Wind and solar power generate more electricity than coal for the first time

Wind and solar overtake coal: For the first time, more electricity was generated by wind and solar power plants than by coal-fired power plants. Coal-generated electricity is also on the decline in absolute terms. This is the result of a recent study.

The supply of wind and solar energy increased more than the global demand for electricity in the first half of 2025, according to the British think tank Ember Energy. Together, they have surpassed coal as an energy source for the first time.

"A strong increase in solar energy and, to a lesser extent, wind energy has resulted in renewables overtaking coal-fired power generation in the first half of 2025 for the first time since records began," according to the Global Electricity Mid-Year Insights 2025 study. Renewables accounted for 34.3 per cent of global power generation, compared to 32.7 per cent in the same period last year. Meanwhile, the share of coal fell from 34.2 per cent to 33.1 per cent.

Large increase in solar energy

In figures: 5072 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity were generated from wind and solar power, 363 TWh more than in the first half of 2024. The authors write that it is primarily the growth in solar energy that contributed to this: 306 TWh were added. This alone cushions the majority of the increase in global electricity demand, which totalled 369 TWh. Wind energy also increased by 97 TWh. Electricity generation from coal fell by 31 TWh. Gas (minus 6 TWh) and other fossil fuels (minus 6 TWh) have also lost importance, as has water (minus 42 TWh). The study records an increase in nuclear power of 33 TWh.

According to the study, China is the main contributor to the growth of solar power in the global energy mix: China accounted for more than half (55 per cent), followed by the USA (14 per cent), the European Union (12 per cent), India (5.6 per cent) Brazil (3.2 per cent). China and India are consistently expanding their wind and solar energy capacities.

As a result, electricity generation from fossil fuels has fallen more sharply than demand has risen in both countries. The situation is different in the USA, where electricity generation from fossil fuels has risen because the expansion of renewable energies has been lower than the increase in demand. In the EU, coal and gas-fired electricity has risen slightly to compensate for the lower electricity generation from wind, water, and bioenergy.

"We are seeing the first signs of a decisive turning point," says Małgorzata Wiatros-Motyka, energy analyst at Ember. "Solar and wind energy are now growing fast enough to cover the rising demand for electricity worldwide." Renewable energies are therefore no longer secondary, but are beginning to keep pace with the growth in demand.

(wpl)