Renewable energy in Lithuania constitutes some energy produced in the country. In 2016, it constituted 27.9% of the country's overall electricity generation. [1] [2] Previously, the Lithuanian government aimed to generate 23% of total power from renewable resources by 2020, the goal was achieved in 2014 (23.9%).
Renewable energy in Lithuania by type (as of 2021): [3]
Solid biofuel or biomass represents the most common source of renewable energy in Lithuania. [3] Most commonly used are firewood and wood as well as agricultural waste. [3] It is primarily used to produce heat, but is also used for electricity production. [3]
| Biofuels [4] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consumption 2005 (GWh) | Consumption 2006 (GWh) | Consumption 2007 (GWh) | ||||||
| Total | Total | Biodiesel | Bioethanol | Total | Biodiesel | Bioethanol | ||
| 97 | 226 | 162 | 64 | 612 | 477 | 135 | ||
| Year | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capacity (million m3) | 9.8 | 20.9 | 23.2 |
In 2022, Lithuania had capacity of 568 MW of solar power (compared to only 2.4 MWh power in 2010). [7] [8]
As of 2012, Lithuania has 1,580 small (from several kilowatts to 2,500 kW) solar power plants with a total installed capacity of 59.4 MW which produce electricity for the country, and has an uncounted number of private power plants which make electricity only for their owners. [9]
Installed wind power capacity in Lithuania and generation in recent years is shown in the table below: [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17]
| Year | 1998-2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capacity (MW) | 0 | 6 | 6 | 48 | 51 | 54 | 91 | 133 | 202 | 275 | 279 | 288 | 436 | 509 | 518 | 533 | 534 | 671 | 671 | 814 |
Renewable energy is energy from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. Renewable resources include sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy sources are sustainable, some are not. For example, some biomass sources are considered unsustainable at current rates of exploitation. Renewable energy is often used for electricity generation, heating and cooling. Renewable energy projects are typically large-scale, but they are also suited to rural and remote areas and developing countries, where energy is often crucial in human development. Renewable energy is often deployed together with further electrification, which has several benefits: electricity can move heat or objects efficiently, and is clean at the point of consumption.
Renewable energy plays an important and growing role in the energy system of the European Union. The Europe 2020 strategy included a target of reaching 20% of gross final energy consumption from renewable sources by 2020, and at least 32% by 2030. The EU27 reached 22.1% in 2020, up from 9.6% in 2004, but declined to 21.8% in 2021. These figures are based on energy use in all its forms across all three main sectors, the heating and cooling sector, the electricity sector, and the transport sector.
Renewable energy in Germany is mainly based on wind and biomass, plus solar and hydro. Germany had the world's largest photovoltaic installed capacity until 2014, and as of 2021 it has over 58 GW. It is also the world's third country by installed total wind power capacity, 64 GW in 2021 and second for offshore wind, with over 7 GW. Germany has been called "the world's first major renewable energy economy".
As of 2023, Europe had a total installed wind capacity of 255 gigawatts (GW). In 2017, a total of 15,680 MW of wind power was installed, representing 55% of all new power capacity, and the wind power generated 336 TWh of electricity, enough to supply 11.6% of the EU's electricity consumption.
Wind power is a major source of electricity in Portugal. At the end of 2020, wind power capacity in Continental Portugal was 5,456 MW. In 2020, wind power represented 23.7% of total electricity generation.
Renewable energy in the United Kingdom contributes to production for electricity, heat, and transport.
Wind power in Romania has total cumulative installed capacity of 3,028 MW as of the end of 2016, up from the 14 MW installed capacity in 2009.
Wind power is a growing source of electricity in Poland. In 2019, wind was the second most important source of electricity produced in Poland, after coal, accounting for about 10% of the electricity production.
Wind power in Italy, at the end of 2015, consisted of more than 1,847 wind turbines with a total installed capacity of 8,958 megawatts. Wind power contributed 5.4% of Italy electricity generation in 2015 (14,589 GWh). Italy is ranked as the world's tenth producer of wind power as of the end of 2016. Prospects for Italian wind energy beyond 2020 were positive, with several projects planned to go live before 2030.
Energy in Belgium describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Belgium.
Renewable energy in Russia mainly consists of hydroelectric energy. In 2010, the country was the sixth largest producer of renewable energy in the world, although it was 56th when hydroelectric energy was not taken into account. Some 179 TWh of Russia's energy production came from renewable energy sources, out of a total economically feasible potential of 1823 TWh. 16% of Russia's electricity was generated from hydropower, and less than 1% was generated from all other renewable energy sources combined. Roughly 68% of Russia's electricity was generated from thermal power and 16% from nuclear power.
The installed capacity of wind power in Hungary was 329 MW as of April 2011. Most of wind farms are in the Kisalföld region.
The electricity sector in France is dominated by its nuclear power, which accounted for 71.7% of total production in 2018, while renewables and fossil fuels accounted for 21.3% and 7.1%, respectively. France has the largest share of nuclear electricity in the world, and together with renewable energy supplies, this has helped its grid achieve very low carbon intensity.
Electricity sector in Estonia is connected to Finland, Russia and the other Baltic countries. As of 2016, it was one of the dirtiest in the EU in terms of CO2 emissions, as oil-based fuels accounted for about 80% of domestic production. However, renewables had grown to over 13% of production whereas they were less than 1% in 2000. Thus, Estonia is one of the countries to have reached its EU renewable target by 2016.
The Polish energy sector is the sixth largest in Europe. The scale of energy consumption in 1996–2015 increased from 139,593 GWh to 161,438 GWh. According to the data of Polskie Sieci Elektroenergetyczne (PSE), electricity production in October 2020 amounted to 13,553 GWh; domestic consumption amounted to 14,798 GWh.
Lithuania is a net energy importer. In 2019 Lithuania used around 11.4 TWh of electricity after producing just 3.6 TWh.
Despite the historic usage of wind power to drain water and grind grain, the Netherlands today lags 21 of the 26 other member states of the European Union in the consumption of energy from renewable sources. In 2022, the Netherlands consumed just 15% of its total energy from renewables. According to statistics published by Eurostat, it was the last among the EU countries in the shift away from global warming-inducing energy sources. The leading renewable sources in the country are biomass, wind, solar and both geothermal and aerothermal power. In 2018 decisions were made to replace natural gas as the main energy source in the Netherlands with increased electrification being a major part of this process.
Renewable energy in Chile is classified as Conventional and Non Conventional Renewable Energy (NCRE), and includes biomass, hydro-power, geothermal, wind and solar among other energy sources. Most of the time, when referring to Renewable Energy in Chile, it will be the Non Conventional kind.
Hungary is a member of the European Union and thus takes part in the EU strategy to increase its share of renewable energy. The EU has adopted the 2009 Renewable Energy Directive, which included a 20% renewable energy target by 2020 for the EU. By 2030 wind should produce in average 26-35% of the EU's electricity and save Europe €56 billion a year in avoided fuel costs. The national authors of Hungary forecast is 14.7% renewables in gross energy consumption by 2020, exceeding their 13% binding target by 1.7 percentage points. Hungary is the EU country with the smallest forecast penetration of renewables of the electricity demand in 2020, namely only 11%.
By the end of 2016 Austria already fulfilled their EU Renewables Directive goal for the year 2020. By 2016 renewable energies accounted to 33.5% of the final energy consumption in all sectors. The renewable energy sector is also accountable for hosting 41,591 jobs and creating a revenue of 7,219 million euros in 2016.
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Media related to Renewable energy in Lithuania at Wikimedia Commons
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