Wind farms in Spain have broken an energy record in January, generating more electricity than any other source.

Spanish wind farms generated 6 terawatt hours of electricity in January, according to an industry trade group, enough to power nearly every household in the country.

The Spanish Wind Energy Association said wind energy accounted for 25 per cent of all electrical production in January, more than both coal and nuclear power.

"The Spanish economy has gained 3 euros for every one euro invested in incentives for wind farms," the association said in a blog post, adding that the fossil fuels needed to generate the same amount of electricity would have cost $406 million.

Spain has been trying to boost renewable energy production to curb carbon emissions.

In Canada, just 1.3 per cent of energy is generated by wind, or 7.2 terawatt hours annually — one tenth of Spain's annual output. However, 64.2 per cent of Canada's energy production is renewable due to massive hydroelectric capacity.