Renewable energy sources (RES), excluding hydropower, have for the first time surpassed nuclear power in electricity generation. This is clear from the statistical report of the British company BP Statistical Review of World Energy.
In its statistical review, BP reports a slowdown in primary energy consumption to 1.3%, which is below last year`s growth rate of 2.8% and a small increase of 0.5% in carbon emissions compared to 2018, as the average growth for the last 10 years in terms of emissions is 1.1% on an annual basis.
The largest increase is reported in the production from renewable energy sources. The production of electricity in the world in 2019 was 27005 TWh, as follows:
- Coal – 9824.1 TWh or 36.38%
- Gas: 6297.9 TWh or 23.32%,
- Hydropower capacity – 4,222.2 TWh or 15.64%
- RES – 2805.5 TWh or 10.39%
- Nuclear energy accounts for 2796.0 TWh or 10.35%
- Oil – 825.3 TWh or 3.6%
- Others – 233.6 TWh or 0.87%
The production of electricity from wind power was 1429.6 TWh or 51%, from solar – 724.1 TWh or 26% and from others, without hydropower – 651.8 TWh or 23%.
According to the data, the electricity produced from solar and wind power together amounted to 2153 TWh of the world’s electricity, and nuclear energy – 2796 TWh. The difference is 642.3 TWh. The growth of production from solar and wind power plants per year is about 300 TWh. In 2019, a record number of capacities from solar and wind power plants were commissioned. It can be predicted that solar and wind energy combined will outpace nuclear power in two to three years.
Figure 1. Regional electricity generation by fuel in 2019
Coal consumption decreased by 0.6% and its share in the primary energy consumption decreased to the lowest level of 16 years (27%).
According to the statistical review in 2019, a decline is also reported in the production of electricity from coal-fired power plants. In 2018, their production amounted to 10091.3 TWh, but in 2019 it declined to 9824.1 TWh. The share of coal-fired power plants has fallen to 36.4%, the lowest level since 1985.
The full statistical overview of BP is published on the company`s website: https://www.bp.com/en/global/corporate/energy-economics/statistical-review-of-world-energy.html