European Union records record increase in renewable electricity consumption

There is positive news coming from Brussels regarding the importance of renewable electricity production in the European Union in 2023. According to data released by Eurostat, 45.3% of gross electricity consumption was provided by alternative and green sources. The increase of 4.1 percentage points compared to 2022 was "the largest annual increase" ever recorded.

Among the main sources of green energy were wind production, which represented 38.5% of the total, and hydroelectric power, with a share of 28.2%, which together represented more than two thirds of the total.

The EU statistics body points out that "the growth in renewable electricity over the last decade has been achieved by the expansion of wind and solar power", with the latter being "the fastest growing source". In 2008, installed capacity was 7.4 TWh and represented just 1% of total renewables, while in 2023 it had already reached 252.1 TWh and 20.5% of the mix.

Excluding Norway, which generates more renewable electricity than it has the capacity to consume, the countries that led in electricity consumption from renewable sources were Austria (87.8%), Sweden (87.5%) and Denmark (79.4%). The European average was 45.3%.

Portugal in the front row

In fourth place among the countries that consumed the most energy from green sources is Portugal, with 63%, followed by Croatia (58.8%) and Spain (56.9%). At the bottom of the table are Malta (10.7%), the Czech Republic (16.4%) and Luxembourg (18%).

It should be noted that sustainable production in the country reached its highest level ever last year, accounting for 71% of the country's consumption . According to REN, this was due to the "growth in renewable energy installations" and the "overall favourable conditions". Water and wind sources accounted for 28% and 27% of the national system's supply, respectively.

This month, REN also announced that, in 2024, solar energy connected to the National Transmission Grid doubled when compared to 2023. In total, the installed photovoltaic capacity increased from 779 MW to 1555 MW. "Adding to these values ​​the 476 MW connected last year to the National Distribution Grid, the total installed capacity rises to 3872 MW", shared the company responsible for the transmission of electricity and gas in Portugal.

Last year, the Government led by Luís Montenegro reviewed the targets set out in the National Energy and Climate Plan (PNEC) 2030, namely the increase in the contribution of renewables to electricity consumption – this item rose from 85% to 93% to be achieved by the end of this decade.