EU surpassed its gas consumption reduction targets
Balkan Energy
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The European Commission (EC) announced the REPowerEU plan in 2022, a few months after Russian attack on Ukraine, prescribing a voluntary 15 % reduction in gas consumption for member states to decrease dependency on imports from Russia, diversify supply, and boost renewable energy production.
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From August 2022 to March 2024, gas consumption was reduced by 18 %, meaning the EU saved 125 billion cubic meters of gas, according to calculations by the latest EC report. The largest reductions were seen in Denmark and Finland, around 40 %. In Latvia, Sweden, Lithuania and Estonia, consumption decreased by about 30 %.
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Croatia reduced its gas consumption by 17 % from August 2022 to March this year, putting it on par with Italy and the Czech Republic. Also in this group are Romania, Austria, Greece, Germany and Belgium, where consumption decreased by 19 to 16 %.
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According to European Commission data, only five countries reduced consumption by less than the targeted 15 %. In Spain, it was reduced by 12 %, in Slovenia by 10 %, in Poland by 8 % and in Ireland by 4 %. Malta was the only country to increase consumption during the observed period, by 10 %. Cyprus does not use natural gas.
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The EU significantly reduced the share of Russian gas in imports, from 45 % in 2021 to just 15 % in 2023, including both pipeline and liquefied gas supplies.
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EU member states have replaced Russian gas with imports from other countries. The largest suppliers today are Norway and the USA, with import shares of 34 % and 20 %, respectively.
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The EU is also specifically supporting gas infrastructure to meet immediate gas needs, the Commission states, highlighting 1.6 billion euros invested in increasing the capacity for receiving liquefied gas on the Croatian island of Krk and in building gas infrastructure from Croatia to Hungary and Slovenia, as well as in infrastructure in Italy and Poland.
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