For the first time since comparable records have been kept, The European Union has produced more electricity from wind and solar power than from fossil fuelsThe milestone was reached in 2025 and represents a turning point in the way the continent generates its electricity, according to the latest analysis by the energy research center Ember.
According to that report, Wind and solar power contributed around 30% of all community electricity generationThis surpassed fossil fuels as a whole by one percentage point, which accounted for 29%. At the same time, almost half of the EU's electricity came from renewable sources, consolidating a shift that had already been developing in recent years.
A structural change in the European electricity system
The advance of wind and solar power is not a one-off phenomenon: In just five years they have gone from covering around 20% of European electricity demand to around 30%.In parallel, generation using fossil fuels has decreased from around 37% to 29%, while hydroelectric and nuclear power have remained relatively stable or have declined slightly.
The report European Electricity Review by Ember It emphasizes that by 2025 a total of 14 of the 27 member states They already produced more electricity with wind and solar power combined than with all fossil fuel sources combined. Countries like Spain, Portugal, Austria, France, and Belgium are in that group, which will also be joined in 2025. The Netherlands and Croatia thanks to the rapid deployment of new renewable power.
Across the EU, Renewables (wind, solar, hydroelectric and other clean technologies) contributed approximately 47,7% of the electricityThe first individual source of the mix continued to be nuclear, with approximately 23% of the total, while wind power stood at around 17% and solar power reached a record high of close to 13%, clearly surpassing coal and hydroelectric generation for the first time.
This shift in the distribution of technologies has also occurred, despite unfavorable weather conditions for hydropower and, to a lesser extent, for wind powerHydroelectric power generation fell by around 12% and wind power generation by approximately 2%, but the strong expansion of installed photovoltaic capacity compensated for this lower contribution from water and wind, highlighting the value of energy resilience.
The leading role of solar energy
Much of this shift is explained by the rise of photovoltaics. By 2025, Solar energy It was the fastest-growing technology across the EUThis marks its fourth consecutive year of growth exceeding 20%. Solar power generation accounted for approximately 13% of total European electricity production, setting a new annual production record and more than doubling the volume recorded at the beginning of the decade.
That growth has relied so heavily on large grid-scale solar power plants as in the rapid spread of rooftop installationsFrom residential rooftops to industrial buildings, installed photovoltaic capacity increased by nearly 19% in just one year, more than any other generation source, with virtually all EU countries seeing their solar production rise compared to the previous year.
In several Member States, Solar power already accounts for more than a fifth of electricity generationHungary hovers around 28%, Cyprus around 25%, while Greece, Spain, and the Netherlands are at approximately 22%, 22%, and 21%, respectively. This concentration of high percentages in southern and western Europe reflects both the available solar resource such as the regulatory and investment boost of recent years.
Wind energy, for its part, It is consolidating its position as the second largest source of renewable energy generation in the EU and one of the main sources in the system as a whole.Its share remains close to 17%, above gas, despite a slight decrease in production associated with periods of lower-than-usual wind at the beginning of the year. The combination of onshore wind, offshore projects, and repowering is allowing it to maintain its contribution in a context of growing demand.
According to the report's lead author, Beatrice PetrovichThe milestone reached in 2025 “demonstrates how rapidly the European electricity sector is changing” and confirms that wind and solar power have ceased to be a marginal option and have become sustain a substantial part of the supplyIn his opinion, the biggest challenge from now on is rapidly reduce dependence on imported gas and adapt the networks to make the most of the new renewable capacity.
Spain, at the forefront of the renewable energy transition
Within the European context, Spain is among the countries that have most accelerated their electricity transitionIn 2025, the sum of wind and solar power reached approximately 42% of national generation, a percentage clearly higher than the EU average and which places the Spanish electricity system in the leading group in penetration of variable renewables.
The Ember report states that Solar photovoltaics had a record year in Spainwith a share of nearly 22% of electricity produced. This places the country among the five EU member states where photovoltaics exceeds 20% of the energy mix, along with Hungary, Cyprus, Greece, and the Netherlands. Wind power also accounts for around 20% of the total, creating a notable balance between the two technologies.
Behind these figures lies a profound transformation: Coal has gone from dominating the system to being almost residual.While in the 1990s it contributed around 40% of Spain's electricity generation, its contribution today barely represents a few tenths of the energy mix. The system's emissions intensity has been reduced very significantly, in line with climate and air quality objectives.
The experts consulted by Ember emphasize that Spain has not only increased its renewable capacity, but also At certain times of the year, it has managed to produce more clean electricity than its own consumption demands., reinforcing its role as a potential net exporter of renewable energy within the European framework.
Ismael Morales, head of climate policy at the Renewable Energy Foundation, points out that the country “has established itself as one of the European leaders thanks to its firm commitment to renewable energy, and solar energy in particular.” In his opinion, The big short-term challenge is being able to take advantage of all that generationpreventing spills and ensuring that it can be stored and managed to further displace the gas.
Gas, still a key element but increasingly questioned
Despite the advance of wind and solar power, Natural gas continues to play a significant role in electricity generation in the EU.In 2025, production from this source increased by around 8% compared to the previous year, mainly to compensate for the lower contribution from hydropower due to the lack of rain in many European basins.
Even so, the underlying trend remains downward: Gas-fired power generation is still approximately 18% below the peak recorded in 2019.The gradual replacement of fossil fuels with renewables, increased efficiency, and EU climate policies point to a continued reduction in their share in the coming years, especially if the deployment of storage and other solutions such as [the following solutions are consolidated]: hydrogen.
In the Spanish case, Electricity produced using gas increased by around 19% in 2025Although it remains clearly below the levels reached during the 2022 energy crisis, this rebound is partly explained by lower hydroelectric production and the increased use of combined cycle power plants to provide grid support services following the Iberian blackout recorded in spring.
However, Ember analysts believe that this is a basically temporary situationA regulatory change approved in June 2025 will allow renewable energy installations and storage systems to participate in voltage control and other network services from January 2026, thus reducing the need to rely on gas-fired power plants for these functions.
Beyond the technical field, The increased use of gas has had a direct impact on the European energy bill.The value of imports of this fuel destined for the electricity sector amounted to around 32.000 billion euros in 2025, which implies an increase of approximately 16% compared to the previous year and represents the first increase of this type of cost since the price crisis of 2022.
Impact on prices and energy security
The surge in gas prices has not only affected the trade balance: The times of day with the highest use of gas-fired power plants have been associated with price peaks in wholesale electricity markets.On average, prices in those periods were around 11% higher than the previous year across the EU, according to Ember's calculations.
This price increase has reignited the debate about European vulnerability to the volatility of fossil fuels and geopolitical shiftsFollowing the gradual reduction of Russian gas imports and the increased reliance on liquefied natural gas from other suppliers, energy policymakers are becoming increasingly aware of the risks of depending on a limited number of suppliers.
The report itself warns that This dependence increases the EU's exposure to potential energy blackmail. and weakens its position in international negotiations. In this context, the expansion of domestic renewables and energy storage is seen not only as a climate or economic issue, but also as a key element of European security and strategic autonomy.
The study's author, Beatrice Petrovich, argues that "the EU's next priority should be to drastically reduce dependence on expensive imported gasIn his opinion, investing in batteries, more robust electricity grids, and technologies that allow for the electrification of consumption currently based on fossil fuels is the most effective way to achieve more predictable prices and a supply less exposed to external crises.
In parallel, several countries have begun to review their regulatory frameworks to accelerate the deployment of key infrastructure, from new cross-border interconnections to distribution networks prepared to accommodate an ever-increasing volume of distributed generation and self-consumption.
Batteries are gaining prominence in Europe and Spain
One of the elements that attracts the most attention in the Ember report is the leap forward of grid-scale battery storageIn 2025, the installed capacity of large battery systems in the EU exceeded 10 gigawatts, more than double the capacity just two years earlier. This rapid growth was driven by improved profitability and the need to manage a larger share of renewable generation, as well as by technological innovations in storage.
Almost half of this power is still concentrated in Italy and GermanyHowever, the study indicates that the portfolio of projects under development is becoming geographically diversified. Countries such as Greece, Spain, and Poland have reached Record levels of battery projects announced or under construction, despite the fact that its current operational capacity remains relatively low compared to the wind and solar power already installed.
According to data collected by Ember, If all the battery projects currently in the pipeline were to materialize, the EU's total large-scale storage capacity would exceed 40 gigawatts.This would represent a tenfold increase over the figure recorded in 2023 and would significantly reduce the need to keep gas-fired power plants running during peak hours.
Spain, which starts from a still modest base in terms of installed batteriesInterest in these types of solutions has skyrocketed in 2025. Wilmar Suárez, energy analyst at Ember, highlights that the country has “a huge opportunity” in this field, since its high solar production allows for the development of storage projects that transfer the surplus energy from the middle of the day to the times of highest demand and gas usage.
If this trend continues, storage could become a a key element to maximize Spain's renewable potential and reduce exposure to gas pricesThe combination of batteries, reinforced grids and more flexible demand management is thus emerging as the next major chapter in the energy transition in the country and across the EU.
Immediate challenges and priorities for the coming years
Ember's report identifies several areas where rapid progress will be needed to consolidate the renewable leadership achieved by 2025Firstly, it points to the need to eliminate administrative and regulatory obstacles that hinder the deployment of new storage facilities and the participation of renewables in grid services.
Secondly, experts point to the importance of electrify a greater number of end usesFrom heating with heat pumps to transportation via electric vehicles, this process would allow for better use of available wind and solar power generation, displacing consumption that currently depends on petroleum products or natural gas.
Another key front is the Strengthening of transport and distribution infrastructureThe integration of large volumes of variable renewables requires more interconnected networks, cross-border interconnections capable of balancing surpluses and deficits between countries, and advanced digital management systems that allow real-time adaptation of demand to the available supply.
Finally, several analyses agree that the coherence between energy and climate policy This will be crucial. Initiatives such as the agreement to end Russian gas imports before the end of the decade, the push for renewable energy auctions, and the review of capacity markets will have to align with the goal of further reducing the reliance on fossil fuels without jeopardizing security of supply.
After a year in which wind and solar power have achieved to surpass fossil fuels in the EU's electricity mix for the first timeThe picture painted by the data points to a system increasingly reliant on clean energy sources, with Spain among the countries setting the pace of change, but also with clear challenges: reducing dependence on gas, containing costs for households and businesses, and deploying large-scale networks and batteries that allow wind and solar power to reliably sustain the electrical heart of Europe.
