(Bloomberg) -- Renewable energy this year accounted for more than half of Germany’s power production for the first time ever, data from clean-power groups show. 

The share of green sources rose to 53%, according to preliminary calculations from the Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research and the German Association of Energy and Water Industries, known as BDEW. That compares with 44% last year. 

Electricity generation from onshore wind energy reached a record for the year as a whole, while solar power production rose to an all-time high in June, the organizations said in a statement. Meanwhile, renewables accounted for 52% of the nation’s power consumption, an increase of about five percentage points.

Germany — Europe’s largest economy and one of the worst hit by Russia’s curtailment of natural gas shipments last year — has relied on renewables to fill the power gap, though it also increased coal usage last winter. The country switched off its last nuclear plants earlier this year and wants to reach 80% clean power production by 2030. 

In absolute terms, Germany this year produced more renewable energy than ever before, about 267 billion kilowatt-hours, according to the groups. An 11% decline in total energy generated allowed for lower use of fossil fuels. 

Also see: Europe Drops Fossil Fuels as Power Prices Reach New Normal: BNEF

Despite the push for more low-carbon sources, renewables in Europe — particularly offshore wind — have faced challenges including higher financing and component costs. Germany still needs to work to remove obstacles to renewables expansion, said Kerstin Andreae, chairwoman of BDEW’s executive board. 

“Companies in the energy industry want to invest in the energy transition, but despite improvements in legislation, they are still too often slowed down by lengthy approval procedures, excessive bureaucracy and a lack of land,” she said.

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