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BEMIP Gas Regional Investment Plan 2017 |
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2.3 Energy Mix
Natural gas has been an important source of primary
energy in all countries in the BEMIP area.
Currently, the highest shares of gas in the energy mix are seen in Denmark, Lithua-
nia and Latvia with percentages between 20 and 30%.
In Estonia, Finland and Poland the share of natural gas in the energy mix ranges
between 5 and 15%.
Poland has the highest absolute demand for gas with a yearly consumption of
around 195 TWh/y. Also Poland is the only country where gas demand is expected
to rise in the future. In the other BEMIP countries, future demand is expected to
stabilise or decrease slightly in upcoming years. The main reason for this is the
transition from fossil to renewable energy sources in accordance with national ener-
gy plans.
In general, the countries have a rather diversified energy mix with oil, wood fuels and
coal being the major energy sources. Natural gas is typically ranked third or fourth
with regard to its share in the national energy mix. However, in Lithuania the share
is the second highest after oil, while in Finland and Sweden gas is only ranked fifth
in the energy mix.
In the region gas is typically used for heating, industrial purposes and households.
In some countries natural gas also is an important fuel for power production (and
CHP).
Figure 2.1 shows the distribution of energy sources in the national energy mixes
(2015 Eurostat data).
0
70
50
60
40
30
10
20
Denmark
Estonia
Latvia
Lithuania
Poland
Finland
Sweden
EU28
Solid
Petroleum products
Gas
Nuclear
Renewables
Waste
(not renewable)
%
Figure 2.1:
Distribution of energy sources in the national energy mixes, in %
(Source: Eurostat)