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Energy
Energy Consumption by Sector in the EU
Energy Consumption by Fuel in the EU
The use of energy is the basic driving force for climate change. Due to the fact that the energy sector is still dominated by fossil fuels it is obvious that a change in energy consumption but mainly in efficiency technologies is needed. The gradual opening up and reorganisation of energy markets might lead to the use of more efficient generating technologies.
Energy use in the EU grew relatively slowly in the early 1990s but is now increasing more rapidly. Although it continues to be dominated by fossil fuels the carbon intensity of electricity has fallen, mainly because of switching to fossil fuels with a lower carbon content.
Producing Electricity:
Most electricity in the EU is still produced from fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas). However, these fuels emit varying amounts of CO2.
Emission factor (tonnes of CO2 per Terajoule) of fuels:
| gas/diesel oil | 73,3 |
| coal | 94,1 |
| peat | 104,9 |
| Natural gas | 55,8 |
source: eurostat
Energy Consumption by Sector in the EU
Energy consumption in almost all sectors grew between 1985 and 1998 - most rapidly in the transport sector which overtook the largest consumer of energy in 1992 and 1998 accounted 32% of the total energy consumption. (more information on transport)
Industrial energy efficiency programmes are in place in all EU member states and caused that the energy consumption by industry fell below 1985 levels in 1998. However, much of the improvement was due to structural change in the German economy. Still the industrial sector is the second largest consumer of energy.
In the household sector, policies based on environmental awareness and a dual approach of cost savings have been successful. Still there is a large potential for energy consumption reduction in households. for example, there is a labelling scheme in the EU which rates the efficiency of a product. A is the most energy efficient. However, there needs to be more public awareness on the existence of such schemes.
Energy consumption in the agricultural sector is much smaller than in the services sector. This reflects the high growth of the services sector. As the energy costs are a low percentage of operating costs there is therefore little incentive for efficiency improvements.
source: EEA
Energy Consumption by Fuels in the EU
| Oil | increased by 17.2% between 1985 and 1998 |
| Coal | decreased by 29.5% between 1985 and 1998 |
| Natural Gas | increased by 42.3% between 1985 and 1998 |
| Nuclear | increased by 42.3% between 1985 and 1998 |
| Renewable Energy | increased by 24.8% between 1985 and 1998 |
Oil remains the main source of energy in the EU mainly as a result of increased demand for petrol and diesel for transport. Coal was replaced by other fuels mainly natural gas which increased rapidly and became the fuel of choice in many sectors as a result of improvements in gas turbine technology. The increase of nuclear fuels is mainly a result of the expansion of the French nuclear programme. Public concern has led to plans to phase out nuclear power in Belgium, Germany and Sweden. In the EU, the contribution of renewable energy was 5.9%, well short of the EU indicative 2010-target of 12%.
source: EEA
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