BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan. 29
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Wind and hydro power each contributed around one third of the total electricity from renewable sources in the European Union (EU) in 2018, with wind power (36 percent) edging hydro power (33 percent) as the most important sources, Trend reports citing Eurostat.
Eurostat said in its report that the remaining one third was generated from solar power (12 percent), solid biofuels (10 percent) and other renewable sources (9 percent).
In 2018, electricity from renewable sources provided just under one third (32 percent) of the electricity consumed, slightly up from 31 percent in 2017, reads the report.
“The growth in electricity generated from renewable energy sources largely reflects an increase in particular of wind power, but also solar power and solid biofuels (including renewable wastes), while the amount of electricity generated from hydropower was relatively similar to the level recorded ten years earlier,” said Eurostat.
Reportedly, among member states, more than half of the electricity consumed in 2018 was generated from renewable sources in Austria (73 percent), Sweden (66 percent), Denmark (62 percent), Latvia (53 percent) and Portugal (52 percent).
“The high shares of renewables in generation of electricity in Austria and Sweden is principally caused by hydro power, which produces more than three quarters (77 percent) of the electricity consumed in Austria and more than two thirds (69 percent) in Sweden. In contrast, less than 10 percent of the electricity came from renewable sources in Hungary and Malta (both 8 percent) and in Cyprus and Luxembourg (both 9 percent),” the report said.
The EU's target is to reach 20 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020 and at least 32 percent by 2030.
Among the 28 EU member states, 12 member states have already reached a share equal to or above their national 2020 binding targets: Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Croatia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Cyprus, Finland and Sweden.
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