ENERGO: Wind, solar slash gas costs in EU by $12.7bn since Russia invaded Ukraine

The growth of wind and solar power has helped to cut natural gas costs by €12bn ($12.7bn) in the EU since Russia invaded Ukraine just over a year ago.

The crisis in Ukraine brought to light the high cost of relying on fossil fuel imports. Russia is a major exporter of oil and gas. But the increase in renewables helped to mitigate energy security risks and prevent a worse crisis, says a new report by climate think-tank Ember.

The ‘avoided gas cost’ of €12bn came because of cheap renewables, rising gas costs and a reduction in fossil gas imports of 9bn cubic metres. Without the total 546 TWh of wind and solar generation, the EU could have required an additional 993 TWh (94 bcm) of gas to meet electricity demand since the start of the war. This equates to gas costs of €135bn.

The EU has imported 330 bcm of gas since the war began, with 54 bcm (16%) coming from Russia. While total gas imports have only decreased by 5% (19 bcm) compared to the same period in the previous year, Russian imports have plummeted by 60% (82 bcm).