Europe is becoming a shining star for our renewable energy future.
Nonprofit energy think tank Ember reports that wind, solar, hydropower, and other clean power sources rose to a record 44% in Europe last year. Meanwhile, air pollution and generation from fossil fuels dropped by 19%.
A big takeaway from the data is that having a power system primarily supported by renewable energy is not only feasible, but perhaps inevitable.
Ember's report showcases a huge increase in sustainable energy from 2022, when 22.5% of EU electricity came from renewables, per the European Environment Agency. The clean energy goal stated in that report is a 42.5% share by 2030.
With that mark reportedly surpassed, the sector can now focus on energy dominance as we continue to transform our production and use more sustainably. And Europe is providing a prime example.
"The EU's power sector is in the middle of a monumental shift," Ember's Europe Program Director Sarah Brown said on the agency's website.
Solar and wind were the renewable leaders, at 27% of EU electricity production.
By comparison, cleaner energy sources represent 20% of U.S. electricity production, according to the Energy Department. Wind and solar are also the leaders in the sector stateside.
"Fossil fuels are playing a smaller role than ever as a system with wind and solar as its backbone comes into view," Brown said of the EU numbers on Ember's website.
The report also highlights rising wind generation. The 13% increase has EU wind catchers ahead of gas power generation for the first time.
Hydropower and nuclear generation rebounded after disappointing results in 2022. Ember attributed production drops that year to extreme droughts and outages at French nuclear plants. Recent innovations leveraging lower-flow river power could soon add to the hydro tally.
The gains highlighted in Ember's report are part of the way we can stave off worst-case impacts from the planet's overheating. But, Brown warns that the work is far from complete. The goal now is for renewables to have a 72% share of EU power generation by 2030.
"The EU needs a laser focus on rapidly deploying wind, solar, and flexibility to create a system free of fossil fuels," Brown said in the report.
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