The total amount of energy required to meet the demand of EU25 in 2005 remained stable at 1.63 billion tones of oil equivalent, while the production of all sources of energy fell by 4.2%. According to Eurostat preliminary estimates released on Thursday, the EU25 depended on imports for 56% of its energy needs against 54% in 2004.

The consumption of energy fell in 10 member states and increased in 14 in 2005. The largest declines were seen in Lithuania (-6.3%), Finland (-4.9%) and Cyprus (-4.5%). The largest increases, on the other hand, were seen in Latvia (+7.5%), Hungary (+5.9%), Portugal and Slovenia (both +3.1%).

The energy consumption per capita exceeded 3.5 toe in 2005. The energy consumption per capita varies from one member state to another, which reflects the economic development, the degree of industrialization and the climate. Excluding Luxemburg, Finland has the highest consumption per capita, followed by Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden. The lowest energy consumption per capita is recorded in Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Portugal.