In total, 30 countries supplied crude oil to Germany. provided 12.5 percent, Kazakhstan 9.8 percent and Norway 9.6 percent. Russia was by far the largest supplier in 2021, delivering 34.1 percent. In 2021, Germany imported 81 million tonnes of crude oil (the country also imports additional mineral oil products). The country’s domestic crude oil output from 44 oilfields amounted to 1.8 million tonnes that year. Oil was mostly used as a transportation fuel, and only a small fraction was used for power production.Īccording to the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources ( BGR), about 98 percent of Germany’s primary mineral oil consumption had to be imported in 2021. Oil covered 35.2 percent of the country’s primary energy use in 2022. Oil consumption peaked at the end of the 1970s, but it remains Germany’s most important primary energy source.

In the third quarter of that year, Russia supplied 18.3 percent of petroleum oil (still largest supplier) and only 15.3 percent of natural gas (Norway now the largest supplier). However, the situation changed dramatically over the course of 2022 during the energy crisis. 25.8% petroleum oil, 43.9% gas), followed by Norway. This grew substantially in 2022 (to about 25% in the third quarter) as the energy crisis drove up prices on global markets.īy trade value, about 60 percent of the EU’s energy imports in the first three quarters of 2022 were petroleum products, followed by gas (about a third) and coal (less than 5%).īy net mass, Russia was the main extra-EU supplier in 2021 (e.g.

Together, imports of oil, gas and solid fuels made up about 15 percent of total extra-EU imports in 2021 (% of trade in value). Still, most energy needs (about 60%) are met through imports. The EU produces large parts of its energy domestically, with about 40 percent from renewables and 30 percent from nuclear, and the rest mostly from solid fuels like hard coal and lignite, and some from natural gas and crude oil. Thus, while Germany will likely reduce its overall dependence on energy imports, it will continue to rely on supply not only from within the European network but also from third countries.

According to several studies and politicians, Germany will have to import significant amounts of these green fuels, because space for generating electricity from renewables is limited in the country and power-to-x fuels could be produced significantly cheaper in other regions of the world. Renewable electricity is converted into hydrogen, methane or synthetic petrol ( power-to-x) to serve as energy sources in certain areas, for example in industry, road freight transport, shipping or seasonal energy storage. The European Union as a whole aims for climate neutrality by 2050.Īs fossil oil and gas are being phased out, many see the need to partly replace them with synthetic fuels. The German government has introduced interim greenhouse gas emission targets for the years until 2040 with the Climate Action Law. The plan to reach climate neutrality by 2045 should all but eliminate fossil fuels from Germany’s energy mix. The rapid expansion of renewable energy is likely to alter the power and influence of certain states and regions and to redraw the geopolitical map in the 21st century, said a 2019 report published by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). Overall dependence on energy imports will change dramatically for some countries as the energy transition progresses.

European oil production by country