The Russian-Ukrainian war has reshaped the European Union’s (EU’s) energy landscape, notably increasing the transition to renewable energy.
Wind and solar production were shown to match nuclear production, overtaking fossil gas (20%) for the first time. In 2023, it’s estimated that solar and wind will rise by another 20%, whereas fossil fuel generation could fall by a record 20%, doubling the 2020 record.
Gas shortages prompted fears that the EU could backslide into reliance on coal. This would be especially alarming given that coal, generally agreed to be the most polluting fossil fuel, is the only fossil fuel explicitly targeted in the COP27 agreement.
Although the EU made progress in accelerating the transition to renewables, two major unforeseen challenges arose: French nuclear outages as German nuclear outlets closed, and the worst European drought in 500 years.
As gas prices already shot up in 2021 due to increased demand following the pandemic, and exceptionally low supply, there were no further changes from gas generation to coal generation.
Europe makes up 10% of global energy demand, with Germany as the lead consumer within that at 20% of EU energy demand. Despite having the largest demand reduction in 2022, France comes in second, at 17%. After that come Italy (11%) and Spain (9%), with the highest consumers per capita being Finland and Sweden.
European households invested massively in rooftop solar panels last year, supported by government initiatives, with rooftop solar now representing 66% of the EU’s total installed solar capacity.
Overall, this is extremely positive, and a good sign for the transition to green energy within the EU. These long-term trends should be encouraged and accelerated, dropping fuel dependence.