Renewable energies were the main source of electricity in the European Union (EU) in 2023, generating 1.21 million Gigawatt-hours (GWh), 12.4% more than in 2022 and representing 44.7% of all electricity production.
According to preliminary data released this Thursday by Eurostat, on the other hand, electricity produced from fossil fuels decreased by 19.7% in 2023 compared to the previous year, contributing 0.88 million GWh, that is, 32.5% of total electricity production.
Nuclear power plants produced 0.62 million GWh or 22.8% of EU energy production, reflecting a 1.2% increase in production in 2023.
The supply of renewable energy increased by 4.4% compared to 2022, reaching around 10.9 million terajoules (TJ) in 2023.
Regarding natural gas consumption in the EU, Eurostat states that it decreased to 12.8 million TJ in 2023, 7.4% less than in 2022 and the lowest value since 1995, with Portugal registering the biggest drop among the 27.
According to preliminary data released by Eurostat, the 7.4% drop in internal consumption of natural gas in the EU in 2023 compared to 2022 and 19.4% compared to 2021, the period prior to the application of gas saving measures, resulted from a combination of a further decrease in domestic natural gas production (-15.8% compared with 2022), a decrease in net imports (-14.6%) and an accumulation of stocks.
In a statement, Eurostat indicates that according to preliminary data by country, the largest reductions in domestic natural gas consumption were recorded in Portugal (-20.8%), in Austria (-14.6% ) and in Czechia (-13.1%) and that the biggest increase was recorded in Finland (+28.8%).
Eurostat states that in 2023 there will be even more pronounced reductions than in the consumption of natural gas in coal consumption, with the supply of lignite decreasing by 24.2%, to 222.840 million tons, and the of coal to fall 20.4%, to 130,437 million tons. Both values are the lowest recorded since the beginning of the data series, he emphasizes.
In terms of oil and petroleum products, supply totaled 526,862 thousand tons, 1.5% less compared to 2022.
