According to a study, more solar power was produced in the EU this summer than ever before. According to an analysis by think tank Ember Climate, there was an increase of 22 terawatt hours compared to the summer months of 2021 to a total of 99.4 terawatt hours between May and August. According to the calculations, generating this amount of electricity with gas would have required gas purchases of 29 billion euros, based on the daily gas prices in the months examined.

According to the study, between May and August, 12 percent of the electricity produced in the EU came from the sun. Last year it was only 9 percent. "As Europe is rocked by the gas crisis, solar power is providing some much-needed relief," said Ember Climate's Pawl Czyzak.

The study found that 18 states produced all-time solar power this summer. First and foremost was the Netherlands with a share of 23 percent. This was followed by Germany with 19 percent - almost a fifth of the electricity produced - and Spain with 17 percent. Poland has made the most progress in ramping up solar systems: the country has increased its solar capacity by a factor of 26 since 2018, it said. Poland produced 8 percent of its electricity from solar this year.

Overall, the analysts found that solar capacity is being expanded at an accelerating pace in Europe. The annual increase from 2020 to 2021 was plus 8 terawatt hours compared to 22 terawatt hours the year after. This is also due to the fact that solar capacity has been expanded by around 15 percent annually in recent years.