Coal has fallen to a historic low of 9.2% of the EU's electricity production.
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Superior coal and lignite provided only 9.2% of the electricity produced in the European Union in 2025, after the share of coal had fallen below 10% for the first time a year earlier. In 1990, coal generated over a third of EU electricity and was the main source of production.
Coal reached its lowest recorded share in the electricity production of the European Union in 2025, providing together 9.2% of the total through superior coal and lignite, according to Eurostat. Superior coal accounted for 3.7% of gross electricity production, equivalent to approximately 105,600 GWh, while lignite accounted for 5.5%, approximately 154,200 GWh, continuing the decline of a source that in 1990 generated over a third of EU electricity.
In short
Superior coal and lignite together represented 9.2% of the EU's gross electricity production in 2025, the lowest recorded share in the Eurostat series.
In 1990, coal supplied 35.1% of EU electricity: 19.8% came from superior coal and 15.3% from lignite.
Coal fell below the 10% threshold for the first time in 2024. In the same year, solar energy surpassed coal for the first time as a source of electricity production in the EU.
The EU's consumption of superior coal is estimated at 107 million tons in 2025, 52% less than in 2018, while lignite consumption is estimated at 184 million tons, 50% less.
Differences between member states remain large. In 2024, Poland was the only member state where coal provided more than half of electricity, at 55%, while in several countries its use in electricity production had already been eliminated or reduced to marginal levels.
The decline of coal in European electricity production has unfolded over several decades but has accelerated in recent years. In 1990, superior coal and lignite together provided over 35% of the electricity produced in the current EU member states, making coal the main source of electricity. The share fell to 30.4% in 2000 and continued to decline, with temporary recoveries in 2011–2012 and 2021–2022.
In 2024, coal fell for the first time below 10% of European electricity production, and in 2025 its share dropped to 9.2%. Superior coal provided 3.7% of gross production, while lignite provided 5.5%, corresponding to a production of approximately 105,600 GWh and 154,200 GWh, respectively.
The position of coal in the ranking of electricity sources has changed just as dramatically. In 1990, superior coal and lignite ranked second and third among production sources, with shares of 19.8% and 15.3%. In 2025, lignite ranked sixth, and superior coal ranked seventh, after both forms of coal were successively surpassed by nuclear energy in 1994, natural gas in 2019, hydro and wind energy in 2023, and solar energy in 2024.
The reduction in share in electricity production is also accompanied by historical lows in consumption. Eurostat estimates that the EU consumed 107 million tons of superior coal in 2025, 52% less than eight years earlier. Lignite consumption fell to approximately 184 million tons, 50% below the 2018 level.
The use of coal remains closely tied to the energy sector. In 2024, approximately 45% of the superior coal used in the EU was delivered to power plants for electricity and heat production, while for lignite the proportion was 92%. European power plants received approximately 50 million tons of superior coal and 185 million tons of lignite that year, both volumes reaching the lowest levels in the Eurostat series after strong declines in 2023 and 2024.
Lignite is much more dependent on electricity production than superior coal, as it has a lower energy content and fewer alternative industrial uses. In most member states that still use it, at least 90% of the lignite consumed is intended for electricity and heat production. Superior coal continues to be used in industry, including for the production of coke needed for the steel industry.
The European decline does not mean that dependence on coal has uniformly disappeared in member states. Detailed data available for 2024 show considerable differences between national electricity mixes.
Poland is the most obvious case. Superior coal provided approximately 33% of the electricity produced in the country, while lignite still accounted for 21%. Together, the two forms of coal represented 55% of Polish electricity production, making Poland the only member state where more than half of electricity came from coal and the only one where it remained the most important source.
In the Czech Republic, coal provided approximately 36% of electricity in 2024 and was the second source after nuclear energy. In Bulgaria, the share was 21%, also in second place after nuclear, while in Germany coal provided approximately 21% and ranked after wind energy. Slovenia also had a share of approximately 21%, after nuclear and hydro.
For superior coal, Poland was the only member state where the source still had a very high share in electricity production. In other member states, the share of superior coal did not exceed 7% in 2024.
Lignite continues to have a more significant presence in several energy systems. In 2024, it provided approximately 34% of electricity in the Czech Republic and 21% in Bulgaria, Poland, and Slovenia. Germany continued to be by far the largest consumer of lignite in the EU in absolute terms, accounting for 46% of European consumption in 2025, followed by Poland with 21%, the Czech Republic with 13%, Bulgaria with 10%, Romania with 7%, and Greece with 3%.
The number of European producers has decreased in parallel. In 1990, 13 of the current member states produced superior coal. By 2025, only Poland and the Czech Republic remained, after production was closed in Bulgaria in 2014, Italy in 2016, and Spain and Germany in 2019. Poland accounts for almost all remaining European production of superior coal.
For lignite, eight member states were still producers in 2025. Spain ceased production in 2019, and Slovakia in 2024. Portugal abandoned the use of superior coal for electricity production in 2021.
The reduction of European superior coal production has long been accompanied by an increase in dependence on imports, as domestic extraction declined faster than consumption. Dependence on imports of superior coal reached 74.5% in 2022 but fell to 57.2% in 2024, the lowest level recorded since 2007. The recent decline reflects primarily the reduction in European consumption.
The structure of suppliers has changed radically after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and European sanctions. Russia supplied 52.4% of the EU's superior coal imports in 2021, before the Union banned imports of Russian coal under the fifth sanctions package. The ban became effective in August 2022.
European imports of superior coal from Russia fell from previous levels to 27 million tons in 2022, approximately one million tons in 2023, and less than 250,000 tons in 2024. Compared to 2021, the reduction was 99.5%.
The EU has redistributed its supply to alternative suppliers. In 2024, five countries accounted for approximately 90% of net European imports of superior coal: Australia with 32.1%, the United States with 28.7%, Colombia with 14.8%, Kazakhstan with 8.4%, and South Africa with 6.6%.
This restructuring of suppliers occurred simultaneously with a reduction in demand, which explains why the percentage dependence on imports can decrease even if European production of superior coal remains very low. In 2025, domestic production covered approximately 41% of EU consumption, compared to 71% in 1990.
The European trend contrasts sharply with the situation in several candidate countries and the Western Balkans. In these, coal continues to have a much larger share in electricity production than in the EU.
In 2024, superior coal and lignite represented approximately 17% and 19% of the electricity production of candidate and potential candidate countries. Hydropower had a share of approximately 25%, and natural gas 16%.
The difference is even more pronounced in the Western Balkans, where lignite remains a central component of energy systems. In 2024, lignite provided 37% of electricity production in North Macedonia, 40% in Montenegro, 61% in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 63% in Serbia, and 91% in Kosovo.
In Turkey, superior coal and lignite together provided approximately 34% of electricity in 2024, with 22% coming from superior coal and 12% from lignite. Turkey is also the largest consumer of lignite among candidate countries, with approximately 88 million tons in 2025, nearly double the 46 million tons recorded in 1990.
Lignite consumption in all candidate countries reached approximately 147 million tons in 2025, 35% above the 1990 level, a trend opposite to the 50% reduction recorded in the EU since 2018.
In the Eurostat statistics used for this analysis, "coal" refers to primary products: superior coal and lignite. Secondary products such as coke, manufactured gases, and other solid fossil fuels are not included in the calculation of the presented share.
Data for 2025 are preliminary. The long-term series shows, however, a structural change: coal has fallen from over 35% of European electricity production in 1990 to 9.2% in 2025, being successively surpassed by other sources in the European electricity mix.
At the same time, the differences between member states and between the EU and neighboring countries remain significant. Poland continues to obtain over half of its electricity from coal, and in several states in the Western Balkans, lignite remains the main source of electricity.
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