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I'm sorry but this article is full of nonsense. I'm a firm proponent of renewable energy so I'd like it to be true, but there is no way in the world that the dr

I'm sorry but this article is full of nonsense. I'm a firm proponent of renewable energy so I'd like it to be true, but there is no way in the world that the drop in gas- and coal energy generation in the EU last year was caused by the uptake of wind and solar. The article states: > Europe’s coal electricity generation tanked by 26% and gas by 15% in 2023 According to links below, EU's solar generation went up 25% in 2023, wind energy by 15%. But to put the numbers in perspective: total solar generated energy accounted for 259.99 GW in 2023, wind energy for 221 GW. In 2022, total energy consumption in the EU was 3300 GW (I couldn't find the numbers for 2023). With other words, the increase of renewable energy accounted for only 2% of the EU's total consumption. So the drop in coal and gas production must have had other reasons, such as e.g. the soft winter. Sources for EU wind and solar production: https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/renewable-energy/solar-energy_en#:~:text=The%20EU%20solar%20generation%20capacity,the%20spread%20of%20solar%20energy https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/renewable-energy/solar-en.... https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/renewable-energy/eu-wind-energy_en https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/renewable-energy/eu-wind-...

kieranmaine 3y ago
The linked article is poor. The original report covers all the different aspects to the reduction in fossil electricity generation. See https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/european-electricity-review-2024/ https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/european-electri... For a summary look at the "What drove the record fall in EU fossil fuel electricity generation in 2023?" graphic. The reductions are as follows: * -90 TWh - Rising wind and solar generation * -50 TWh - Rebound in hydro and nuclear generation * -94 TWh - Electricity demand fall The area graph "How the EU's electricity mix has evolved over time" gives you a good idea of the impact renewables have made on electricity generation.

kieranmaine 3y ago

The linked article is poor. The original report covers all the different aspects to the reduction in fossil electricity generation. See https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/european-electricity-review-2024/ https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/european-electri... For a summary look at the "What drove the record fall in EU fossil fuel electricity generation in 2023?" graphic. The reductions are as follows: * -90 TWh - Rising wind and solar generation * -50 TWh - Rebound in hydro and nuclear generation * -94 TWh - Electricity demand fall The area graph "How the EU's electricity mix has evolved over time" gives you a good idea of the impact renewables have made on electricity generation.