Renewables share in heating and cooling reached 23% in the EU last year, Czech Republic again slightly above average

The share of renewable energy sources (RES) in gross final energy consumption in the heating and cooling sector exceeded 23% in 2020, nearly doubling since 2004. The Czech Republic was slightly above the EU average, with RES accounting for 23.5% of heating and cooling last year. This follows from data published by Eurostat.

In a press release, Eurostat said that the share of RES in the heating and cooling sector has been growing at a similar pace since 2004 as the share of RES in total gross final energy consumption. While the share of RES in the heating and cooling sector rose from 12% to 23% over the period, the share of RES in total gross final energy consumption increased from 10% to 22%.

“Renewable energy sources used for heating and cooling include solar energy, geothermal energy, ambient energy used in heat pumps, solid, liquid and gaseous biofuels, and the renewable share of waste,” Eurostat explains.

Looking at RES shares in heating and cooling across individual member states reveals a stark difference between the leaders, headed by Sweden (66% share), Estonia and Finland (both 58%), and the countries with the lowest shares: Belgium and the Netherlands (both 8%) and Ireland (6%).

The Czech Republic has long maintained a relatively solid position among member states in this area and has even been above the EU average since 2019. Last year’s 23.5% share represents an increase of more than 8 percentage points compared with 2011.

Among the statistics for countries that are members of the European Free Trade Association, Iceland is noteworthy, where the share of RES in heating and cooling reaches 80% thanks to the use of geothermal energy.