Solar power surpasses coal in EU for first time

by AFP Staff Writers

Paris (AFP) Jan 23, 2025

Solar overtook coal in the European Union’s electricity production in 2024, with the share of renewables rising to almost half the bloc’s power sector, according to a report released Thursday.

Gas generation, meanwhile, declined for the fifth year in a row and fossil-fuelled power dipped to a “historic low”, climate think tank Ember said in its European Electricity Review 2025.

“The European Green Deal has delivered a deep and rapid transformation of the EU power sector,” the think tank said.

“Solar remained the EU’s fastest-growing power source in 2024, rising above coal for the first time. Wind power remained the EU’s second-largest power source, above gas and below nuclear.”

Overall, strong growth in solar and wind have boosted the share of renewables to 47 percent, up from 34 percent in 2019.

Fossil fuels have fallen from 39 to 29 percent.

“A surge in wind and solar generation is the main reason for declining fossil generation. Without wind and solar capacity added since 2019, the EU would have imported 92 billion cubic metres more of fossil gas and 55 million tonnes more of hard coal, costing EUR59 billion,” the report said.

According to Ember, these trends are widespread across Europe, with solar power progressing in all EU countries.

More than half have now either eliminated coal, the most polluting fossil fuel, or reduced its share to less than five percent of their energy mix.

“Fossil fuels are losing their grip on EU energy,” said Chris Rosslowe, lead author of the report.

“At the start of the European Green Deal in 2019, few thought the EU’s energy transition would be where it is today: wind and solar are relegating coal to the margins and pushing gas into decline.”

– Battery storage –

But Rosslowe cautioned much work remains.

“We need to accelerate our efforts, particularly in the wind power sector,” he said.

Europe’s electricity system will also need to increase its storage capacity to make the most of renewable energies, which are by definition intermittent, he added.

In 2024, plentiful solar energy helped drive down prices in the middle of the day, sometimes even resulting in “negative or zero price hours” due to an overabundance of supply compared to demand.

“A readily available solution is a battery co-located with a solar plant. This gives solar power producers more control over the prices they receive and helps them avoid selling for low prices in the middle of the day,” the report said.

The think tank suggested consumers could reduce their bills by shifting usage to periods of abundance (smart electrification), while battery operators could earn revenue from buying power when prices are low and selling it back when demand peaks.

Batteries have advanced significantly in recent years, with installed capacity across the EU doubling to 16 GW in 2023, compared with 8 GW in 2022, according to Ember.

But this capacity is concentrated in just a small number of countries: 70 percent of existing batteries were located in Germany and Italy at the end of 2023.

“More storage and demand flexibility is needed to sustain growth and for consumers to reap the full benefits of abundant solar,” Ember said.

“After a challenging few years for the wind power sector, additions are set to grow, but not by enough to hit EU targets. Closing this gap will require continued policy implementation and political support, such that the rate of additions between now and 2030 is more than double that of recent years.”

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Global green energy push likely to continue despite Trump climate retreat: UN

By Elodie LE MAOU

Davos, Switzerland (AFP) Jan 22, 2025

Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement should not slow the global momentum towards renewable energy investments that the deal created, the UN said Wednesday.

“I believe that many countries will continue moving in the direction of green energy,” said Celeste Saulo, head of the United Nations’ World Meteorological Organization weather and climate agency.

As he took office on Monday, President Trump announced the US withdrawal from the 2015 Paris accord adopted by 195 parties to curb greenhouse gas emissions driving climate change.

Critics warn that the move undermines global cooperation on reducing fossil fuel use and could weaken other countries’ commitments to climate action.

But WMO chief Saulo said in a joint interview with AFP and Reuters she did not believe the US exit would slow what are turning out to be profitable investments in green energy.

The shift towards renewable energy sources “is ongoing and… brings wealth to the countries”, she said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort town of Davos.

“That will not change.”

She did not “expect people to move away from investments that are really very profitable and at the same time are green initiatives.

“I think that the move and the momentum that started with the Paris Agreement is there.”

– Early warnings –

Trump previously withdrew the United States from the Paris accord in 2017, during his first term, only to see former president Joe Biden re-enter when he took office in 2021.

Monday’s announcement, on Trump’s first day back in power, signalled that the United States would formally exit in one year, under the accord’s rules.

It came as global average temperatures already hit record highs in 2024, while over the past two years they temporarily surpassed a critical 1.5 degrees Celsius warming threshold for the first time.

Asked about Trump’s move, Saulo said it was “a decision of a sovereign country, and we need to accept that”.

The focus for the WMO now, she said, would be on “continuing the… strong collaboration and engagement of the US” with the agency.

In particular, the work towards establishing early warning systems for extreme weather events should “not be affected”, she said.

With extreme weather events on the rise, the UN has said it wants to see every person on Earth protected by early warning systems by 2027 for floods, droughts, heatwaves and storms.

Saulo highlighted the close cooperation between the WMO and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The NOAA’S work was “quite impactful worldwide”, she stressed.

“I’m sure that that will continue along the same lines, because they are saving lives,” including using climate information to issue early warnings for looming disasters.

“I would say that the United States is one of the countries that uses most climate information for decision making,” she said.

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