Germany just set a new record in renewable energy, with solar, wind, biomass and hydro accounting for 78pc of the country’s energy consumption
Germany set a new record in renewable energy, with over three-quarters of the country’s consumption coming from green energy.
A few sunny hours last Saturday were enough for a new high in renewables, as green energy accounted for 78 per cent of Germany’s energy consumption.
Solar and wind alone accounted for 40.65 gigawatts of the country’s power last weekend, thanks to a sunny day and strong winds in the north of the country, where most of the wind farms are based, according to Craig Morris, writing about Germany’s transition to renewable energy:
The combination of sunny weather in the south with strong wind throughout the country is rare – and led to a new record.
Factoring in biomass and hydropower put the total renewable energy consumption at 47.9 gigawatts, or 78 per cent of all power consumed.
The previous record was 74 per cent.
Despite this new high, Germany remains some distance away from being fully powered by green energy, as coal continues to make up 40 per cent of the country’s power consumption. The growth in renewables is instead largely replacing nuclear energy.