Renewables account for 42% of consumption in September with new photovoltaic peak

Electricity consumption recorded a slight year-on-year contraction of 0.3% in September, or 0.1% when adjusting for temperature and the number of working days. From January to September, consumption decreased by 0.5%, with the same figure when correcting for temperature and working days.

This month, both wind and photovoltaic production faced unfavourable conditions, recording capability indices of 0.94 and 0.92, respectively, against a historical average of 1. For hydropower, the figures were typical, though they carry limited significance during this period of the year. In photovoltaics, experiencing notable growth, the peak power delivered to the grid surpassed 1800 MW for the first time. Renewable generation supplied 42% of consumption, while non-renewable generation supplied 26%. The remaining 32% consisted of imported energy.

In the period from January to September, the capability index stood at 0.79 for hydropower, 0.96 for wind, and 1.04 for solar. During this period, renewable generation supplied 55% of consumption, split between wind with 24%, hydroelectric with 17%, photovoltaics with 8%, and biomass with 6%. Generation from natural gas supplied 22% of consumption, with the remaining 23% coming from imported energy.

In the natural gas market, the trend of reduced consumption continued this month, expressing an overall year-on-year decline of 12%. In the electric market segment, there was a 27% decrease, while in the conventional segment, encompassing the other customers, a positive year-on-year change of 2.2% was observed.

By the close of the third quarter, natural gas consumption registered a year-on-year drop of 20%, comprising a 38% decline in the electricity production segment and a 4.1% reduction in the conventional segment. The overall gas consumption is at its lowest since 2014.