Image: Matthias Schräder/AP
Europe crossed a long-anticipated energy threshold in 2025. For the first time, wind and solar power generated more electricity across the European Union than fossil fuels, marking a decisive turning point in the bloc’s decades-long transition away from coal, oil and gas.
Energy analysts confirmed the milestone as annual data from across the EU showed renewables steadily consolidating their role at the heart of the electricity system. Wind and solar together accounted for 30 per cent of total power generation in 2025, narrowly surpassing the 29 per cent share produced by fossil fuels, including coal, gas and oil.
The shift reflects both rapid growth in clean energy and a sharp decline in the EU’s most carbon-intensive sources. Coal power fell to just 9.2 per cent of electricity generation—its lowest level on record—prompting analysts to describe coal’s trajectory as a “terminal decline.”
Solar energy emerged as one of the standout performers. It expanded for a fourth consecutive year, reaching a record 13 per cent of the EU’s electricity mix. In a symbolic moment in June, solar power briefly became the Union’s single largest source of electricity, supplying 22 per cent of demand and overtaking nuclear generation.
Taken together with nuclear and hydropower, clean energy sources now provide roughly 72 per cent of the EU’s electricity. That figure underscores how quickly Europe’s power system has decarbonised compared with a decade ago, when fossil fuels still dominated the grid.
“This is not just a statistical milestone—it represents a structural change in how Europe produces and thinks about energy,” one senior energy analyst said. “The centre of gravity has shifted.”
Source: The Guardian
Image: Matthias Schräder/AP