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Archive:Electricity generation statistics – first results

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Data extracted in April 2016. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database. Planned article update: May 2017.

This article takes a look at the most recent statistics (2015 monthly cumulated data and provisional 2015 annual data as voluntarily supplied by Member States) on the volumes of electricity that have been produced and supplied at the level of the European Union (EU-28), the euro area (EA-19) and at the level of the individual Member States of the EU-28 and of Norway and Turkey. For years before 2015, annual data have been used.

As illustrated by Figure 1, the supply of electricity in EU-28 increased by 0.8 % in 2015 compared to 2014. Member States report bigger values annualy than monthly. Reasons for this vary from Member State to Member State. The biggest difference is caused by Germany which reports on a monthly basis electricity generated only in main activity producer plants.

Figure 1: EU-28 Evolution of electricity supplied (in GWh), 2000-2015 annual data; 2008-2015 monthly data
(in GWh)
Source: Eurostat (nrg_105a), (nrg_105m)
Figure 2: EU 28 Electricity production by source, 2015
(in %)
Source: Eurostat (nrg_105m)
Table 1: Electricity Statistics, 2013-2015
(in GWh)
Source: Eurostat (nrg_105a), (nrg_105m)
Figure 3: Breakdown of Electricity production by source, 2015
(in %)
Source: Eurostat (nrg_105m)
Figure 4: Share of Renewables in electricity production, 2015
(in %)
Source: Eurostat (nrg_105m)

Main statistical findings

Production of electricity

After a decrease of 2.4 % in 2014, the volume of produced electricity at EU-28 level increased in 2015 by 0.8 % compared to the preceding year.

Table 1 shows the production and supply data for EU-28 and euro area (EA-19). Tables A to J (see: Source data for tables, figures and maps on this page (MS Excel)) show the production and supply data for all individual EU Member States and for Norway and Turkey, by using monthly cumulated data for 2015 (2013 and 2014 data are annual figures).

Latvia (13.8 %), Lithuania (12.8 %), Netherlands (6.5 %), Ireland (6 %) and Sweden (5.6 %) are the Member States that recorded the largest increases in electricity production. Against this trend, Malta (-42.4 %), Estonia (-17.7 %), Croatia (-16.8 %), and Slovenia (-14.3 %) decreased their electricity production. Norway (+1.6 %) and Turkey (+2.4 %) increased their electricity production.

As regards the structure of electricity production in 2015 (Figures 2 and 3):

  • the production of conventional thermal electricity increased by 1.3 % in the EU-28 and accounted for 47.8 % of total production;
  • the production of electricity by nuclear power plants decreased in the EU-28 in 2015 (-2.2 %) and accounted for 26.6 % of the total;
  • the electricity production by hydro which includes pumped hydro (not necessarily of renewable origin) decreased by 9.5 % and represented 11.9 % of the total production while the production by wind increased in the EU-28 by 21.8 % and represented 10 % of the total production;
  • the electricity production by solar is not available in the monthly cumulated data.

The electricity produced by nuclear power plants decreased (-2.2 %) between 2014 and 2015. The largest share of electricity produced by nuclear in the 14 EU Member States that have nuclear facilities to produce electricity can be found in France (76.6 %), followed by Slovakia (57.6 %), Hungary (53.3 %), Slovenia (38 %), Belgium (37.5 %), Sweden (34.3 %) and Finland (33.7 %). In Germany that has decided to close down its nuclear power plants during the next decade, the share of nuclear is 14.1 % of the total.

Share of renewables

Figure 4 shows the share of renewable energy sources in electricity production. In EU-28, in 2015, this share represented 22.1 % of the total. The largest share of renewables (mainly hydro) can be found in Austria (70.9 %), Croatia (66.9 %), Luxembourg (62.9 %) and Sweden (57.2 %). A particular situation can be seen in Denmark where amongst a share of renewables of 53.2 % in total electricity production, wind energy accounted for 51 %.

The lowest share can be found in Hungary (3.2 %), Czech Republic (7.5 %), Malta (7.8 %) and Cyprus (7.9 %).

In Turkey, the share of renewables represented 31.8 % and in Norway it represented 97.5 % of the total electricity production.

Electricity supplied to the market

The volume of electricity that is supplied to the market is defined as the total net volume of produced electricity minus export plus import minus the electricity that is absorbed by pumping (pumped storage). As illustrated in Figure 1, the supply of electricity in EU-28 increased by 0.8 % in 2015 compared to 2014.

When looking at supply statistics at national level, the most important increases were observed in Slovakia (+9.6 %), Austria (+6.3 %), Malta (+5.3 %), Cyprus (+3.8 %), Croatia (+3.3 %) and Hungary (+2.9 %). In Turkey, the supply increased by 1.9 % compared to 2014 and in Norway it increased by 2.1 %.

The largest decreases in supply figures were observed in Romania (-5.2 %), United-Kingdom (-3.9 %), Estonia (-1.5 %), Portugal (-1.3 %), Finland (-1.1 %) and Belgium (-1 %).

In 2015, the aggregated EU-28 imports and exports of electricity increased by 3.7 % and 5.1 % respectively.

See also

Further Eurostat information

Publications

Main tables

Energy Statistics - main indicators (t_nrg_indic)
Market share of the largest generator in the electricity market (ten00119)
Electricity generated from renewable sources (tsdcc330))
Energy Statistics - quantities (t_nrg_quant)
Total gross electricity generation (ten00087)
Electricity consumption by industry, transport activities and households/services (ten00094)
Electricity consumption by households (tsdpc310)
Energy Statistics - prices (t_nrg_price)
Electricity prices by type of user (ten00117)

Database

Energy Statistics - main indicators (nrg_indic)
Market share of the largest generator in the electricity market - annual data (nrg_ind_331a)
Supply of electricity - monthly data (nrg_ind_342m)
Energy statistics - quantities, annual data (nrg_quant)
Energy statistics - supply, transformation, consumption (nrg_10)
Energy statistics - quantities, monthly data (nrg_quantm)
Energy statistics - supply, transformation, consumption (nrg_10m)

Dedicated section

Source data for tables, figures and maps on this page (MS Excel)

Methodology / Metadata

Other information

  • Directive 2009/72 of 13 July 2009 concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity
  • Regulation 1099/2008 of 22 October 2008 on energy statistics
  • Regulation 713/2009 of 13 July 2009 establishing an Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators
  • Regulation 714/2009 of 13 July 2009 on conditions for access to the network for cross-border exchanges in electricity
  • Regulation 844/2010 of 20 September 2010 on energy statistics, as regards the establishment of a set of annual nuclear statistics and the adaptation of the methodological references according to NACE Rev. 2

External links

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