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The European Union’s primary energy consumption (PEC) by end users in 2023 fell by 3.9% compared to 2022 and final energy consumption (FEC) fell by 3.0%. This progress is an improvement compared to historical trends in energy efficiency. The rate of reduction observed in both PEC and FEC over the past three years suggests that the 2030 energy efficiency targets could be achieved, provided that the observed rate of reduction persists through the end of this decade. This also highlights the importance of maintaining decisive action to put the EU on track to meet both the PEC and FEC targets.
Figure 1. Primary and final energy consumption in the European Union
Reducing energy consumption typically leads to a reduction in environmental pressures associated with the production and consumption of energy. It supports the achievement of EU renewable energy and GHG targets, lowers emissions of air pollutants with its associated health benefits, enhances energy security and reduces import energy dependency.
The EU's recast Energy Efficiency Directive sets a binding target of 992.5 million tonnes of oil equivalent (Mtoe) for PEC, and an indicative target of 763Mtoe for FEC to be achieved by 2030. PEC represents the total energy demand within a country, including losses. FEC represents the energy used by final consumers.
EU-wide PEC levels in 2023 were 1210Mtoe, while EU-wide FEC levels were 894Mtoe. This represents a decrease of 3.9% and 3.0% respectively compared to 2022. Despite energy prices faling since their peak in 2022, prices still remained high in 2023, which contributed to an economic incentive to cut back on energy consumption.
Policies to address energy efficiency measures and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, as well as mild winter conditions, also contribute to decreases in both PEC and FEC. The EU took active measures to save energy, such as the Council Regulation on coordinated demand reduction measures for gas, where Member States agreed to reduce gas demand by 15% compared to average consumption in the past five years. This collectively led to significant decreases in energy consumption by industry and households.
The full time series of developments show that overall reductions since 2005 in energy efficiency in Europe have been more pronounced for PEC (-19.2%) than for FEC (-12.1%). The replacement of fossil fuels and nuclear energy by renewables in electricity generation typically reduces PEC without affecting FEC. The share of renewable energy in the EU has also more than doubled since 2005. Various other factors contributed to the reduction of energy demand, such as energy saving measures, energy transformation improvements, structural changes towards less energy intensive industries and increasingly warmer winters because of climate change.
Compared to average annual reductions of the last 10 years, reaching the ambitious 2030 targets will require continued introduction of robust measures. Based on this longer-term historical trend, the EU is not yet on track to meet the 2030 targets on energy consumption. Yet recent figures show three consecutive years of promising reductions at a rate that would need to be sustained through the end of this decade for the targets to be met.
Figure 2. Change in energy consumption of EU Member States between 2005 and 2023
Twenty-five Member States decreased their PEC between 2005 and 2023, with Greece as the highest achiever, followed by Italy and Germany. PEC in 2023 for Cyprus remained slightly above their 2005 level (+1.14%), while Poland experienced a more prominent increase in PEC (+5.74%). Poland’s significant decrease in coal consumption was overcompensated by an increase in the consumption of gas and liquid fuels.
Twenty-three Member States decreased their FEC in the same time frame. Greece showed the greatest decrease in this category again, followed by the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Four Member States saw their FEC increase, with the highest being Malta at 46.08%.
Eighteen Member States decreased their PEC between 2022 and 2023, with Bulgaria and Estonia having the largest relative reductions of 13.98% and 13.53% respectively. Of the nine Member States whose PEC increased, France lead at 3.30%. Nineteen Member States decreased their FEC between 2022 and 2023, with Slovenia and Austria having experienced the greatest drop at 4.14% and 3.85% respectively. Of the eight Member States whose FEC increased, Czechia and Portugal topped the chart with 2.94% and 2.47% respectively.