share of renewables in the electricity mix to a record 54 per cent.

Wind and solar alone generated more than a third of the EU’s electricity in April while gas and coal fell. Coal contributed just 8.6 per cent of the energy mix compared to 30 per cent in 2023. Gas provided 12.1 per cent of the EU’s electricity - a 22 per cent decline year-on-year.

  • AutoTL;DRBEnglish
    1•8 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    The drop in fossil fuel generation was driven by wind and solar growth as well as the recovery of hydropower.

    Wind and solar growth as well as the recovery of hydropower drove the fall in fossil fuel generation and increased the share of renewables in the electricity mix to a record 54 per cent.

    Solar and wind have stepped up as the main players, proving they are ready to take on their role as the backbone of the modern clean electricity system.”

    Seven coal fired power stations closed in the country at the end of March 2024 after their shut down was postponed due to the energy crisis.

    Despite rising demand, fossil fuel electricity generation still fell as renewables displaced them from the mix.

    “From 2016 to 2023, coal fell by over 300 terawatt hours and there was a similar rise in wind and solar over that period,” she explains.

    The original article contains 482 words, the summary contains 150 words. Saved 69%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!