EU energy sector CO₂ emissions start to fall

Decline follows more than 12 months of rising year-on-year figures due to low nuclear output and increasing demand

Carbon dioxide emissions from the EU energy sector have fallen for each of the last four months when compared with the same month a year ago, according to an analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (Crea), titled Tracking EU CO₂. The development breaks a trend of rising emissions in Europe seen since early 2021, with EU-wide CO₂ having increased every month for 16 consecutive months on a year-on-year basis. The rise was caused by growing demand for energy as the bloc’s economy recovered from Covid 19 and coincided with a drop in the supply of nuclear and hydropower. “EU countries saw increased power generation from fossil fuels at the worst possible time as a conseq