Costa Rica Ran On Renewable Energy For Over 250 Days In 2016

It has long been a dream to power entire countries by renewable energy. While that might be a bit difficult to achieve for an industrial powerhouse like China or the United States, at least at this point in time, smaller nations are often able to power themselves entirely through renewable energy. Take Costa Rica for example, the country was able to meet all of its energy requirements for more than 250 days in 2016 from renewable energy sources.

Costa Rica didn’t have to rely on fossil fuel to generate electricity for more than 250 days. 98.2 percent of the country’s electricity was generated from renewable sources last year.

Costa Rican Electricity Institute, a state-run body, reports that the country relied on a mix of wind, solar, hydro, geothermal, and biomass energy sources to complete more than 250 days on nothing but renewable energy. The bulk was contributed by hydroelectric sources, 74.35 percent to be precise.

Geothermal plants were the second biggest source of renewable energy for Costa Rica as they accounted for 12.74 percent of total electricity generation. Wind, biomass, and solar generation accounted for 10.30 percent, 0.74 percent, and 0.01 percent respectively.

It was only due to rainfall deficits at the start of 2016 that Costa Rica had to produce 1.88 percent of its electricity by burning fossil fuels. This isn’t the first time that the country has done something like this. Back in September this year, it revealed that the entire grid has been running on 100 percent of renewable energy for more than 113 consecutive days.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Green
Tags: renewable energy