Drop in cogeneration energy production in Latvia in 2022

The latest data compiled by the Central Statistical Bureau show that 2 015.8 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity were produced by combined heat and power (CHP) plants in 2022, which is 974.4 GWh or 33 % fewer than in 2021.

For the past ten years, the electricity produced by CHP plants has constituted more than half of the total electricity produced in the country (except for 2012 and 2017), while in 2022 the share again constituted less than half – 40 %.

Compared to 2021, last year the amount of heat produced by CHP plants fell by 16 % reaching 4 806.4 GWh or 62 % of the total amount of heat produced in Latvia (7 772.8 GWh). Downturn in the heat production may be explained by higher mean air temperature during the heating season as well as economizing due to the high energy prices.

Last year, 801.3 GWh of electricity was produced in CHP plants using renewables, which is 60.5 GWh less than in 2021. Over the last ten years, electricity generation from renewables in CHP plants has increased by 60 %, with a peak in 2018 (943.7 GWh) which was followed by a gradual decline.

In 2022, the amount of electricity produced in CHP plants using renewables accounted for 22 % of the national electricity generated from renewables (15 % was generated in biomass CHP plants and 7 % in biogas CHP plants).

Map - Electricity produced in CHP plants by region, 2022

 

Heat and electricity production in CHP plants mainly is based on the consumption of fuelwood (wood chips, wood waste and pelleted wood), natural gas, and biogas. Compared to 2021, in 2022 consumption of natural gas fell by 38 %, of biogas by 11 %, while of fuelwood only by 2 %. Over a ten-year period, the share of natural gas consumed in CHP plants has dropped from 79 % to 45 %, while the share of renewables has risen notably and in 2022 reached 53 %. Natural gas has been the most popular energy resource used in CHP plants so far, however in 2022 fuelwood consumption exceeded natural gas consumption for the first time.

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