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In 2022, renewables overtook both heat and oil and petroleum products in final consumption by the services sector in the EU for the first time.

Renewables and biofuels represented 8.0% of the final energy consumption, ahead of heat at 7.6%, and oil and petroleum products at 6.3%. In 2021, renewables and biofuels accounted for 7.3%, trailing both heat (7.6%) and oil and petroleum products (8.3%). 

Electricity (50.6%) and natural gas (26.9%) meanwhile continued to make up more than three-quarters of the final energy consumption of the services sector.  

Final energy consumption by product, EU, 2022. Bar chart - Click to see full dataset below

Source dataset: nrg_bal_s 

Retail trade largest sub-sector 

In 2022, the largest sub-sector in services in the EU was wholesale and retail trade, with a final energy consumption of 896 petajoules (PJ), or 21.1% of all final consumption by services. Retail trade activity alone accounted for 582 PJ (13.7%) in the sub-sector.  
 
The wholesale and retail trade sub-sector was followed by professional, scientific, technical activities and other services with a consumption of 476 PJ (11.2%), accommodation and food service activities with 463 PJ (10.9%), and human health and social work activities with 448 PJ (10.6%). 

Final energy consumption by sub-sector in the services sector, EU, 2022. Bar chart - Click to see dataset below

Source dataset: nrg_d_serq_n 

For more information

 

Methodological notes 

•    The services sector includes the energy consumed by businesses and offices in the public and private sectors (excluding energy consumed by transport activities, transformation activities and activities of the energy sector). 
•    The scope includes 48 Divisions from the Statistical Classification of Economic Activities (NACE) defined in Annex A Article 2.6.3.1. of Regulation (EC) 1099/2008 on energy statistics.
•    Data on disaggregated final energy consumption in services for 2022 are available for all EU Member States, except Spain, Cyprus, Romania and Finland, and partially for Belgium and Greece. Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/2199 of 17 October 2023 granted derogations for the entire collection to Spain, Romania and Finland for reference years 2022 and 2023, and to Cyprus for reference years 2022, 2023 and 2024. The Implemented Regulation also granted partial derogations to Belgium and Greece for several families of fuels for reference years 2022, 2023 and 2024. 
•    For the full list of energy products, please refer to Annex A of Regulation (EC) No 1099/2008 on energy statistics. 
 
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