Croatia ranked third in the European Union for the share of electricity generated from renewable sources in the second quarter of 2026, with renewables accounting for 92.2% of its electricity generation, according to Eurostat data cited by Croatian and regional media.
Only Latvia, at 97.7%, and Denmark, at 94.3%, recorded higher shares during the period.
Hydropower accounted for the largest part of Croatia’s renewable electricity generation, while Latvia’s high share was driven mainly by hydro and solar power and Denmark’s by wind.
The figures place Croatia well above the EU average of 54.1% in the second quarter.
At the other end of the ranking, Slovakia recorded the EU’s lowest renewable share at 19.8%, followed by the Czech Republic at 20.9% and Malta at 24.5%.
The data illustrate the increasingly divergent pace of Europe’s transition towards cleaner electricity, with several countries already producing the overwhelming majority of their power from renewable sources while others remain heavily dependent on conventional generation.
Solar takes the lead across Europe
Solar power emerged as the EU’s largest source of renewable electricity during the quarter, accounting for 41.6% of renewable generation, according to the data.
That represented an increase of 4.6 percentage points from the same quarter of 2025.
Wind accounted for 27.7%, followed by hydropower at 22.6%. Combustible renewable fuels contributed 7.7%, while geothermal and other renewable sources represented 0.4%.
Despite solar’s rapid expansion, the overall share of renewable electricity in the EU slipped marginally by 0.2 percentage points compared with the same period a year earlier.
The figures nevertheless show how rapidly the composition of European electricity generation is changing as investment in solar and wind capacity expands.
Croatia builds on record 2025
Croatia’s performance follows a strong year for renewable electricity generation in 2025.
According to figures from the Croatian Renewable Energy Association cited by the Zagreb Energy Center, solar and wind power plants together with thermal plants using renewable fuels covered 26.6% of the country’s total electricity consumption last year.
When hydroelectric generation was included, renewable sources supplied 52.6% of Croatia’s annual electricity consumption.
The difference between that annual figure and the much higher 92.2% recorded for electricity generation in the second quarter of 2026 reflects, among other things, the different periods and statistical measures involved. The quarterly Eurostat figure should therefore not be interpreted as meaning that renewables now permanently provide more than 90% of Croatia’s annual electricity consumption.
Still, Croatia’s second-quarter position puts it among the EU countries with the highest renewable electricity shares.
EU raises its 2030 ambitions
The figures come as the European Union pushes member states towards more ambitious renewable-energy targets.
Under the revised Renewable Energy Directive, the EU increased its binding 2030 target for renewables in gross final energy consumption from 32% to 42.5%, with an ambition to reach 45%.
That target covers overall energy consumption and is therefore broader than electricity generation alone.
EU governments will need to accelerate deployment over the remainder of the decade to meet the collective target.
Croatia’s energy development strategy through 2030, with a longer-term outlook to 2050, similarly envisages greater renewable generation, improved energy efficiency and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
The transition is likely to require not only additional solar and wind capacity but investment in electricity grids, storage and other infrastructure needed to accommodate generation that varies with weather conditions.
For Croatia, however, the latest quarterly figures offer a striking snapshot: 92.2% of its electricity generation came from renewable sources, putting the country third in the European Union.