Electricity from renewables generated a record 58% of Germany's electrical power consumption in the first half of 2026, according to figures published on Wednesday.
The figures take in wind and solar power, biomass, hydropower and the incineration of organic refuse and are calculated by the ZSW centre for solar energy and hydrogen research and the German Association of energy and Water Industries (BDEW).
The latest figure compares with 55.2% for the first half of 2025 and 57% for the first half of 2024. The renewables share came in at 55.8% for the whole of 2025.
Germany's target for 2030 under the Renewable Energy Act (EEG) is at least 80%.
"The rise by comparison with the previous half year can be attributed mainly to increased generation from wind power on land (up 7.0%) and on sea (up 28.3%)," the analysis says.
Solar power was up by 3.7%, while hydropower declined by 7.7% owing to lower rainfall.
Power from renewable sources for the six months totalled 152.2 billion kilowatt hours.
ZSW head Frithjof Staiss pointed to the impact of renewables on energy prices. "The higher the share of renewables, the more independent we will be of imported fossil energy resources," he said.
"The energy crises of past months and years were caused by fossil energy resources, not by renewables," Staiss noted.
During the first half year, Germany exported 1.2 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity. This means that electricity generated from renewable sources made up 57.7% of all electricity generated in the country.
Looking at total energy consumption, renewables make up a lower share, coming in at 21.5% in the first quarter, while fossil resources, including oil, natural gas, lignite and hard coal make up 77.2%. The remainder derives from imports and electricity generated from refuse incineration.
