Danish electricity producers set a new green record in 2019, with an average produced kilowatt-hour emitted 135 gr CO2 / kWh.
It is the lowest CO2 emission ever measured in Denmark and about one-seventh of what the electricity producers emitted in 1990. At that time, the figure was over 1000 gr CO2 / kWh.
One reason is that more green power has been produced because the Horns Rev 3 offshore wind farm, which can produce electricity for 425,000 households, was commissioned in 2019.
Another reason is that Danish coal consumption fell by 46 percent from 2018 to 2019. The drastic decline in coal consumption is due to, among other things, a significant increase in the price of CO2 quotas, and thus also the price of CO2 emissions.
“Historically, 135 gr CO2 / kWh is a really, really low figure, showing the impressive green travel that the Danish electricity system has been on. In 1990, a kilowatt-hour produced emitted over 1000 grams of CO2, ie about seven times as much as today.”
Hanne Storm Edlefsen, area manager in Energinet Power System Responsibility.
Danish wind turbines and solar cells generated 17.1 TWh electricity in 2019. Wind turbines alone produced 16 TWh, which is not only a new green record, but also puts a thick line that wind energy is by far the most dominant form of electricity generation in Denmark.
“Thanks to our large wind resources, turbines are by far the largest supplier of renewable energy in Denmark, and this will be for many years to come. The large price drop in new wind energy in recent years – for both onshore and offshore winds – will ensure that wind energy will drive a large part of the growth in renewable energy in the coming years.”
Søren Klinge, electricity market manager at Wind Denmark.
