To mark one year since COVID-19 lockdowns began, we have launched a scorecard ranking the electricity generation carbon reductions of the 10 largest European economies’ since the start of national lockdowns last year. Across Europe’s 10 largest economies, emissions fell by 7% (36.7MtCO
2 to 489.1Mt) from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021. That’s more than the combined emissions of Austria and Spain over this period.
The impact of the pandemic alongside the phase-out
1 of coal in certain European markets accelerated the pace of the electricity system transition across the continent, with the share of renewables reaching levels not expected for another 10 years. Our scorecard highlights the leaders and laggards across the continent. The data, from the
Wärtsilä Energy Transition Lab, shows a significant disparity in CO
2 emissions reductions in the electricity generation of the continent’s largest economies over the past year of lockdowns.