Renewables generate a third of overall electricity demand in June

The amount of electricity generated from grid-scale solar reached a new high of 110 gigawatt hours (GWh) in June, meeting 4.4% of electricity demand.

Renewable energy sources operating in the Republic provided a third of overall electricity demand last month despite grid capacity constraints.

Data from the national grid operator EirGrid estimated the amount of electricity generated from grid-scale solar reached a new high of 110 gigawatt hours (GWh) in June, meeting 4.4% of electricity demand while just over a quarter of all electricity used came from windfarms.

“Solar generation is naturally always strongest during the summer but this June saw a particularly high output, with solar playing an increasingly important part in our efforts to get more renewable electricity onto the system,” said Charlie McGee, system operational manager at EirGrid.

Total electricity generated by wind turbines reached of 635 GWh, marking the third-highest ever figure recorded in June.

The remainder of the 33.5% of electricity produced from renewables came from a range of sources including hydropower and biomass.

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Gas generation accounted for 42% of all electricity used in last month, with 20% being imported via interconnection, 3% coming from coal, and the remaining 1% from other sources.

Renewable energy firms have increasingly called for more grid capacity through systems like battery storage units to support further growth in the sector.