German coal power production drops to record low in Q2 as renewables soar

Electricity generation from coal dropped to a record low in Germany in the spring, while renewables produced more electricity than ever during the same period. Lignite feed-in fell more than 18 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year to around 14,300 gigawatt hours (GWh), while hard coal production dropped more than 38 percent to 3,800 GWh, according to the country’s grid agency BNetzA. Both energy sources recorded their lowest generation figures since at least 2015, the start of the current data series, BNetzA said. Renewable power generation rose almost 9 percent to 65,400 GWh, which resulted in a share of more than 65 percent of total electricity generation – “a second quarter record”. Electricity generation fell by around 1 percent overall, while electricity consumption rose by 1 percent.

Feed-ins from onshore wind, offshore wind and photovoltaics all reached a quarterly high, BNetzA said. Photovoltaics was once again the most important energy source in the second quarter with 24,300 GWh, an increase of almost 11 percent compared to last year thanks to above-average sunshine and new solar installations totalling around 10 GW of capacity. Onshore wind generation rose more than 7 percent to around 21,400 GWh, with both strong winds and new installations contributing to the increase. Offshore wind power generation rose almost 17 percent to nearly 5,300 GWh. Germany aims to bring the share of renewables to 80 percent of consumption by 2030.