For the First Time, Solar Supplied a Quarter of the EU’s Electricity in June
For one month this summer, the largest source of electricity across the European Union was sunlight falling on panels. In June, solar produced more power than anything else in the bloc’s mix: more than nuclear, more than gas, more than wind, more than hydro, more than coal.
The total came to 52 terawatt-hours, a quarter of all the electricity the EU used. Ember, the energy think tank that tracks Europe’s power mix each month, put solar at 25% for June, ahead of nuclear at 21%, gas at 15%, wind at 14%, hydro at 12% and coal at 8%. Solar had edged into the top spot twice before, in June 2025 and May 2026. June 2026 is the first time it supplied a full quarter, and it beat the previous record, set only a month earlier at 47 terawatt-hours and a 23% share in May.
Five years ago the picture was different in scale. In June 2021, solar covered a tenth of EU electricity and generated 21 terawatt-hours. It has since more than doubled both its output and its share. Ember counts solar as the fastest-growing source of power on the continent, expanding by more than a fifth every year since 2021, with over 65 gigawatts of new panels added in 2025 alone. Ember’s analysts tie the pace to how cheap and quick panels have become to install, which has pulled in governments and households alike.
Timing helped June’s record land. Heatwaves pushed up demand for cooling, and that demand climbs through the middle of the day, which is exactly when panels generate the most. Solar’s strongest hours lined up with the grid’s busiest ones. Panels also go up fast, so much of the capacity that met the moment did not exist a few summers ago.
The national figures show how wide the shift has spread. Eighteen of the 27 member states set new monthly solar records this year. In Spain, solar supplied 34% of electricity in June, more than a third for the first time. Germany, which has more panels installed than any other EU country, reached 36% after hitting 33% in May. Even Poland, one of the bloc’s heaviest coal users, drew 24% of its power from the sun, having added more than 20 gigawatts of solar since 2020.
June flatters solar by design, since the longest days of the year feed the most panels, and a single month is not a full year. Even so, each of the last few summers has pushed the share higher, and this one carried it past a quarter for the first time.
