Share of renewable generation doubles in Jan-Aug

Ukraine's Energy Ministry says the share of electricity from renewables in January-August doubled year-over-year (y-o-y), to 13.3% of the country's total energy balance.

That is according to the ministry's reports published on its website on September 25.

In general, the country's power plants over the period under review cut electricity generation by 6.2% y-o-y, to 96.38 billion kWh.

Read alsoZelensky enacts law on "green" energyHydropower plants' output was estimated at 5.02 billion kWh over the eight months of 2020, which was 12% down y-o-y. That of hydropower plants (HPPs) and pumped storage power plants (PSPPs) accounted for 5.2% of the total energy balance.

Alternative energy sources

Electricity generation by alternative sources (wind farms, photovoltaic [PV] systems, and biomass facilities) in January-August 2020 totaled 7.77 billion kWh, which was 120.2% up y-o-y. Thus, the share of renewable energy in the total generation was 8.1%, and including hydropower industry, it accounted for 13.3%.

At the same time, thermal power plants (TPPs) generated 23.07 billion kWh, which was 25.7% down y-o-y. Output of combined heat and power plants (CHPPs) and cogeneration units stood at 8.1 billion kWh, which was 14.4% up y-o-y. TPPs and CHPPs generated 32.4% of the country's total electricity.

Nuclear power plants (NPPs) over the eight months saw a 6.2% decline in electricity output, having generated 51.13 billion kWh, which accounted for 53.1% of electricity in the country.

Background

• Ukraine's power plants in January-August 2019 reduced power generation by 2.6% compared to the same period in 2018, to 101.3 billion kWh. Thermal power plants generated 40% of the country's electricity, while NPPs' share was 53.8%.
• Electricity generation by HPPs, PV solar systems, and wind farms accounted for 7.1%. The share of hydropower plants alone was 5.5% in the country's electricity.
• According to the European Commission, the share of electricity generated from coal in European countries shrank by 5% in the first quarter of 2020, having hit the record lowest 33% of total electricity generated.
• At the same time, the share of electricity generated from renewables increased from 34% to 40%.