In 2022, for the first time, the EU produced more electricity from renewables than from gas Knife attack in the EU district of Brussels – police arrest man in metro station

In 2022, for the first time in the EU, more electricity will be produced from wind and solar energy than from gas. According to an analysis by the think tank Ember Climate, about 22 percent of electricity came from solar and wind energy last year, which is more than ever before.

In 2021 that was still about 19 percent. On the other hand, almost 20 percent of the EU electricity mix came from gas – almost a percentage point less than in 2021. According to Ember Climate, a total of 623 terawatt-hours (TWh) came from wind and solar last year.

According to figures from the think tank, Germany generated the most wind and solar energy in 2022: 126 terawatt hours from the wind and 59 terawatt hours from the sun. However, the shares of wind and solar energy in the German electricity mix were lower compared to other EU countries: when it comes to solar generation, the Netherlands leads with 14 percent of the total electricity mix, followed by Greece and Hungary ( both 13 percent). According to the figures, Germany gets almost 10 percent of its electricity from the sun.

According to Ember Climate, Denmark leads the way with a share of more than 50 percent wind energy. Followed by Lithuania with almost 40 percent and Ireland with about 35 percent.

More solar energy than ever before

According to the analysis, the EU produced 203 terawatt hours of electricity from the sun last year, 39 terawatt hours more than in 2021, which corresponds to an increase of 24 percent. That’s double the previous record. According to the calculations, gas purchases of around ten billion euros could therefore be avoided. According to this, 20 of the 27 EU countries will have produced more solar energy in 2022 than ever before. Germany, Spain and Poland, among others, made the most progress in ramping up solar systems.

By contrast, the EU produced 420 terawatt-hours of electricity from wind in 2022 – 33 more than in 2021. “The increase in wind energy was driven by significant increases in Germany, but also in Sweden and Poland,” the analysis says.

“The crisis has undoubtedly accelerated the transition of electricity supply in Europe,” said Dave Jones, data expert at Ember. The energy transition is emerging stronger from the energy crisis. (sda/dpa)