The European Power Sector in 2020

In 2020, renewables became the EU's primary electricity source for the first time, generating 38% of electricity. While wind and solar growth remained robust despite the pandemic, the report argues that deployment must nearly triple to meet 2030 Green Deal targets. Coal generation fell by 20% in 2020, though this decline was partially offset by increased gas generation and a record 10% drop in nuclear output. Consequently, Europe's electricity carbon intensity fell to 226 grams of CO2 per kilowatt-hour in 2020, a 29% reduction since 2015.

• Renewables surpassed fossil fuels as the primary source of electricity in the EU for the first time in 2020, accounting for 38% of generation compared to 37% for fossil-fired generation.
• Wind and solar power drove the growth of renewables, together providing 20% of Europe's electricity in 2020, with wind at 14% and solar at 5%.
• To achieve the 2030 Green Deal target of 55% greenhouse gas reductions, annual wind and solar generation growth must increase from a 2010-2020 average of 38 TWh to approximately 100 TWh per year.
• Coal generation decreased by 20% in 2020, falling to 365 terawatt-hours, which represents a 48% decline since 2015.
• Nuclear generation experienced a record decline of 10% in 2020, the largest drop since at least 1990, driven by outages in France and plant closures in Sweden and Germany.
• Gas generation fell by only 4% in 2020, as high carbon prices and low gas prices made it the cheapest fossil fuel option, even undercutting lignite in some months.
• The carbon intensity of Europe's electricity fell from 317 grams of CO2 per kilowatt-hour in 2015 to 226 grams in 2020, though 43% of the coal decline was offset by increased gas generation.

APA

Redl, C., Hein, F., Buck, M., Graichen, D. P., & Jones, D. (2021). The European Power Sector in 2020. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/European-Power-Sector-in-2020.pdf

Chicago

Redl, Christian, Fabian Hein, Matthias Buck, Dr. Patrick Graichen, and Dave Jones. The European Power Sector in 2020. Ember, 2021. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/European-Power-Sector-in-2020.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Redl |first1=Christian |last2=Hein |first2=Fabian |last3=Buck |first3=Matthias |last4=Graichen |first4=Dr. Patrick |last5=Jones |first5=Dave |title=The European Power Sector in 2020 |publisher=Ember |date=January 2021 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/European-Power-Sector-in-2020.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{redl2021european, author = {Redl, Christian and Hein, Fabian and Buck, Matthias and Graichen, Dr. Patrick and Jones, Dave}, title = {{The European Power Sector in 2020}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2021}, month = jan, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/European-Power-Sector-in-2020.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }