Marcin Sypniewski· ESN

Underestimated

In 1990, one-third of electricity in Europe was produced from nuclear power, today it is only 15%.

Omissions

• The 15% figure cited appears to actually refer to wind energy share in the EU electricity mix, not nuclear energy. Eurostat data for 2024 shows wind at 15% and nuclear at 22-23%.
• The speaker may have confused nuclear and wind energy statistics from Eurostat's 'Shedding light on energy in Europe' publication.
• The data for 1990 shows the nuclear share was closer to 30% than 33% in the EU-27.
• Nuclear electricity production actually increased by 4.8% in 2024, showing a recent recovery in nuclear generation.

Sources

• PrimaryEurostat - Nuclear energy statisticsIn 2024 at EU level, 23.3% of all electricity produced was generated by nuclear power plants.
• PrimaryEuropean Environment Agency - Share of electricity production by fuel typeNuclear share in EU-27 in 1990 was 30.42%.
• PrimaryEurostat - Shedding light on energy in Europe 2024 edition22% of electricity generated in EU from nuclear, 15% from windmills.