Europeans push back from Russian oil and gas

Europe is producing all-time highs of wind and solar energy

subscribe

BERLIN -

Europe is producing all-time highs of wind and solar energy as the 27-country group works to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels from Russia.

Four months after Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the European Commission launched REPowerEU. This campaign aims to:

  • Boost the use of renewable energy.
  • Reduce overall energy consumption.
  • Diversify energy sources.

EU countries were already moving toward renewable energy, but Russia’s war against Ukraine accelerated that trend. In 2022, for the first time, wind and solar power surpassed gas as a source of electricity. Wind and solar provided a record-breaking 22% of EU countries’ electrical supply, according to London-based energy think tank Ember.

“We have to double down on investments in home-grown renewables,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in October 2022. “Not only for the climate but also because the transition to the clean energy is the best way to gain independence and to have security of energy supply.”

Across the continent, growth in solar generation rose by 25% in 2022, according to Ember. Twenty EU countries produced their highest share of solar power in 2022. In October, Greece ran entirely on renewables for several hours and is seven years ahead of schedule for its 2030 solar capacity target.

By 2030, RePowerEU aims to provide more than 40% of the EU’s total power from renewables.

To meet the European Commission’s goal to cut EU energy usage by 15%, people and governments changed their habits and became more energy-efficient. Among their actions:

  • Germany turned down the heat in public buildings and lowered the cost of train tickets to reduce car usage.
  • Spain ordered stores and public buildings to turn off their lights at night.
  • France dimmed the Eiffel Tower and reduced city speed limits.

For the oil and gas that the EU still needed to import, countries turned to partners such as Norway and the United States.

Related News

powerlines

B.C. ordered to pay $10M for denying Squamish power project

VANCOUVER - A B.C. Supreme Court judge has ordered the provincial government to pay $10.125 million after it denied permits to a company that wanted to build a run-of-the river power project near Squamish.

In his Oct. 10 decision, Justice Kevin Loo said the plaintiff, Greengen Holdings Ltd., “lost an opportunity to achieve a completed and profitable hydro-electric project” after government representatives wrongfully exercised their legal authority, a transgression described in the ruling as “misfeasance.”

Between 2003 and 2009, the company sought to develop a hydro-electric project on and around Fries Creek, which sits opposite the Brackendale neighbourhood on the other side…

READ MORE
ttc-bans-lithium-ion-powered-ebikes-scooters

TTC Bans Lithium-Ion-Powered E-Bikes and Scooters During Winter Months for Safety

READ MORE

sunlab electricity

Growing pot sucks up electricity and pumps out an astounding amount of carbon dioxide — it doesn't have to

READ MORE

carbon free future

Minnesota bill mandating 100% carbon-free electricity by 2040

READ MORE

electricity prices

U.S. residential electricity bills increased 5% in 2022, after adjusting for inflation

READ MORE