Brussels, 30 July – New analysis from think tank Ember reveals that wind and solar generated more electricity than fossil fuels during the first six months of 2024 for the first time ever in a half year period.
Wind and solar grew to an all time high of 30% of the EU’s electricity in the first half of the year. This compared to 27% from fossil fuels, which fell by 17%.
The fall in fossil fuels happened even as electricity demand recovered from the impacts of Covid and the gas price crisis, rising 0.7% compared to last year. Despite this, coal saw a sharp drop by nearly a quarter (-24%), and gas fell by 14%. Growth in renewables, particularly wind and solar, was the primary driver of this as their growth outpaced the rebound in demand to replace fossil power as well.
