EU Energy Use Drops to 1990 Levels Due to Economic Crisis
From Europe Online
A decline in energy consumption across the European Union that began in 2006 is due to the region‘s sluggish economic performance, officials said Tuesday.
From 2006 to 2012, energy consumption in the EU decreased by 8 per cent, according to figures released by the region‘s statistics office, Eurostat.
Energy consumption in 2012 was nearly equivalent to 1990 levels.
“We expect that much of the decrease in energy consumption can be attributed to a lower level of economic activity as a result of the financial and economic crisis,” EU energy spokeswoman Sabine Berger told dpa.
Many of the countries with biggest declines are those that have been most affected by the eurozone financial crisis, which began in 2008. Greece, Portugal and Lithuania all posted drops of 14 to 17 per cent.
