The European Union's natural gas consumption decreased by 20.1% in the August-November period compared to the average of the last five years over the same period. Romania has the fifth largest decrease in consumption.

EU member states agreed at the end of July to voluntarily reduce their natural gas consumption from August 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023. The decision came in the aftermath of drastic cuts in Russian natural gas supplies following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. EU governments set as a goal a 15% decrease in consumption, measured against the average consumption of the last five years.

From August to November 2022, consumption decreased “in most member states,” according to Eurostat and cited by News.ro. The statistical office does not provide an analysis outlaying the reasons for this drop, but analysts say that the decrease can partly be explained by the particularly mild autumn, voluntary efforts made by consumers, and a lowered demand coming from certain industries.

In the end, natural gas consumption fell by more than 15% in 18 EU member states. It decreased by 52.7% in Finland, by 43.2% in Latvia, and by 41.6% in Lithuania. Romania (about 35%) is in fifth place, after Estonia.

Six other EU member states managed to reduce their consumption, but without reaching the 15% goal. This is the case for Spain, Italy, and Portugal. Two other EU member states, Malta (+7.1%) and Slovakia (+2.6%) increased their natural gas consumption.

However, a drop in Russian natural gas supplies is still causing concerns for next year. In order to replenish its stocks, the EU decided to proceed with joint purchases on a voluntary basis. The vice president of the European Commission, Maris Sefcovic, recently said that he wants to conclude the first transaction of this type “before next summer.”

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Sasa Maricic | Dreamstime.com)