Renewables generated 42% of North’s electricity in 12 months to September 30th

Renewables generated more than 40 per cent of the electricity used in the North in the 12 months to September 30th, new figures show.

The North’s Department for the Economy said on Thursday that the region consumed 7,449 giga-watt hours of electricity between October 1st, 2020, and September 30th this year.

Renewable-generated electricity accounted for 42.1 per cent of the total, the department calculates, a decrease of 5.5 percentage points on the previous 12 months.

The department blamed the fall in renewable electricity use on the reduced amount of power generated by wind during the period.

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Wind speeds were lower than normal in Ireland and western Europe over sustained periods this year, particularly in the early months of 2021 and during the summer.

The Northern Ireland Executive's energy strategy aimed to have 40 per cent of electricity used there generated from renewable sources by 2020.

A statement said the Department for the Economy’s report “reflects performance” against this target.

Wind generated 82.4 per cent of the renewable electricity used in the North in the period to the end of September. This compares with 84.5 per cent in the previous 12 months.