[EEA15] EU energy efficiency trends in the household sector

Date & Time

November 20, 2024 ; 10h00 - 11h00 CET

Speakers

• Bruno Lapillonne, Scientific Director, Enerdata
• Zineb Raji, Project Manager, Enerdata

Description

The EU has implemented several policies and measures for the household sector, including the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED), the Ecodesign Directive, and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). These directives have been transposed into national regulations, along with additional country-specific measures aimed primarily at supporting building renovation. Monitoring the impact of these policies and measures using relevant indicators is crucial.

This webinar will present a set of such indicators from the Odyssee database that illustrate changes in household energy consumption. The speakers will highlight key trends in energy efficiency, identify the factors driving the growth in energy demand, and quantify energy savings in the residential sector.

After the presentation, you will have the opportunity to interact with the speakers during the Q&A session.

Recording

Key takeaways

Consumption

• Household energy consumption has seen a rapid decline since 2020, averaging a decrease of 3% per year, primarily due to rising energy prices.
• The impact of price increases varies significantly among different countries.
• Given the large climate variations over the years, it is crucial to analyse trends based on normal climate conditions.
• Ambient heat from heat pumps should not be included in household consumption figures, as it distorts the actual variation in consumption. For example, space heating consumption per square meter has decreased by 1.3% per year at the EU level without accounting for ambient heat, but only by 0.9% when it is included.

Energy Efficiency Gains

• Household energy efficiency has improved by 1.5% per year since 2000, with most progress occurring before 2014 and after 2019.
• Improvements have primarily been driven by gains in heating, lighting, and appliance efficiency.

Energy Savings

• Energy savings for households reached 92 million tonnes of oil equivalent (Mtoe) in 2023, with annual savings returning to their historical trends since 2020 (5 Mtoe/year).
• Since 2019, consumption at normal climate levels has decreased by 12 Mtoe, driven by energy savings (-18 Mtoe) and behavioural changes (-5 Mtoe), which more than offset the effects of increased activity.

Further reading

• How are climate corrections made in the Odyssee database?
• The following energy poverty indicators are available in the online Odyssee database:
  • Share of energy in expenditures of Q1 households
  • Energy expenditures per household in Q1 at purchasing power parities
  • Share of residentiel Energy consumption attributable to Q1
  • Forced Energy savings made by Q1 households
  • Share of the population unable to keep home adequatly warm
  • Share of the population living in a dwelling with damp problems
  • Share of households unable to pay their utility bills
• Comparison of Odyssee methodology for the decomposition of energy consumption variation with other methods

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