Dutch produce majority of power from renewables: stats
For the first time, the majority of electricity produced in the Netherlands has come from renewable sources, with wind energy providing a significant boost officials said on Friday.
Fifty-three percent of Dutch electricity production came from renewables in the first half of the year, according to the Dutch Central Bureau for Statistics (CBS).
The Netherlands produced 32.3 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) from renewable sources out of a total of 60.5 billion kWh, according to CBS.
Power generated from wind increased to 17.4 billion kWh in the first half of 2024, a rise of 4.4 billion kWh.
More than two thirds of that increase were due to offshore wind production, with two new wind farms off the Dutch coast providing a strong impetus.
Capacity on land also increased after new wind turbines replaced smaller and older machines.
Solar power generation rose to 11.7 billion, an increase of 0.8 billion kWh.
The Netherlands is around average in the European Union in terms of renewable electricity production, ahead of France and Belgium but behind pioneers such as Denmark and Sweden.
Total electricity consumption in the Netherlands increased by five percent to 55.8 billion kWh in the first half of 2024.
This was slightly below the levels seen before the Covid-19 pandemic, CBS said.
