How Europe Reduced Its Natural Gas Consumption

To address reductions in Russian gas supplies since the start of the war in Ukraine, European Union countries had set a goal of reducing their natural gas consumption by 15 percent between August 2022 and March 2023 compared to the average of the past five years. In December, Eurostat announced that the EU is on track with that goal, with gas consumption in the EU-27 falling by about 20 percent over the August-November period (compared to the 2017-2021 average).

As this map details, over the period in question, gas consumption decreased in most member states. In 18 countries, including Germany (-20 percent), consumption has fallen beyond the 15 percent target and, in some cases, significantly: Finland (-53 percent), Latvia (-43 percent) and Lithuania (-42 percent) have seen the greatest reductions in consumption.

Although they have reduced their use of this energy source, 6 Member States have not yet reached the 15 percenttarget. In two countries, on the other hand, natural gas consumption has increased: in Malta (+7 percent) and Slovakia (almost +3 percent).