Oil and gas heating in Europe - statistics & facts
Oil and natural gas are among the most heavily utilized fuels for heating in Europe. In fact, despite initiatives in the European Union and individual countries to reduce reliance on fossil fuels, the share of natural gas in heat production remains above 30 percent in the region. This makes it the EU's single most used energy source for heating. Meanwhile, the oil and petroleum share in EU heat production is significantly lower and has remained below five percent throughout the past decade.
As an alternative to oil and gas boilers, heat pumps have become a lot more popular across the continent and are often touted as the easiest way to decarbonize the heating sector. France regularly records the greatest sales of heat pumps in Europe, although Germany saw a notable jump between 2020 and 2023.
Households require the most energy for heating
The residential sector is the greatest consumer of heat energy in the EU. Around 20 million metric tons of oil equivalent heat energy are consumed by households in the region every year. This is slightly less than half of all heat energy consumption, with the industrial sector accounting for nearly 13 million metric tons. Heating makes up the largest share of energy end-use in the residential sector. More than 78 percent of all energy used by households goes towards space and water heating.An end to gas heating in the EU?
There is currently no clear directive on when gas boiler use will be fully restricted. The EU introduced the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive paper which sees the 2040 phase-out of boilers and other heating systems run with fossil fuels. However, interpretations differ on whether this includes already existing gas boilers. In Germany, a separate discussion brought about the adoption of a 2028 ban for new gas heating systems. Germany has long supported gas use in its energy sector and is home to nearly six million individual gas heating systems.As an alternative to oil and gas boilers, heat pumps have become a lot more popular across the continent and are often touted as the easiest way to decarbonize the heating sector. France regularly records the greatest sales of heat pumps in Europe, although Germany saw a notable jump between 2020 and 2023.
