“Burn, Baby, Burn” – As Net Zero costs mount in the UK, the EU does ‘net zero’

The EU’s fossil fuel use has just increased for the second year running

Montage © Facts4EU.Org 2024

Despite Ursula von der Leyen’s ‘Green Deal’, EU countries are burning more, not less

Since 2020 the EU’s energy consumption from fossil fuels has been rising. As the debate in the United Kingdom continues to rage over the costs of transitioning to being a Net Zero country, in the EU they are talking a good game but delivering the opposite.

At every opportunity, the statements coming out of Brussels refer to such-and-such a policy as being “in support of the Commission’s Green Deal”.

Facts4EU sorts out the rhetoric from the reality and finds the EU’s results sadly wanting.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary

EU’s energy consumption from fossil fuels has risen again

For the second consecutive year the EU’s energy share from fossil fuels has increased
In EU countries up to 96% of energy comes from these sources
This is despite Ursula von der Leyen’s No.1 priority being her ‘Green Deal’
For over 30 years the EU’s reliance on fossil fuels has barely moved

[Source : EU Commission (Eurostat), 30 Jan 2024.]

Still burning like there’s no tomorrow

In 2022, the EU’s reliance on fossil fuels for its overall energy supply stood at 70.9%, as illustrated by the ratio of fossil fuels in gross available energy. This is the total energy demand of a country or region.

In the EU this percentage grew in both 2021 and 2022, the latest years for which data is available.

The EU’s Top 10 worst offenders

The picture across the EU is mixed, as ever. Some EU27 countries are heavily reliant on fossil fuels while others, e.g. Sweden, are much less so. Below we show the ‘worst offenders’, which include Germany. That country has just closed its last remaining nuclear power plants so the figure will be even worse when the next release come out.

Malta : 96.1%
Cyprus : 89.3%
Netherlands : 87.6%
Ireland : 87.4%
Poland : 87.1%
Greece : 83.4%
Germany : 80.3%
Italy : 79.1%
Luxembourg : 77.1%
Spain : 74.1%

[Source : EU Commission (Eurostat), 30 Jan 2024.]

Back in April last year Facts4EU.Org warned about this

Below is something we published nine months ago, which might interest new readers.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary

Germany’s use of coal to power itself, compared with the UK, 2022

Germany : 31.0%
UK : 1.6%
Germany’s use of coal to generate electricity is over 19 times that of the UK

[Source : Our World in Data/Ember, Oxford University, accessed 17 Apr 2023.]

The chart above shows two things :-

The very small reduction in Germany’s use of coal to power itself
The recent increase in Germany’s use of coal to generate electricity

Observations

When EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was parachuted into Brussels by Angela Merkel in 2019, her policy agenda on which she was appointed by the EU Council was clear. Her No.1 priority was her ‘Green Deal’.

Scarcely a day goes by when she doesn’t mention this.

Given this is her top priority, the latest figures produced by the EU’s official statistics agency can only have come as a massive blow. Naturally the Commission did not trumpet the information.

Meanwhile in the UK we continue to face massive bills for the transition to a Net Zero economy.

And finally, as it's Sunday...

As regular readers know, on Sundays we generally feature a little musical treat for readers which is some way linked to the topic of our report. Today we bring you Arthur Brown, with his 1968 hit "Fire".

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[ Sources: EU Commission ] Politicians and journalists can contact us for details, as ever.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org, Sun 04 Feb 2024

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Reader Comments 16

1. Sparky Hiroo , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 07:03:

Still running the anti EU/Leave campaign.
.
The UK has given permission for the first new coal mine for 30 years in Cumbria which will produce cooking coal for the steel industry which will increase emissions when used. The UK Steel Industry is moving away from fossil fuels so the coal produced will largely be exported. Great for UK exports but the burning of this coal won’t count as UK emissions.
.
The Chart above is up to end of 2022, it takes time to get this data together, but this is the year when the Ukraine war started and the world started to move away from Russian fossil fuels. The chart starts at a high level to emphasise a slight increase. As for German nuclear plant closures this is planned retraction following the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
.
Looking forward to seeing Facts4EU cover developments in Northern Ireland

2. LuxuryBalloon , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 08:02:

Great to see the UK leading the way in fossil fuel consumption: in 2022 78.4% of energy in the UK came from fossil fuels. The EU is once again lagging behind as it uses only 71% of fossil
fuel for it’s energy supply.

3. Old Albion , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 08:54:

Actually 'Sparky' the UK steel industry is moving away (see Port Talbot) Because the ridiculous cost of 'green' energy has made their business untenable. Sacrificed on the alter of 'net zero'

4. Old Albion , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 08:56:

Why does the Swedish green zealot Thunberg keep turning up in England to nag us about our 1% contribution to 0.045% Co2 of the Earths atmosphere.
If she genuinely cares. Shouldn't she be in China or India or now the EU, the massive producers of Co2.

5. terence patrick hewett , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 11:07:

The EU is a mafia style protectionist racket. First they threatened the UK when it stepped out of line - and continue to do so. Now they are threatening Hungary.
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It is illuminating to contemplate the psychology of the anti-social malcontents who persist in supporting this criminal organisation.
.
And the social and political decay in the UK which has sanctioned it.

6. KB , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 12:25:

Sparky Hiroo (1). The cooking coal (sic) is going to be used anyhow, wherever it comes from.
We might as well mine it for ourselves to benefit from the jobs created and help the balance of payments.

7. KB , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 12:32:

LB (2) the UK would actually be 9th in the list, not leading the way.
Also note that gas has about half the CO2 emissions of coal, for the same amount of energy, and the term "fossil fuel" includes both gas and coal. The UK has largely phased out coal and replaced it with gas, whereas many EU countries are still enthusiastically burning coal. So their CO2 emissions will be higher as a result, which is not captured in the league table of fossil fuel usage.

8. Sparky , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 12:37:

6 KB. (1). Whoops, I wonder if Sooty uses coal for cooking!
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Maybe the steel industry would use coal anyhow, but by mining it ourselves for export which won't be recorded as Uk emissions, we can't be critiscising others when their emissions increase when they use UK coal.
.
Interesting piece in the Guardian, opinion by William Keegan, "Penury and decay mark Brexit’s miserable anniversary"

9. Gazzablack , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 15:01:

8, sparkless
.
There's no point taking the Guardian into the toilet should you run out of three ply, it's already full of 💩
I wouldn't trust the Guardian to get the date right.
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German nuclear power plant closures were a knee-jerk reaction to the Fukushima disaster, not a planned retraction.
.
But recent events have proved remainers right about one thing, there are indeed empty shelves in the shops.
They just got the location wrong ---- they're in France and Belgium, not Britain.
.
Looking forward to seeing Sparkless Hiroo cover developments from the pan EU farmers protests.

10. David , Sunday, February 04, 2024, 17:45:

The German government made a big mistake in closing their three remaining nuclear power plants.
The immmediate result was that Germany had to increase its use of coal.
In January last year, protesters including Greta Thurnberg were arrested when they tried to stop the
West German village of Lutzerath from being demolished, in order to mine the coal underneath it.
The French have been more pragmatic. They have 56 nuclear power plants and they are planning
to build more to replace their existing ageing plants.
Macron has announced a “renaissance” for the French nuclear industry with a vast programme to build as many as 14 new reactors, arguing that it would help end the country’s reliance on fossil fuels.
We ought to do the same and look to build new nuclear plants as well as SMRs (Small Modular nuclear Reactors).

16 comments, page 1 of 2

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