EU economy greenhouse gas emissions: -2.6% in Q2 2024

In the second quarter of 2024, the EU economy greenhouse gas emissions were estimated at 790 million tonnes of CO₂-equivalents (CO₂-eq), a 2.6% decrease compared with the same quarter of 2023 (812 million tonnes of CO₂-eq). The EU's gross domestic product (GDP) registered a 1.0% increase in the second quarter of 2024, compared with the same quarter of 2023.

This information comes from data on quarterly estimates for greenhouse gas emissions by economic activity published by Eurostat today. Quarterly estimates of greenhouse gas emissions complement quarterly socio-economic data, such as GDP or employment.

This article presents a handful of findings from the more detailed Statistics Explained article on quarterly greenhouse gas emissions.

Source datasets: env_ac_aigg_q and namq_10_gdp

Compared with the second quarter of 2023, in the second quarter of 2024, the economic sectors responsible for the largest reductions were electricity and gas supply (-12.1%) and households (-4.2%).

Greenhouse gas emissions down in 19 EU countries

In the second quarter of 2024, greenhouse gas emissions were estimated to have decreased in 19 EU countries when compared with the same quarter of 2023.

The largest reductions in greenhouse gases were estimated for the Netherlands (-9.1%), Bulgaria (-6.3%), Austria and Hungary (each -5.9%).

Out of the 19 EU countries that were estimated to have decreased their emissions, 5 recorded a decline in their GDP (Ireland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Austria). The other 14 EU countries (Poland, Denmark, Croatia, Spain, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Portugal, Hungary, Belgium, Italy, Czechia, Netherlands, France and Germany) were estimated to have managed to decrease emissions while growing their GDP.

Source datasets: env_ac_aigg_q and namq_10_gdp