Here’s the translation into American English:
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In 2023, the services sector in the European Union has experienced a notable decrease in its total final energy consumption, reaching 4,937 petajoules (PJ). This figure represents a drop of 1.9% compared to the 5,069 PJ recorded the previous year. Despite this recent decline, the long-term trend shows a significant increase of nearly 25% in final energy use since 1990.
The services sector continues to account for a relatively small fraction of total energy consumption in the EU, at 13.5%. This proportion is lower than that of other sectors, such as transportation, which consumes 32.0%; households, at 26.3%; and industry, which accounts for 24.6%. Only agriculture, forestry, and fishing have a lower consumption rate, at 3.2%.
Analyzing the breakdown of final energy consumption in the sector, it is observed that electricity is the primary source used, representing 51.2% of the total. Natural gas follows in second place with 26.0%. Renewable sources and biofuels contribute 8.4%, while heat and oil account for 7.7% and 6.2%, respectively. Surprisingly, only 0.6% comes from other sources like coal or waste.
Regarding the distribution of energy consumption among subsectors, wholesale and retail trade stands out, having consumed 847 PJ, which equals 20.0% of the total in services. Of this total, retail trade represents 538 PJ. Next are professional, scientific, and technical activities, along with other services, with a consumption of 478 PJ, corresponding to 11.3%.
It is interesting to note that the health and social work sector has surpassed the accommodation and food services sector in energy consumption. The health sector accounts for 468 PJ (11.1%), compared to 450 PJ (10.6%) for accommodation and food. This change in ranking is attributed to increased use of natural gas and renewable energy in health, while the accommodation sector has seen a reduction in natural gas use.
This overview of energy consumption in 2023 highlights the complexity of the services sector, as well as the efforts to diversify its energy sources at a time when sustainability and energy efficiency have become key priorities on the European agenda.
Source: MiMub in Spanish
