27 April 2023

What happened to coal power amidst Europe’s winter crisis?

This briefing analyses the way that seven European countries (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Poland and Romania) responded to the winter 2022-23 fossil fuel crisis. It finds that despite many headlines trumpeting a return to coal, European coal power generation fell during the crisis-ridden cold season compared with the previous winter – yet many countries are persisting with disproportionate emergency coal measures, which, in most cases, are not necessary to meet electricity demand. The briefing offers a series of structural measures that offer cheaper, safer and healthier means for countries to secure their energy supplies based around wind, solar, energy efficiency and smart consumption measures.