Northern Ireland Renewables Hit Record 53% Share — SkimNews
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- Northern Ireland generated 53% of its electricity from renewable sources in the year to June, surpassing the previous record set in 2022.
- Renewable generation has consistently exceeded non-renewable generation every month since January — the first time this has happened in the region.
- Wind accounted for 74% of renewable electricity, with bioenergy at 18%, solar at 6%, and landfill gas and hydro/tidal each contributing 1%.
- Even when imported electricity is factored in, renewables matched the previous record of 50% set in 2022/23.
- Northern Ireland has a legislated target of generating 80% of electricity from renewables by 2030.
- High levels of dispatch down persist — turbines are switched off because the grid cannot carry the renewable power being generated due to demand and fluctuation limits.
- Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald said rising renewable output would help the region "move away from price volatility and towards more stable and fairer prices."
Why it matters: Renewables have now structurally overtaken fossil generation since January, putting NI past the halfway point to its 80%-by-2030 target — but the dispatch-down detail reveals the constraint has shifted from generation to grid capacity, meaning more turbines without grid upgrades will simply be switched off.
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