Volkswagen has been a trailblazer in driving the large-scale adoption of renewable energy across Europe. The automaker is currently involved in 26 green power projects across nine European countries and has achieved significant milestones. Since 2021, these initiatives have contributed approximately three terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity to the European power grid—enough to meet the annual energy needs of about 800,000 households. These efforts play a pivotal role in advancing decarbonization. For example, an ID.4 electric vehicle powered exclusively by the EU’s green electricity grid mix achieves a lower carbon footprint than a comparable diesel model after around 66,000 kilometers, according to a comprehensive life cycle analysis. “We plan to step up our commitment in the field of renewable energies each year in line with the development in sales of ID. models,” said Andreas Walingen, CSO and Head of Strategy of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand. “Through the large-scale development of European wind and solar farms, we intend to support our customers in the region in their efforts to always use their ID. vehicles in a net carbon-neutral way. This shows that our commitment to sustainability goes far beyond the electrification of vehicles.”
Volkswagen is championing renewable energy development across Europe, with notable projects such as a solar park near Vila Real, Portugal, generating over 60 GWh annually, and a wind farm in Djupdal, Sweden, in which the company holds a 70% stake and produces more than 1,000 GWh of electricity per year. Currently, Volkswagen supports 18 photovoltaic plants and eight wind farms across Spain, Sweden, Finland, Portugal, the UK, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Poland. These long-term initiatives, typically spanning 10 years, include acquiring Energy Attribute Certificates to verify the renewable origin of the energy.
In 2024 alone, these projects produced approximately 1.1 TWh of green electricity, enough to meet the annual energy needs of 300,000 households or the calculated power demand of Volkswagen’s ID. fleet on European roads currently not covered by renewable power. While green electricity is not universally available for EV charging, a recent study** shows that about 40% of charging relies on “grey” electricity. Through its renewable energy projects, Volkswagen aims to offset this share over a decade, assuming each vehicle covers 200,000 kilometers. This effort ensures ID. vehicles fully contribute to mobility decarbonization. Anchored in its sustainability strategy, Volkswagen has made decarbonization through e-mobility one of its core pillars.
