In 2023, renewable energy accounted for 17 percent of gross national energy consumption in the Netherlands. That was up from 15 percent in 2022. The increase was mainly due to higher consumption of wind and solar energy. This is according to provisional figures by Statistics Netherlands (CBS).
In 2023, renewable energy consumption amounted to 308 PJ (petajoules), representing a year-on-year increase of 11 percent. Gross final energy consumption fell to over 1,800 PJ, which was 2 percent lower than in 2022.
The 2013 national Energy Agreement set a target of 16 percent renewable energy for 2023, which has been achieved. At the end of 2023, new targets for 2030 were agreed at EU level. According to these targets, at least 42.5 percent of European energy consumption must be renewable. It is not yet known what impact this will have on the target set for the Netherlands.
Wind energy consumption up by a quarter
In 2023, the consumption of wind energy showed an increase of 25 percent to 96 PJ year on year. This included 39 PJ produced by offshore wind turbines and 57 PJ by onshore wind turbines. Consumption of wind energy accounted for 5,31 percent of the gross final energy consumption in 2023.
The increase in wind energy consumption is largely attributable to the addition of many new turbines. Offshore production capacity increased by 55 percent to 3.98 GW in 2023, while onshore capacity increased by 10 percent to 6.81 GW. The largest increases were recorded in the provinces of Flevoland, Noord-Brabant and Zeeland.
Sharp growth in solar energy
In 2023, solar energy consumption (for electricity and heat) went up by 17 percent to 73 PJ year on year. This was mainly due to the installation of new solar panels. Total installed solar capacity increased by 24 percent compared with 2022, to over 24 thousand GW. There were also more hours of sunshine than average in 2023, although fewer than in 2022.
The largest quantity of renewable energy is generated from biomass (106 PJ). Energy from biomass declined slightly. This was mainly due to the fact that 31 percent less biomass was used to co-fire power stations.
The share of renewable energy in the Netherlands below the EU average
The EU’s share of renewable energy was 23 percent in 2022. One year later, the share of renewable energy in the Netherlands was 15 percent, which is lower than the EU average. The only EU countries with a lower share were Luxembourg, Belgium, Malta and Ireland. However, over the past five years, the share of renewable energy in the Netherlands has risen at a faster rate than in most other EU countries.
Source: CBS
