In 2020, electricity generation from fossil fuels continued to decline, recording the lowest point of payment, according to data published today by Eurostat, the EU statistical office, namely: from 1,226,156 Gigawatt-hours (GWh) in 1990, and the maximum point of 1,584,005 GWh in 2007, decreased to 1,133,402 GWh in 2019 and 1,022,589 GWh in 2020 (decrease of 9.8% compared to 2019).
A similar trend was observed for nuclear power generation, with provisional data for 2020 showing the lowest point since 1990, at 683,183 GWh (6.3% lower than 1990).
According to preliminary data for 2020, the production of electricity from renewable sources has surpassed fossil fuels for the first time, according to Eurostat.
The share in the production of electricity from renewable energy sources increased over time, from 303,279 GWh in 1990 to 979,866 GWh in 2019.
Provisional figures for 2020 show a further increase to 1,052,582 GWh, which was 29,994 GWh more than fossil fuel production.
Electricity generation from other and unspecified sources has only a very small share in the total electricity generation mix, around 5,200 GWh over the last decade. In 2020 it reached 4,442 GWh
In addition, preliminary 2020 figures show a significant reduction in domestic fossil fuel consumption in the EU.
In general, fossil fuels in 2020, especially solid fossil fuels, are expected to fall to record lows since 1990.
The huge drop in the consumption of oil and oil products and the moderate reduction of natural gas are in stark contrast to the trend of previous years.
Preliminary data for 2020 show that consumption of oil and oil products decreased by 12.9% compared to 2019. Compared to 2005, consumption of oil and oil products fell by 23.1% in 2020.
Internal gas use was less affected in 2020: the decrease compared to 2019 was only 2.6%. However, there has been a decrease of 8.9% since 2005.
Coal consumption (brown coal and hard coal) continued to decline sharply, following the effects of the pandemic in conjunction with those of coal exit policies.
Compared to 2019, the provisional data for 2020 show significant falls of 20.0% for brown coal and 18.0% for hard coal. From 2005 to 2020, consumption of hard coal more than doubled (-51.2%), while coffee coal decreased by 44.9% over the same period.
Source: KYPE
China: The second largest hydroelectric plant in the world
These are the strangest places that have been installed photovoltaically
