Electricity production from renewable sources increased to 27.6 billion kilowatt-hours in the first half of 2023. That is 14 percent more than a year earlier. This brought the share of renewable electricity to 46 percent of total electricity production, reports the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Production from solar and wind increased in the first half of the year and that from fossil sources actually decreased.
Electricity production from solar power increased 25 percent (2.2 billion kWh) to 11 billion kWh in the first half of 2023 compared to the same period a year earlier. This is mainly due to more solar panels. At the same time, production from wind increased by 1.8 billion kWh (16 percent) to 13 billion kWh due to more offshore capacity and more favorable onshore wind.
In the first half of 2023, 0.6 billion kWh less electricity came from biomass, mainly due to lower co-firing by coal plants.
Electricity production from fossil sources fell 8 percent to 30 billion kWh in the first half of 2023 compared to a year earlier. Coal-fired power plants produced 1.2 billion kWh (-16 percent) less electricity, mainly due to higher prices for coal and CO2.
Production from natural gas decreased by 6 percent (1.4 billion kWh), mainly due to higher prices for natural gas and, to a lesser extent,CO2. Both relatively more expensive production from natural gas and coal had to give way to increased cheaper production from renewable sources.
Electricity imports fell 3 percent in the first half of the year. Imports from Denmark and the United Kingdom decreased, while imports from Norway increased. Electricity exports increased by 17 percent. In particular, exports to Germany increased, mainly because electricity production in Germany fell due to lower output from German coal and nuclear power plants. The Netherlands has been exporting more electricity on balance than in for seven quarters in a row.
