National Statistics Office of Malta

Regional, Geospatial, Energy and Transport Statistics Unit

National Statistics Office

Lascaris

Valletta, VLT 2000

Malta

Annual data on oil products, natural gas, electricity, renewable energy, coal and nuclear covers the full spectrum of the energy balances positions from supply through transformation to final energy consumption by sector and fuel type. These questionnaires are uploaded in another questionnaire named the SHARES tool. Such tool calculates the annual renewable share together with renewable share of electricity, transport and heating and cooling.

There is also the Energy Consumption in Households questionnaire which covers data on the final energy consumption in the residential/household sector by type of end use. There is also the questionnaire on Statistics on final energy consumption in industry for which we report further disaggregated data on final energy consumption in industry.

Then there are another three annual questionnaires on the Combined Heat and Power (CHP) generation, the other one on District Heating and District Cooling (DH-DC) and another one on the supply of biomass.

And finally, there is the Physical Energy Flow Accounts (PEFA). This consists of the Energy flow data in relation to the economic activities of resident units of national economies.

In mid-year NSO submits five mini-questionnaires (Joint Eurostat and International Energy Agency (IEA) questionnaires) on estimated annual data on oil products, natural gas, electricity, renewable energy and coal.

Monthly data on crude oil, oil products, natural gas, electricity and solid fuels, covers mainly the supply side. Also, annual and monthly imports and exports data of various energy carriers by country of origin and destination, as well as infrastructure information is compiled. All the above is measured in physical units (t (tonnes), TJ (terajoules), GWh (Gigawatt hours), Toe (tonnes of oil equivalent), etc.).

Electricity prices for the household and industrial sectors are also collected and transmitted to Eurostat.

The main legislation covering data collection of energy quantities is Regulation (EC) No 1099/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2008 on energy statistics. This legislation provides all the classifications which are required to be adhered to. In addition, each Eurostat questionnaire that NSO must compile and transmit is accompanied by reporting instructions which need to be followed in order to ensure harmonisation across the European Community. For those questionnaires which require data by industry classification, the classification of economic activities is in accordance with NACE Rev.2 classification.

Energy statistics data covers all major sectors of the economy that are involved in the production, trade, energy transformation or energy consumption.

Definitions of Regulation (EC) No 1099/2008 on energy statistics apply.

The NSO collects data about energy primarily in response to Regulation (EC) No 1099/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2008 on energy statistics and Regulation (EU) 2016/1952 for the collection of electricity price statistics for household and non-household customers. The legal basis for the data collection of emergency oil stocks is Council Directive 2009/119/EC of 14 September 2009 imposing an obligation on Member States to maintain minimum stocks of crude oil and/or petroleum products. The national targets for energy from renewable sources are established in Directive 2009/28/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources and amending and subsequently repealing Directives 2001/77/EC and 2003/30/EC. These regulations from Eurostat can be accessed using the following link:

https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/energy/legislation

Energy Statistics are compiled based on the data collected under the standard collection cycles as directed by Eurostat, in particular as specified in the Regulation (EC) No 1099/2008 on energy statistics. All the data are reported to Eurostat by filling-in the respective questionnaire and transmit it through the EDAMIS system. Such questionnaires can be found on the Eurostat website in the Energy dedicated page (https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/energy/methodology).

See table under section 3.5.1.

The basic units of statistical observation for which data are provided are the following:

(i)               Enterprises in the electricity market;

(ii)              Enterprises in the fuels market;

(iii)            Private households;

(iv)            Public sector; and

(v)              Industry sector.

The target statistical population encompasses all energy providers within Malta. These comprise – the power stations in Marsa, Delimara, D3, Electrogas and the Interconnector that generate electrical energy; the fuel service providers comprising the importers and distributors of fuel in the Maltese islands; natural gas and renewable energy. The latter comprises photovoltaic panels, micro wind turbines, Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plants, biodiesel and biogas.

The national territory.

See table under section 3.8.1.

Energy data are available from 1990, however, normally NSO takes 2010 as the base year.

See table under section 4.1.

See table under section 5.1.

The main legislation covering data collections of energy quantities is Regulation (EC) No 1099/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2008 on energy statistics.

Regulation (EU) 2016/1952 is the legal basis for the collection and reporting of natural gas and electricity price statistics for household and non-household customers.

The Malta Statistics Authority (MSA) Act empowers the NSO to collect, compile, extract and release official statistics related to demographic, social, environment, economic and general activities and conditions of Malta.

The data are transmitted to Eurostat on the basis of Regulation (EC) No 1099/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2008 on energy statistics.

In addition, the data may also be shared locally with other National Authorities such as the Regulator for Energy and Water Services, the Energy and Water Agency and the Malta Resources Authority based on a Memorandum of Understanding between each National Authority and the National Statistics Office.

At National level:

The NSO requests information for the compilation of official statistics according to the articles of the MSA Act – Cap. 422 and the Data Protection Act – Cap. 586 of the Laws of Malta implementing the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR).

Article 40 of the MSA Act stipulates the restrictions on the use of information while Article 41 stipulates the prohibition of disclosure of information. Furthermore, Section IX of the Act (Offences and Penalties) lays down the measures to be taken in case of unlawful exercise of any officer of statistics regarding confidentiality of data. 

Since its inception, the NSO has always assured that all data collected remains confidential and that it is used for statistical purposes only according to the articles and derogations stipulated in the laws quoted above.  The Office is obliged to protect the identify of data providers and refrain from divulging any data to third parties that might lead to the identification of persons or entities.

During 2009, the NSO has set up a Statistical Disclosure Committee to ensure that statistical confidentiality is observed, especially when requests for microdata are received.

Upon employment, all NSO employees are informed of the rules and duties pertaining to confidential information and its treatment. In line with stipulations of the MSA Act, before commencing work, every employee is required to take an oath of secrecy whose text is included in the same Act.

An internal policy on anonymisation and pseudo-anonymisation is in place to ascertain that adequate methods are used for the protection of data which the office collects and shares with the public in its capacity as the National Statistics Office.  The policy is meant to safeguard confidentiality of both personal and business data entrusted to the NSO.  The document provides guidance for all NSO employees who process data on a daily basis as to how anonymisation and pseudo-anonymisation methods should be applied.  The policy applies to all confidential, restricted and internal information, regardless of form (paper or electronic documents, applications and databases) that is received, processed, stored and disseminated by the NSO.

At European level:

Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics (recital 24 and Article 20(4) of 11 March 2009 (OJ L 87, p. 164), stipulates the need to establish common principles and guidelines ensuring the confidentiality of data used for the production of European statistics and the access to those confidential data with due account for technical developments and the requirements of users in a democratic society.

Confidential data are not shown. The most common approach is to present only aggregation of the confidential data point with the non-confidential data that is the nearest suitable data point.

Energy statistics data are published in aggregated format and there is no risk of disclosure.

At National level:

An advance release calendar is maintained by the NSO and published on the NSO website.  The calendar projects three months of news releases (including the current and two subsequent months).

At National level:

https://nso.gov.mt/en/News_Releases/Release_Calendar/Pages/News-Release-Calendar.aspx

At National level:

An internal policy on dissemination is in place to govern the dissemination of official statistics in an impartial, independent and timely manner, making them available simultaneously to all users.

The NSO’s primary channel for the dissemination of official statistics is the NSO website.  Tailored requests for statistical information may also be submitted through the NSO website.

Moreover, relevant news releases are available in electronic format on the NSO website. In addition, the energy data which are compiled and transmitted by the NSO to Eurostat can also be accessed for free on Eurostat’s website.

See table under section 9.1.

All data collected on a national level is used for the compilation of the Eurostat questionnaires. Also NSO publishes two News Releases on energy statistics.

At National level:

News releases are released on the NSO website as per the pre-announced news release calendar, and they are generally referred to in the local media. The calendar projects three months of news releases (including the current and two subsequent months) and can be accessed from here.  News releases regarding ‘Electricity Supply’ and ‘Renewable Energy from Photovoltaic Panels’ have been published on time and adhere to NSO’s official dissemination policy. News releases are published at 11:00 am on the NSO website on the day of the release.

Promote Dissemination Products

Whenever a news release or a publication related to Energy are published and made available on the NSO website, a summary of highlights of the release or publication are set also on Facebook and Twitter.

NSO 's Facebook messages can be accessed from here: https://www.facebook.com/nsomalta

NSO's Twitter messages can be accessed from here: https://twitter.com/NSOMALTA

Manage User Support

Requests for statistical information may also be submitted through the request form found on the NSO website. These requests are then forwarded by the Communication and Dissemination Unit to the Energy domain so that the data can be compiled.

At National level:

Energy tables published in the annual news releases are also used in the Regional Statistics MALTA publication.

At National level:

Not applicable.

Not requested for this metadata collection.

At National level:

Not applicable.

At National level:

Not applicable.

Not requested for this metadata collection.

At National level:

Work processes and procedures for the compilation of the Energy Statistics are documented in a standardised reporting template and aligned to the GSBPM model.  The model covers all phases of the statistical production process, from the initial stages of identifying what statistics are needed and the scope of the particular survey, to the final stages of dissemination and evaluation.  GSBPM is only available internally and may be accessed by all NSO employees.

In addition, each published national news release is accompanied with methodological notes which provide details on variable definitions and any methodological aspects of the news release. These methodological notes may be found at the end of each news release.

At European level:

The questionnaires which are compiled and disseminated to Eurostat by NSO, are in line with the Energy Statistics Manual and the reporting instructions associated with each questionnaire. The Energy Statistics Manual provides background information and a deeper knowledge of some of the difficult issues related to energy statistics. In addition, the bi-annual Eurostat questionnaires are in line with the Compilers Guide on European Statistics on Natural Gas and Electricity Prices. The latter offers an overview of the conceptual issues, practical information and guidance to reporting authorities compiling and reporting natural gas and electricity prices to Eurostat.

At National level:

Information about all required metadata concepts (and sub-concepts thereof) are provided.

At National level:

The procedures used for the analysis of data are documented in line with the GSBPM model and made available to NSO staff members only.

Energy Statistics SIMS reports are available to the public on the NSO’s metadata website including concepts related to metadata and quality.

The NSO has developed an internal Quality Management Framework (QMF) which is built on common requirements of the ESS Code of Practice (ESS CoP).  A document was prepared to include a set of general quality guidelines spanning over all statistical domains.  Assuring methodological soundness is an integral part of the QMF, nonetheless, the document spans also on other areas related to institutional aspects.

At European level:

A quality report on the half-yearly questionnaires on electricity prices for households and non-households is submitted to Eurostat every three years. 

Every five years a quality report is submitted to Eurostat with respect to monthly and annual questionnaires.

At National level:

The accuracy of energy statistics is ensured by adherence to the methodological manuals specified in sub concept 10.6.

The NSO has developed an internal Quality Management Framework (QMF) which is built on common requirements of the ESS Code of Practice (ESS CoP).  A document was prepared to include a set of general quality guidelines spanning over all statistical domains.  Assuring methodological soundness is an integral part of the QMF, nonetheless, the document spans also on other areas related to institutional aspects.

Every five to seven years, the NSO participates in a Peer Review exercise through which the compliance of its operations with principles of the ESS CoP is assessed by an expert team.  Peer Reviews are indeed part of the European Statistical System (ESS) strategy to implement the ESS CoP.  Each NSI is expected to provide information as requested by a standard self-assessment questionnaire.  Following this an expert team visits the office to meet NSI representatives and main stakeholders.  Peer Reviews result in a compliance report and the listing of a set of Improvement Actions which need to be followed up by the NSI.  The next round of Peer Reviews is planned to be carried out in 2022.

The compilation and dissemination of energy statistics is in adherence with the Energy Statistics Manual, the reporting instructions associated with each questionnaire and the Compilers Guide on European Statistics on Natural Gas and Electricity Prices.

The data sources conduct their own quality assessments, however, the NSO verifies the data submitted by these sources for implausible combinations, consistency across time, data gaps and coherence. Such consistency checks ensure that the overall quality of energy statistics is good. 

After analysing the reported data, Eurostat and IEA forward their reactions to our Energy statistics domain. Requests for clarification can either be answered by justifying the data or by providing revisions. Such feedback has helped the Energy statistics domain to understand better the required deliverables and so to make the necessary amendments to various business sub-processes.

The major users of Energy Statistics are Eurostat and DG ENER. Eurostat uses the data submitted by Member States to produce tables and indicators about energy statistics which are disseminated by means of news releases, publications and online databases. These data help DG ENER and the European Commission to assess the progress of Member States towards achieving targets in the energy domain. Further, the data are also used by the International Energy Agency.

Locally, the data are used by internal units within the NSO, namely: National Accounts, Short-term Business Statistics and the Environment, Agriculture and Fisheries Statistics unit. In addition, local stakeholders include the Energy and Water Agency, the Malta Resources Authority, the Environment and Resources Authority, Enemalta plc and the Regulator for Energy and Water Services.

At National level:

The last User Satisfaction Survey was held in 2022 with the aim to collect information about key users’ satisfaction with statistical output.

The NSO keeps record of the number of News Releases and publications disseminated on its website; the users to whom statistical products are provided; as well as the number of requests that are processed every year.

See information under section 12.3.1.

The data completeness rate stands at 100%.  All the energy statistics required according to Regulation (EC) No 1099/2008 are compiled.

For the majority of the EU data collections, all data is being reported for items which are mandatory.

The accuracy of energy statistics is high as the data collection covers all licensed operators and facilities that provide energy to end-users. However, data may still be subject to revision as the data collection and validation process, mainly by the Energy and Water Agency, the Regulator for Energy and Water Services and Enemalta plc. is an ongoing process which may result in revised data for the more recent years.

Data is requested according to specific templates which have been adapted over the years. As soon as the data is received it is checked for any errors, inconsistencies and outliers. All dubious entries are flagged and data providers are requested to provide revised data or justifications. The data received is then used to populate the reporting questionnaires to be transmitted to Eurostat. The business process is concluded by data transmission to Eurostat through the EDAMIS portal. Requests for clarification from Eurostat and the International Energy Agency (for the annual questionnaires) customarily follow, to which our unit duly replies.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Potential sources of non-sampling error relate to processing errors.  Each Eurostat questionnaire submitted has validation rules in place in order to keep errors to a minimum. Prior to transmitting the data to Eurostat, the data are validated as explained in sub-concept 11.2 to limit any possible errors.           

The data coverage is considered as optimal as the administrative sources did not report any instances of missing data.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

No further calculations are undertaken on the data collected from administrative sources.

Data are collected from administrative sources and do not have any missing information.

Data are collected from administrative sources and do not have any missing information.

Not applicable.

Each Eurostat questionnaire submitted has validation rules in place in order to keep errors to a minimum. Prior to transmitting the data to Eurostat, the data are validated as explained in sub-concept 11.2 to limit any possible errors.

Not applicable as no model is assumed.

Monthly questionnaires: For the monthly questionnaires submitted to Eurostat, the time period for the transmission of data are M + 2 months with M being the reference month for the monthly Oil and Coal Questionnaires. For the monthly Gas, Electricity and Crude Oil questionnaires the time period for the transmission of data are M + 1 months.

Bi-annual questionnaires: For the bi-annual questionnaires submitted to Eurostat, the time period for the transmission of data are S + 3 months with S being the reference semester.

Annual questionnaires: For the majority of the annual questionnaires submitted to Eurostat, the time period for the transmission of data are Y + 10 months with Y being the reference year and for the SHARES tool Questionnaire the time period for the transmission of data are Y + 12 months. For the PEFA questionnaire, the time period for the transmission of data are Y + 21 and for the questionnaire on statistics on final energy consumption in industry, the Annual Biomass Questionnaire and the Energy Consumption in Households Questionnaire, the time period for the transmission of data are Y + 15. For the CHP Questionnaire and the DH-DC Questionnaire, the time period for the transmission of data are Y + 16. The time period for the transmission of data for the Electricity and Gas Competition indicators Questionnaires are Y + 14.

Data was transmitted to Eurostat on time in our recent submissions.

After analysing the reported data, Eurostat and IEA forward their reactions to our Energy statistics domain. Requests for clarification can either be answered by justifying the data or by providing revisions. Such revisions normally are done within one or two weeks from the date that the queries are raised.

See information under section 14.2.1.

Eurostat questionnaires are submitted according to their legal deadline.

Countries that report data in accordance with the legislation listed in sub-concept 6.1 and the methodological guidance described in sub-concept 10.6, use common definitions and classifications thus, ensuring comparability across countries.

Not applicable.

Comparability over time is ensured through the implementation of a constant methodology as endorsed by Eurostat.  Detailed data on Energy Statistics are comparable from 2010 onwards.

Detailed data on Energy Statistics are comparable from 2010 onwards.

Not applicable.

The monthly data reported in the monthly questionnaires are coherent with annual data reported in the annual questionnaires for electricity and gas. However, with respect to oil, monthly data may differ from annual data since annual data is audited while monthly data are not. In this case, monthly data are then revised in line with the audited annual data, in order to ensure coherence between the sub-annual and annual statistics.

Not applicable.

Data are internally coherent as the totals in each dataset are equal to the sum of components.

No systematic study about the cost associated with the data collection and production for energy statistics has been carried out. The data used by the NSO to compile energy statistics are mainly provided by administrative sources which have been set up as a requirement of other regulations and directives.

Revision of data compliant with the ESS Code of Practice principles.

At the NSO, there is an internal policy governing revisions that occur for all statistics produced. A revisions policy has been implemented to safeguard a coordinated revisions system across statistical domains. This policy takes account of the need and causes for revisions; time and frequency of revisions; data and other statistical products affected by such revisions; and length of periods revised.

In cases where the administrative sources revise the data which have already been used in the questionnaires transmitted to Eurostat, the data will be revised and resubmitted accordingly.

Not applicable.

The following entities provide the administrative data required for the compilation and dissemination of energy statistics:

Regulator for Energy and Water Services (REWS)

The Regulator for Energy and Water Services (REWS) was established by the House of Representatives on 31st July 2015 through the Regulator for Energy and Water Services Act (Act XXV) of 2015. The functions of the REWS are established by law and the REWS is responsible for the regulation of energy and water services in Malta.   Article 5 of the REWS Act further describes the functions of the Regulator.  

The regulator provides the NSO with monthly and annual data regarding the oil balance sheet and the sectoral use of fuel originating from private operators. Operators in the fuel sector are obliged to supply monthly and annual audited data to REWS. The data consists of imports, exports, bunkering, stocks and gross inland consumption.  The regulator also provides the NSO with monthly and annual LNG data which consists of imports, exports, stocks, own use, deliveries to power generation and gross inland deliveries – observed. Further, monthly electricity generation data are also provided to NSO. This consists of electricity generated through D3 and D4 plants, amount of electricity used in station, amount of electricity sent on the grid, amount of electricity generated by using gas oil and LNG, amount of electricity sent out by using gas oil and LNG and the amount of gas oil and LNG consumed in the power plants. The regulator also provides an annual co-generation report in accordance with EU Directive 2004/8/EC. 

Energy and Water Agency (EWA)

The Energy and Water Agency is a Government Agency established via LN 340/2016 within the Ministry for Environment, Energy and Enterprise. Set up in 2014 the Agency is tasked with formulating and implementing Government’s national policies in the energy and water sectors, aimed at ensuring security, sustainability and affordability of energy and water in Malta. The Energy and Water Agency is entrusted with the direct running of key national projects and the empowerment of key stakeholders to implement such projects. Examples of such projects include: the Malta-Italy Gas Pipeline Interconnection, Communal Solar PV Farms, Conversion of Street Lighting into LED Technology, Għajn – the National Water Conservation Awareness Centre and Valley Rehabilitation Projects.

The Agency provides the NSO with annual data on energy generation from renewable sources. This consists of electricity produced from CHP plants, solar photovoltaic panels, wind, imports from biomass and solar water heaters. Heat produced from CHP plants and renewable electricity generated from heat pumps is also provided to NSO. Further, it also provides annual data on PV capacity and annual data on oil balance split by sectoral use. Data on Biofuels for the SHARES tool questionnaire and data for the Questionnaire on statistics on Final energy consumption in households is also provided.

Enemalta plc.

Established in 1977, Enemata plc. is the leading energy services provider in the Maltese Islands, entrusted with the generation and distribution of electricity, and the development of the national electricity distribution network. The Company aims to offer reliable services to its customers, whilst developing efficient electricity infrastructure to provide for the nation’s energy requirements.

Enemata plc. provides the NSO with monthly electricity data, fuel used and capacities. It also provides annual PV installations with REWS identification number, together with the X and Y coordinates. Further, annual electricity maximum demand and net maximum electricity capacity and peak load is also provided to the NSO. 

Enemata plc.  also provides annual billing data from ARMS Ltd., split by non-residential, residential, domestic and street lightning. In addition, it also provides semester data on electricity consumption and electricity prices for the households and non-households respectively.

Regulator for Energy and Water Services (REWS)

The regulator provides the NSO with monthly and annual data regarding the oil balance sheet and the sectoral use of fuel originating from private operators. Operators in the fuel sector are obliged to supply monthly and annual audited data to REWS. The data consists of imports, exports, bunkering, stocks and gross inland consumption.  The regulator also provides the NSO with monthly and annual LNG data which consists of imports, exports, stocks, own use, deliveries to power generation and gross inland deliveries – observed. Further, monthly electricity generation data are also provided to NSO. This consists of electricity generated through D3 and D4 plants, amount of electricity used in station, amount of electricity sent on the grid, amount of electricity generated by using gas oil and LNG, amount of electricity sent out by using gas oil and LNG, the amount of gas oil and LNG consumed in the power plants. The regulator also provides an annual co-generation report in accordance with EU Directive 2004/8/EC. 

Energy and Water Agency (EWA)

The Agency provides the NSO with annual data on energy generation from renewable sources. This consists of electricity produced from; CHP plants, solar photovoltaic panels, wind, imports from biomass and solar water heaters. Heat produced from CHP plants and renewable electricity generated from heat pumps is also provided to NSO. Further, it also provides annual data on PV capacity and annual data on oil balance split by sectoral use. Annual data on Biofuels for the SHARES tool questionnaire and data for the Questionnaire on statistics on Final energy consumption in households is also provided.

Enemalta plc.

Enemalta plc. provides the NSO with monthly data on electricity, fuel used and capacities. It also provides annual PV installations with REWS identification number, together with the X and Y coordinates. Further, annual electricity maximum demand and net maximum electricity capacity and peak load is also provided to the NSO. 

Enemalta plc. also provides annual billing data from ARMS Ltd., split by non-residential, residential, domestic and street lightning. In addition, it also provides semester data on electricity consumption and electricity prices for the household and non-households respectively.

The administrative data listed in sub-concepts 18.1 and 18.2 are received by email and are password encrypted. When the administrative data are received, the NSO makes sure that all the variables requested have been provided by the administrative data source. In cases where not all the variables have been provided, the NSO informs the administrative data source accordingly.

The NSO verifies all the administrative data received from REWS, EWA and Enemalta plc. Checks for implausible combinations, contradictory values, missing values and for time series consistency are carried out. Whenever, anomalous values and data gaps are identified, clarifications are sought and in certain cases the data may also be revised by the data provider. Besides such checks, the annual data provided to Eurostat as per the Energy Statistics Regulation is subjected to the validation tests proposed by Eurostat and the International Energy Agency.

The data compilation process is done through the administrative databases. The data compiled are used to compile the monthly, bi-annual and annual questionnaires which are transmitted to Eurostat.

Not applicable.

See information under section 18.6.1.

No seasonal adjustments are carried out.