The longer-term trend still shows a decrease: Since 2015, the bloc’s greenhouse gas emissions have fallen by 17 percent. Last year’s emissions also remain just below 2023 levels.
But the latest data shows that the EU’s emissions-slashing efforts have slowed in recent years.
That’s despite pollution from the power sector steadily declining as more and more renewables come online, suggesting that the EU now needs to boost efforts to run sectors such as transport and heating on clean electricity rather than fossil fuels. The European Commission is expected to present a bloc-wide electrification target next month.
A significant part of the decrease since 2015 can be attributed to the 8 percent drop in 2023, driven by a surge in renewable energy deployment and reduced industrial output.
Industry and electricity emissions continued declining in 2025, data published by the European Commission earlier this year showed.
While the Eurostat estimates released Tuesday do not break down pollution by source, previous data shows that emissions in some sectors — in particular transport — are stagnant.