Q1 Witnesses Historic Renewable Energy Production In The EU.

The initial quarter of 2024 witnessed unprecedented levels of renewable energy generation throughout the EU, as reported by data analyst Montel EnAppSys. Electricity demand amounted to 800 terawatt-hours (TWh) in the first three months of the year, marking a 5.2% decrease compared to the same period in 2022 and a 6.3% drop compared to Q1 2021. Renewables reached a record-breaking high of 375.9TWh, surpassing the previous record of 358.4TWh set in the previous quarter. This surge was primarily attributed to increased hydro generation, rising from 126.4TWh in Q4 2023 to 136.6TWh in Q1 2024. The most notable increases came from France and Norway, with hydro generation rising by 3.5TWh and 2.1TWh respectively.

Renewables, including biomass, hydro, wind, solar and waste, accounted for 50.1% of total European power generation in the first quarter of 2024. This reduction in overall electricity demand reflects a longer-term trend of demand decrease initiated by the onset of the pandemic in early 2020 and perpetuated by the global energy crisis.

Wind power output in Europe totalled 175.6TWh in the first three months of the year, slightly lower than the previous quarter’s 177.4TWh but still the second-highest recorded figure for wind generation. The combination of low demand and high renewables output led to a decline in fossil fuel generation, notably coal/lignite, which fell to 84.8TWh from 94.1TWh in the previous quarter.

Jean-Paul Harreman, director of Montel EnAppSys, commented: “Despite electricity and gas prices decreasing from the peaks of Q3 2022, demand remains below pre-COVID and pre-energy crisis levels. Factors such as unusually warm weather in certain parts of Europe, reduced heating needs and diminished industrial demand have contributed to this ongoing trend. The notable increase in renewables generation in Q1 was primarily driven by higher hydro output. While solar output constituted a relatively small portion of the renewables total (36.5TWh) for this time of year, it still marked the highest solar output ever recorded for a Q1 period. This suggests that records for solar generation are likely to be broken in Q2 and Q3 as weather conditions improve.”