European Union | Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total)
Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Nuclear power refers to electricity produced by nuclear power plants. Development relevance: The generation of electricity using nuclear energy was first demonstrated in the 1950s, and the first commercial nuclear power plants entered operation in the early 1960s. Nuclear capacity grew rapidly in the 1970s and 1980s as countries sought to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, especially after the oil crises of the 1970s. There was a renewed interest in nuclear energy from 2000, and 60 new countries expressed interest in launching a nuclear program to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). However, after the earthquake and tsunami devastation of the Pacific coast of northern Japan, most nuclear countries announced safety reviews of their nuclear reactors (stress tests) and the revision/improvement of their plans to address similar emergency situations; countries such as Germany and Italy decided to eventually phase out nuclear power or to abandon their nuclear plant projects. Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas. Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products. Limitations and exceptions: IEA occasionally revises its time series to reflect political changes. For example, the IEA has constructed historical energy statistics for countries of the former Soviet Union. In addition, energy statistics for other countries have undergone continuous changes in coverage or methodology in recent years as more detailed energy accounts have become available. Breaks in series are therefore unavoidable. Statistical concept and methodology: Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total) is the share of electricity produced by nuclear power plants in total electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.
Publisher
The World Bank
Origin
European Union
Records
63
Source
European Union | Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total)
0.03104036 1960
0.05816558 1961
0.10494383 1962
0.15118711 1963
0.49801868 1964
0.6821691 1965
0.78659323 1966
0.95687281 1967
0.95714886 1968
1.38125084 1969
1.5648642 1970
1.9253423 1971
2.78619126 1972
3.02244938 1973
3.3948843 1974
5.65487504 1975
6.06490566 1976
7.24188441 1977
8.233095 1978
8.86302234 1979
10.47372259 1980
14.96462058 1981
16.21499442 1982
18.73351379 1983
23.19341311 1984
26.82928402 1985
28.80531378 1986
29.0289491 1987
30.39413256 1988
31.23473219 1989
32.27662006 1990
32.59605346 1991
32.87139172 1992
33.81241769 1993
33.15220525 1994
33.13092762 1995
33.61221262 1996
33.76471894 1997
32.85037237 1998
33.10829219 1999
32.67972366 2000
32.83053544 2001
33.10700593 2002
32.32026769 2003
32.26305055 2004
31.64034464 2005
31.07237067 2006
29.49361875 2007
29.78487387 2008
29.27049783 2009
28.90236172 2010
28.84252434 2011
27.95115748 2012
27.97017664 2013
28.77238146 2014
26.48026534 2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
European Union | Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total)
Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Nuclear power refers to electricity produced by nuclear power plants. Development relevance: The generation of electricity using nuclear energy was first demonstrated in the 1950s, and the first commercial nuclear power plants entered operation in the early 1960s. Nuclear capacity grew rapidly in the 1970s and 1980s as countries sought to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, especially after the oil crises of the 1970s. There was a renewed interest in nuclear energy from 2000, and 60 new countries expressed interest in launching a nuclear program to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). However, after the earthquake and tsunami devastation of the Pacific coast of northern Japan, most nuclear countries announced safety reviews of their nuclear reactors (stress tests) and the revision/improvement of their plans to address similar emergency situations; countries such as Germany and Italy decided to eventually phase out nuclear power or to abandon their nuclear plant projects. Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas. Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products. Limitations and exceptions: IEA occasionally revises its time series to reflect political changes. For example, the IEA has constructed historical energy statistics for countries of the former Soviet Union. In addition, energy statistics for other countries have undergone continuous changes in coverage or methodology in recent years as more detailed energy accounts have become available. Breaks in series are therefore unavoidable. Statistical concept and methodology: Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total) is the share of electricity produced by nuclear power plants in total electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.
Publisher
The World Bank
Origin
European Union
Records
63
Source