Power generation from renewable energy sources (RES) has jumped in Spain during the first semester 2018. RES-based electricity production accounted for close to half of the domestic power generation between January and June 2018 thanks to the strong contribution of wind power. In total, 67.5% of the power generation during the first half of the year was produced with CO2 free technologies (including nuclear power).
The Spanish power grid operator Red Eléctrica de España revealed that 45.8% (+8.5% year-on-year, YoY) of the domestic electricity was produced from renewable energy sources, including hydropower, wind and solar energy. Wind power accounted for 22.6% (+10.4% YoY) of the total domestic power generation while hydropower stood for 16.9% (+74% YoY). 2017 was a particularly dry year in Spain, whereas the rainfall during six first months of 2018 has helped to increase hydroelectric generation. Meanwhile, the share of nuclear reached 20.6% of the total.
The domestic power demand increased by 1.2% to 126.4 TWh during the first semester, with respect to the same period in 2017.