Wind and solar power generated more electricity than fossil fuels in the European Union for the first time in 2025, the report by UK-based energy think tank Ember found on Thursday.
Wind and solar supplied a combined 30% of the EU's electricity last year, edging past fossil fuels at 29%, according to Ember's European Electricity Review, the first full-year snapshot of the EU power system for the year.
The shift was driven largely by rapid growth in solar power, which expanded by more than 20% for a fourth consecutive year and produced a record 13% of the EU's electricity. Solar generation surpassed both coal and hydropower in 2025, it added.
Solar output increased across all EU member states as installations surged. Solar provided more than one-fifth of electricity in Hungary, Southern Cyprus, Greece, Spain and the Netherlands.
Overall, renewables accounted for 48% of EU electricity generation in 2025.
Unusual weather reduced hydropower output by 12% and wind generation by 2%, but boosted solar production. Wind remained the bloc's second-largest power source at 17%, generating more electricity than natural gas.
The report found evidence of a structural shift across the EU. Wind and solar together produced more electricity than all fossil fuels combined in 14 of the bloc's 27 countries in 2025.
Their share of the electricity mix rose from 20% in 2020 to 30% in 2025, while fossil fuels fell from 37% to 29%. Output from hydro and nuclear power was broadly flat or slightly lower over the same period.
- EU power sector's gas import bill up to €32 billion
Gas-fired power generation rose 8% in 2025, largely due to weaker hydropower output, but gas use remains in long-term decline. EU gas-fired electricity generation was still 18% below its most recent peak in 2019.
Higher gas consumption pushed the EU power sector's gas import bill to €32 billion (around $37 billion) in 2025, up 16% from the previous year and the first increase since the 2022 energy crisis. Italy and Germany accounted for the largest shares of spending.
Coal use continued its long-term decline, falling to a historic low of 9.2% of EU electricity generation in 2025, down from nearly 25% a decade earlier. Coal accounted for zero or less than 5% of power generation in 19 EU countries and hit record lows even in major coal users such as Germany and Poland.
Commenting on the report, Beatrice Petrovich, author of the report and a senior energy analyst at Ember, said: "The next priority for the EU should be to put a serious dent in reliance on expensive, imported gas."
"Gas not only makes the EU more vulnerable to energy blackmail, it's also driving up prices," Petrovich added.
Petrovich said early signs emerged in 2025 that greater use of battery storage is helping shift domestically produced renewable power into gas-heavy hours. As that trend accelerates, she said, it could reduce the need for gas in evening peak periods and help stabilize electricity prices.
By Handan Kazanci
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr
