Denmark
DNKDenmark is first in the world for wind.
Wind supplies 58% of its electricity.
What this grid depends on
Three measures that say more about a country than how much power it makes. Open “what this means” on any of them if the term is new.
Among the cleanest electricity anywhere.
What this means
How much planet-warming gas is released to make one unit of electricity. Two countries can generate exactly the same amount and one of them be ten times dirtier doing it. Lower is better.
Denmark buys in more electricity than it sends out.
What this means
The share of the electricity used here that was generated abroad and carried in over high-voltage lines. The higher it climbs, the more this country relies on a neighbour to keep its lights on.
A mix of fuel produced at home and fuel bought in.
What this means
How much of what this grid runs on the country can supply itself. Sun, wind and water count fully, because nobody can cut them off; coal, gas and oil only as far as the country digs them up. A high score is not the same as a good grid: mining your own coal scores well, importing uranium scores badly.
Also true of Denmark
Denmark has taken the carbon out of its electricity fast.
314 grams of CO2e a kilowatt-hour in 2015, 114 in 2025.
Denmark gets next to none of its electricity from hydro, in a region built on it.
51% of grids in Europe draw more than a tenth of their power from hydro.
Denmark has cleaned up its grid faster than most people realise.
Low-carbon electricity went from 66% to 91% in 10 years.
Denmark’s neighbours
GermanyWind overtook coal on Germany's grid in 2023.
BelgiumBelgium gets next to none of its electricity from hydro, in a region built on it.
CzechiaNuclear overtook coal on the Czechia's grid in 2023.
PolandPoland is among the world's biggest wind and solar producers and still burns fossil fuels for most of its power.
LuxembourgWind overtook bioenergy on Luxembourg's grid in 2023.
Figures are for 2025, the most recent year reported for Denmark. Generation shares are a percentage of electricity generated, not of energy used. How this is calculated.