Solar Energy Outshines Coal in EU's Energy Mix for the First Time
By Haley Zaremba - Jan 24, 2025
In 2024, solar power became the leading source of electricity in the EU, surpassing coal for the first time.
The rise of solar and wind energy has reduced the EU's reliance on fossil fuel imports, saving billions of dollars.
Despite the solar boom, challenges remain, including a predicted slowdown in global solar installations and the continued use of coal power plants in Germany.
A new report shows that the European Union just passed a major milestone in its journey toward decarbonization. For the first time, in 2024, the share of electricity generated from solar power overtook that of coal in the bloc’s energy mix. Not only did solar eclipse coal in the EU, it was the single fastest growing power source in the region. This marks a serious turn in the continent’s battle to phase out fossil fuels – as well as to ease its reliance on Russian energy imports.
The report, published this week by energy think tank Ember’s annual European Electricity Review, shows that all together, renewable energies accounted for 47% of the European Union’s energy mix last year, a massive 10% gain from the previous year. Meanwhile, the share of coal – the dirtiest fossil fuel – shrank to just 10%.
“Fossil fuels are losing their grip on EU energy,” said Chris Rosslowe, senior analyst and lead author of the Ember report. “At the start of the European Green Deal in 2019, few thought the EU’s energy transition could be where it is today; wind and solar are pushing coal to the margins and forcing gas into structural decline,” he went on to say.
A large part of the solar boom comes thanks to instability in Russian energy markets. After Russia invaded Ukraine in February of 2022, gas prices soared in global markets and particularly in Europe, which was largely dependent on Russian fuel imports to keep the lights on. In the years since the invasion, Western leaders have taken great pains to wean themselves off of Russian imports in the interest of economic sanctions against the Kremlin, but also to find more affordable alternatives as millions of Europeans plunged into energy poverty.
As a result of growing wind and solar energy capacities, the European Union has circumvented nearly $61 billion (€58.6 billion) worth of fossil fuel imports since 2019, according to the Ember report. "This is sending a clear message that their energy needs are going to be met through clean power, not gas imports," Pieter de Pous, an analyst at European think tank E3G, was recently quoted by DW.
However, the breakneck growth of solar energy is likely to slow down on a global level in 2025. Worldwide, 495 GW of solar were added in 2024. But this year, an estimated 493 GW (DC) of solar will be added. That’s according to forecasts from energy data and analytics firm Wood Mackenzie, who foresee a slowdown based on a changing policy environment and shifting economic factors, including rising solar module prices.
“Post-election uncertainty, waning incentives, power sector reforms and a shift towards less ambitious climate agendas will drive solar installations to stagnate at 493 GWdc after years of exponential growth,” Sylvia Leyva Martinez, Wood Mackenzie’s principal analyst for utility-scale solar in North America, was recently quoted by PV Magazine.
Much of this year’s solar energy installations will take place in China, where a strongly favorable policy environment and huge manufacturing base will continue to drive the industry forward. In fact, China is currently working on a solar project of epic proportions, expected to cost $48 billion USD and create 50,000 jobs. The so-called ‘Great Wall of Solar’ would stretch over 400 kilometers through the Kubuqi Desert of Inner Mongolia.
Meanwhile, in Europe, squashing that last 10% share of coal in the region’s energy mix may prove more difficult than anticipated. It was recently publicized that Germany, the largest coal-fired energy producer in the European Union, will likely have to keep its receive coal plants around larger than originally projected as planned gas plants run far behind and far over budget. If current trends continue, coal plants will be needed as a backup for energy security “well into the next decade.”
By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com
In 2024, solar power became the leading source of electricity in the EU, surpassing coal for the first time.
The rise of solar and wind energy has reduced the EU's reliance on fossil fuel imports, saving billions of dollars.
Despite the solar boom, challenges remain, including a predicted slowdown in global solar installations and the continued use of coal power plants in Germany.
A new report shows that the European Union just passed a major milestone in its journey toward decarbonization. For the first time, in 2024, the share of electricity generated from solar power overtook that of coal in the bloc’s energy mix. Not only did solar eclipse coal in the EU, it was the single fastest growing power source in the region. This marks a serious turn in the continent’s battle to phase out fossil fuels – as well as to ease its reliance on Russian energy imports.
The report, published this week by energy think tank Ember’s annual European Electricity Review, shows that all together, renewable energies accounted for 47% of the European Union’s energy mix last year, a massive 10% gain from the previous year. Meanwhile, the share of coal – the dirtiest fossil fuel – shrank to just 10%.
“Fossil fuels are losing their grip on EU energy,” said Chris Rosslowe, senior analyst and lead author of the Ember report. “At the start of the European Green Deal in 2019, few thought the EU’s energy transition could be where it is today; wind and solar are pushing coal to the margins and forcing gas into structural decline,” he went on to say.
A large part of the solar boom comes thanks to instability in Russian energy markets. After Russia invaded Ukraine in February of 2022, gas prices soared in global markets and particularly in Europe, which was largely dependent on Russian fuel imports to keep the lights on. In the years since the invasion, Western leaders have taken great pains to wean themselves off of Russian imports in the interest of economic sanctions against the Kremlin, but also to find more affordable alternatives as millions of Europeans plunged into energy poverty.
As a result of growing wind and solar energy capacities, the European Union has circumvented nearly $61 billion (€58.6 billion) worth of fossil fuel imports since 2019, according to the Ember report. "This is sending a clear message that their energy needs are going to be met through clean power, not gas imports," Pieter de Pous, an analyst at European think tank E3G, was recently quoted by DW.
However, the breakneck growth of solar energy is likely to slow down on a global level in 2025. Worldwide, 495 GW of solar were added in 2024. But this year, an estimated 493 GW (DC) of solar will be added. That’s according to forecasts from energy data and analytics firm Wood Mackenzie, who foresee a slowdown based on a changing policy environment and shifting economic factors, including rising solar module prices.
“Post-election uncertainty, waning incentives, power sector reforms and a shift towards less ambitious climate agendas will drive solar installations to stagnate at 493 GWdc after years of exponential growth,” Sylvia Leyva Martinez, Wood Mackenzie’s principal analyst for utility-scale solar in North America, was recently quoted by PV Magazine.
Much of this year’s solar energy installations will take place in China, where a strongly favorable policy environment and huge manufacturing base will continue to drive the industry forward. In fact, China is currently working on a solar project of epic proportions, expected to cost $48 billion USD and create 50,000 jobs. The so-called ‘Great Wall of Solar’ would stretch over 400 kilometers through the Kubuqi Desert of Inner Mongolia.
Meanwhile, in Europe, squashing that last 10% share of coal in the region’s energy mix may prove more difficult than anticipated. It was recently publicized that Germany, the largest coal-fired energy producer in the European Union, will likely have to keep its receive coal plants around larger than originally projected as planned gas plants run far behind and far over budget. If current trends continue, coal plants will be needed as a backup for energy security “well into the next decade.”
By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com
By Felicity Bradstock - Jan 25, 2025
Several Middle Eastern countries are investing heavily in solar power projects, aiming to significantly increase the share of renewable energy in their power generation mix.
Solar PV is expected to contribute over half of the Middle East's power supply by 2050, driven by increasing power demand and government initiatives to diversify energy sources.
Countries like Oman, UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia are leading the solar charge with ambitious targets and large-scale solar power plant projects.
With abundant sunlight available to produce vast amounts of clean energy, several countries across the Middle East are investing in giant solar power projects. From Oman and Saudi Arabia to the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, the future of Middle East energy is appearing increasingly green.
There has been a significant energy shift in the Middle East in recent years, as many governments in the region welcome the era of renewables – although many continue to see a future in fossil fuels too. Green energy is expected to outpace fossil fuel usage by 2040, according to a Rystad Energy report, with solar photovoltaic (PV) coming out on top. Solar PV is expected to contribute over half of the Middle East’s power supply by 2050, from just 2 percent in 2023. Renewable energy sources are expected to contribute around 70 percent of the region’s power generation mix by this time.
Power demand in the Middle East is expected to reach around 2,000 terawatt-hours (TWh) from 1,200 TWh at present. Fossil fuels currently contribute around 93 percent of the region’s power generation, and natural gas is seen as pivotal to mid-term energy security. However, several countries are investing heavily in green energy to eventually shift away from a reliance on fossil fuels. This goes hand in hand with the economic diversification highlighted in several of the region’s development strategies.
In Oman, the government aims to increase the contribution of renewable energy to the energy mix to 30 percent by 2030, between 60 and 70 percent by 2040, and 100 percent by 2050. This month, the government inaugurated the Manah 1 and Manah 2 solar photovoltaic (PV) power plants in the Wilayat of Manah in Al Dakhiliyah Governorate. Together, they have a production capacity of 1 GW and are the largest to date in Oman. They consist of over 2 million PV panels and almost 1,800 automated dry-cleaning robots, to boost efficiency and reduce water use. The plants should increase Oman’s renewable energy production from 6.6 percent to 11 percent and reduce carbon emissions by around 1.4 million tonnes a year, providing enough electricity to supply around 120,000 households.
In the UAE, the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 states a target of 75 percent clean energy by 2050 and Abu Dhabi’s Vision 2030 aims to achieve 30 percent renewable energy within five years. In January, the government opened a 24-hour solar power facility from renewable energy firm Masdar, which consists of 5.2 GW of solar capacity and 19 GWh of battery storage, allowing for the generation of 1 GW of renewable energy around the clock.
The Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology Sultan Al Jaber stated, “For decades, the biggest barrier facing renewable energy has been intermittency — to be able to source uninterrupted clean power day and night.”
In September, QatarEnergy announced plans to develop a 2 GW solar power plant in Qatar, which could double the state’s solar capacity by the end of the decade. The state-owned oil company plans to build the facility in Qatar’s Dukhan area. QatarEnergy and TotalEnergies launched their first 800 MW Al-Kharsaah solar power plant in 2022 and QatarEnergy plans to develop two more projects, with a combined capacity of 875 MW, in the Ras Laffan and Mesaieed industrial cities. Expanding Qatar’s solar capacity to 4 GW by 2030 would contribute around 30 percent of the country’s power generation needs.
The Minister of State for Energy Affairs Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi stated that “Developing solar power plants is one of Qatar’s most crucial initiatives to reduce CO? missions, develop sustainability projects and diversify electricity production, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by more than 4.7 million tonnes per annum.”
In Saudi Arabia, the government signed agreements for 30 GW of domestic solar PV manufacturing. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) signed two solar PV manufacturing agreements with the Chinese manufacturers JinkoSolar and TCL Zhonghuan Renewable Energy; one for a 20 GW ingot and wafer solar photovoltaic manufacturing plant and another for the development of 10 GW of annual capacity for n-type solar cells and PV module manufacturing.
The Deputy Governor and Director of MENA Investments at PIF Yazeed Al-Humied stated, “The new agreements are part of PIF’s efforts to localise advanced technologies in the renewable sector in Saudi Arabia and deliver on commitments to increase the proportion of local content as well as well as how to contribute to localising the production of 75 percent of the components of Saudi Arabia’s renewable projects by 2030.”
In October, Saudi Power Procurement Co. (SPPC) announced the shortlist of bidders for the final phase of the fifth round of the government's National Renewable Energy Programme (NREP). Projects include the 2 GW Al Sadawi plant located in the east of Saudi Arabia, the 1 GW Al Masa’a project located in the northern Hail province, the 400 MW Al Henakiyah 2 plant in the western Madinah province and the 300 MW Rabigh 2 project in the western Makkah province.
By Felicity Bradstock for Oilprice.com
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