Electricity in The World in 2023

As of 2023, the world's electricity consumption is still predominantly reliant on fossil fuels, which make up over 60% of electricity generation. Breaking this down, 35% is from coal and 22% is from gas, both contributing significantly to this high figure. On the brighter side, nearly 40% of electricity is now produced from low-carbon sources. Hydropower leads this category with just above 14% of total electricity. Nuclear, wind, and solar also contribute considerably, with nuclear generating just over 9%, wind at slightly above 8%, and solar at around 5.5%. Biofuels, however, account for a mere 1.7%.

Suggestions

Countries around the world can notably increase their low-carbon electricity generation by learning from other successful nations. For instance, a significant part of France's, Slovakia’s, and Ukraine's electricity comes from nuclear energy, contributing 66%, 61%, and 58% respectively. Denmark and Uruguay's substantial electricity production, almost 60% and 40% respectively, stems from wind energy. The Netherlands and Greece have both made successful moves toward solar energy, contributing roughly 18% to each of their respective power grids. These figures suggest that countries may consider investing in diverse low-carbon technologies - such as nuclear, wind, and solar - according to their resources and geographical conditions.

History

The history of low-carbon electricity showcases an overall growth trend with certain ups and downs. Hydropower saw an impressive increase of about 240 TWh in 1980, with intermittent increases until 2010. Nuclear energy, on the other hand, surged significantly during the mid-1980s, especially in 1985 with an increase of almost 290 TWh. However, 2011 marked a sharp decline in nuclear generation, a setback of about -170 TWh. More recently, wind and solar energy have shown substantial strides. Wind energy took a giant leap in 2021 with a hike of over 260 TWh, while solar also saw a robust growth in the same year, with an increase of over 200 TWh. Unfortunately, 2023 marked a significant drop in hydropower generation - around -216 TWh. Despite this, the overall trend points towards an increasing dependence on cleaner, low-carbon electricity sources.

Data Sources