In Numbers: Growth in renewable generation exceeded growth in electricity demand for the first time in history
- uIMPACT
- Oct 14
- 2 min read
According to a newly published report by the global energy think tank Ember, the increase in global electricity demand in the first half of 2025 was met (or more than met) by gains in solar and wind capacities alone.
This marks a pivotal moment — for the first time in history, growth in renewable generation exceeded growth in electricity demand.
In the first half of 2025, solar and wind generation grew by ~363 TWh (≈7.7%), pushing total renewable output to 5,072 TWh — surpassing coal’s 4,896 TWh. During that same period, global electricity demand rose by ~2.6% (~369 TWh), and the increase was entirely met (or more than met) by gains in solar and wind alone.
However, there are important caveats to this milestone. First, this result is based on a six-month snapshot, not a full year, so seasonal or weather anomalies might sway results. Also, the gains were heavily driven by a few major players (notably China and India), where renewable deployment has surged — many other countries actually saw fossil‐fuel output rise instead.
While renewables met the net growth in demand, this does not imply fossil fuels are obsolete yet — existing baseload and backup generation still play critical roles for grid stability, especially in periods of low wind/solar or hydropower variability.
Last but not least, the report and this milestone cover electricity production only, not total energy consumption, which includes transportation, heating, and industrial uses.
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