Energy production from renewable sources overtook that from fossil fuels for the first time in Italy,power grid company Terna said in a statement on Thursday.

The latest data referred to the first half of 2024,in which 43.8 percent of Italy's energy demand was fulfilled by renewable sources,compared to 34.9 percent in the same period of 2023.

Terna is a public company that owns over 99 percent of Italy's electricity transmission grid,according to its latest report.

Overall,energy generated from green sources increased by 27.3 percent between January and June against the first six months of 2023,while production from fossil sources dropped by 19 percent.

Renewable hydroelectric production(among green sources)grew by 64.8 percent in the period,while Italy's coal-based production of energy dropped significantly by 77.3 percent.

In June,electricity consumption grew by 1.5 percent against June 2023,and renewable sources fed 52.5 percent of the overall demand against 43.8 percent last year.

June was also marked by an increase in hydroelectric power(+29.4 percent)--mainly due to the contribution of power plants in northern Italy--in wind power(+29.2 percent)and solar power(+18.2 percent),data showed.

Italy plans to cover 39.4 percent of its gross energy consumption with renewable energy sources by 2030,the government said in its National Energy and Climate Plan(NECP)in June.

（Picture: Veer）