Solar Energy Surpassed Coal in the EU for the First Time in 2024: Report

The second largest solar farm in Poland, containing 308,000 photovoltaic panels, on the former Adamow lignite open pit coal mine in Przykona, seen on April 8, 2024. Omar Marques / Anadolu via Getty Images

For the first time, solar power surpassed coal as a source of electricity in the European Union (EU) last year, according to a new report by thinktank Ember released on Thursday.

Ember’s European Electricity Review 2025 found that solar generated 11 percent of the bloc’s electricity, while coal-fired power plants supplied 10 percent. Meanwhile, the use of fossil gas dropped to 16 percent of the energy mix, falling for the fifth straight year.

“This is a milestone,” said co-author of the report Beatrice Petrovich, senior energy analyst at Ember, as The Guardian reported. “Coal is the oldest way of producing electricity, but also the dirtiest. Solar is the rising star.”

The burning of coal for power in the EU saw its peak in 2003 and has since plummeted by 68 percent.

[embedded content]

Along with coal’s decline has come the rise of clean energy, with solar and wind making up 29 percent of the EU’s electricity generation last year.

“The transition of the EU electricity sector maintained momentum in 2024, despite challenging political and economic conditions,” Ember’s executive summary of the report said. “Another year of coal and gas decline – the fifth year in a row for gas – cut EU power sector emissions to below half their 2007 peak and further reduced reliance on imported fossil fuels.”

Solar stayed on top as the fastest growing source of power in the EU in 2024. Wind was the second largest source of power, below nuclear energy and above gas.

The report attributed solar’s growth to a record number of new panels, even though there was less sunshine in the region than in 2023.

“It’s good news that the increase in solar build is actually translating to a reduction in fossil fuel burn,” said Jenny Chase, BloombergNEF solar analyst, who did not participate in the research, as reported by The Guardian.

According to the report, coal use dropped in all but one of the 17 nations that continue to use it, with the fuel becoming “marginal or absent in most systems.”

Germany and Poland are the top two coal users in the EU, with coal making up 17 percent of Germany’s electricity output and eight percent in Poland’s in 2024.

The Boxberg coal-fired power plant behind the newly inaugurated PV-Park Boxberg solar energy park in Nochten, Germany on April 30, 2024. Sean Gallup / Getty Images

Fossil gas underwent a “structural decline” last year, with its use falling in 14 out of the 26 nations that use it.

“Fossil fuels are losing their grip on EU energy. At the start of the European Green Deal in 2019, few thought the EU’s energy transition could be where it is today; wind and solar are pushing coal to the margins and forcing gas into structural decline,” said Dr. Chris Rosslowe, senior energy analyst at Ember, in the executive summary. “While the EU’s electricity transition has moved faster than anyone expected in the last five years, further progress cannot be taken for granted. Delivery needs to be accelerated particularly in the wind sector, which has faced unique challenges and a widening delivery gap. However, the achievements of the past five years should instill confidence that, with continued drive and commitment, challenges can be overcome and a more secure energy future be achieved.”

The EU experienced a small increase in the demand for electricity following two years of significant decline caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, The Guardian reported. To combat this, an energy-saving plan was introduced in the EU, which also found new suppliers of fossil fuels and increased the pace of its clean energy shift.

“Wind and solar are growing in all large economies, but coal has continued to grow in China and natural gas has grown in the U.S.,” said Gregory Nemet, a University of Wisconsin-Madison energy researcher and co-author of a report for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, as reported by The Guardian. “Europe is taking advantage of the full swath of affordability, security, and clean air benefits that renewables provide.”

The report found that the EU was on course to meet its 400 gigawatt (GW) target of installed solar capacity this year. Last year it reached 338 GW, with Ember saying its target of 750 GW by 2030 would be “within reach” if its current growth rate was maintained.

“The significant progress has brought benefits beyond reducing emissions. Structural growth in wind and solar power has reduced the EU’s fossil import bill and the bloc’s vulnerability to imported gas. While the progress made in the first half of this decade is impressive, an acceleration is needed between now and 2030,” Ember said in its executive summary.

The authors of the report called for forms of “clean flexibility” like smart meters and batteries that can help align renewable energy supply — which fluctuates — with demand.

“[S]olar is growing in every EU country, while coal is becoming increasingly marginal. More than half of EU countries either have no coal power or a share below 5% in their power mix. Accelerated clean flexibility and smart electrification are needed to sustain solar growth,” the report said.

Ember pointed out that, while wind power additions were poised to grow, they were not enough to meet EU targets. The thinktank said closing the gap would require continued political support and policy implementation, with the additions rate between now and 2030 needing to be more than twice that of recent years.

Ember added that, by accelerating its electricity transition, the EU would “enhance energy security” while bringing down energy costs for consumers.

“The EU is striding closer towards a clean energy future powered by homegrown wind and solar. This new energy system will reduce the bloc’s vulnerability to fossil price shocks, tackle the climate crisis and deliver affordable energy for its households and companies. Timely policy action that sustains wind and solar growth, accelerates the deployment of clean flexibility and promotes electrification, will help to secure the future of EU competitiveness,” Petrovich said in the executive summary.

[embedded content]