CGTN Europe spoke to Dr Chris Rosslowe, Senior Analyst at Energy think tank Ember
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00:002024 was a pivotal year for green energy in Europe.
00:05The European Electricity Review found, for the first time,
00:08solar power overtook coal as an energy source for generating electricity,
00:12accounting for 11%.
00:15Solar is growing in every EU country,
00:17and more than half now use either little or no coal.
00:21Clean energy accounted for nearly three quarters of EU power generation,
00:25and use of renewables reached 47%, both record highs.
00:29Powered by the continued growth of solar power and a recovery in hydropower.
00:34And emissions from the EU's power sector fell to half the 2007 peak,
00:39as use of fossil fuels fell to the lowest level in 40 years.
00:43Let's talk now to Dr Chris Rosslow,
00:46who's a senior analyst at the energy think tank EMBER,
00:48which carried out this review.
00:50Good to see you, Chris. Thanks for joining us.
00:52So we're seeing from your review there that solar power has overtaken coal for the first time.
00:57Are we now seeing the beginning of the end for fossil fuels and electricity generation?
01:03Thank you. I think it is clear that fossil fuels are losing their grip on European energy.
01:10And indeed, I think coal power is near the end.
01:13Coal power is increasingly concentrated in just two European countries, in Germany and Poland.
01:18And as you were saying, it's now being pushed down into sixth place as an EU power source.
01:23It was as high as third place as recently as 2019.
01:28The EU still uses more gas than coal for power and the decline is slower in gas.
01:32But we have seen five consecutive years now of declining gas power,
01:35which does indicate that's becoming a structural decline as well.
01:39So as well as some of these declines, we've seen growth in renewables.
01:43Has that meant that Europe's now in a place where it's more energy secure?
01:49I think that's definitely the case. Yes.
01:54Of course, if you look back over the last few years, there was a major event when Russia attacked Ukraine
02:00and it left the EU scrambling to find alternative gas supplies.
02:04But because of the growth in wind and solar, it actually didn't need to find as much gas from elsewhere
02:08as it was importing from Russia.
02:10So we estimate that the growth in wind and solar just in the five years since the start of the European Green Deal
02:16has helped the EU avoid 59 billion euros worth of fossil fuel imports,
02:22so that it would have had to import roughly a fifth extra gas on top of what it did just for power generation
02:28if it wasn't for the growth of wind and solar over that period.
02:31Well, let's talk about that Green Deal. Is that what's made the difference in growth of renewables?
02:39It definitely set the direction of travel, increased Europe's climate ambition,
02:43increased Europe's very high level targets.
02:46And then it was over to national governments to set the wheels in motion on the ground, if you will,
02:51by introducing renewable policies, support policies.
02:55But really, I think going back again to the gas crisis a few years ago in 2022,
03:00when the cost of gas soared as a result of that, it really profoundly shifted the economics in favour of wind and solar power.
03:08And that remains the case today. They're very competitive.
03:11They're the cheapest form of energy, much cheaper than gas generation today,
03:15because gas is still relatively expensive, even though it's come down a bit since those highs.
03:20So lots of positives around renewables then.
03:22But do you think Europe's doing enough to transition to them when you look at other places like China, for example,
03:28which are going much further and much faster?
03:32So I think Europe has a genuine case for being a clean power leader in its power sector.
03:38As you're mentioning at the top there, more than 70 percent now of Europe's electricity comes from clean sources.
03:44China is still much more dependent on coal on the one hand.
03:48But on the other hand, you're right that China is investing huge sums into clean energy,
03:53which are really changing the landscape in China.
03:56So there's a slight difference there in the comparison.
04:00Is Europe doing enough in other ways?
04:01I think when we look at solar power, the success there is very clear.
04:05And that is on track for, let's say, European energy targets.
04:09With the wind power sector, however, we are seeing growth.
04:13It's not accelerating at the rate it needs to.
04:16And that's really important because wind power and solar power are actually very complementary to each other.
04:22They generate energy at different times of day, different times of year.
04:26And also, as I was mentioning earlier, wind power is also significantly cheaper than gas power.
04:32So it will help to improve energy affordability in Europe if Europe can accelerate that growth in wind power, too.
04:38Chris, good to talk to you. Thank you for joining us.
04:40That's Dr Chris Roslow from EMBA.