23/01/23 (Agence Europe) – Renewable energy sources accounted for 21.8% of gross final energy consumption in the European Union in 2021, a decrease of 0.3 percentage points compared to 2020, according to data published by Eurostat on Thursday 19 January. This is the first decline ever recorded, warns the EU’s statistical office, which partly explains this development by the increase in energy consumption due to the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions. In terms of distribution between Member States, the lowest proportions of renewable energy were recorded in Luxembourg (11.7%), Malta (12.2%), the Netherlands (12.3%), Ireland (12.5%) and Belgium (13.0%). In total, 15 Member States reported shares below the EU average. Sweden (62.6%), Finland (43.1%), Latvia (42.1%), Estonia (37.6%), Austria (36.4%) and Denmark (34.7%), on the other hand, are good performers, thanks in particular to hydro and biomass. See the data: https://aeur.eu/f/50r (DG)