In January 2023, the natural gas consumption volume in Germany amounted to *** billion cubic meters (bcm). That was a considerable decrease compared to the previous two Januaries, with a consumption volume of approximately **** bcm in January 2021 and ***** bcm in January 2022.

The consumption of natural gas in the European Union has fluctuated since 1998. It increased to a peak of ***** billion cubic meters in 2010, but by 2024 had fallen to around *** billion cubic meters. Natural gas consumption in the EU was only lower than oil consumption, despite the overall decrease. Production of natural gas in decline Although the consumption of natural gas is expected to increase across the region, production in the EU has fallen significantly over the past two decades. By 2023 had fallen by approximately ** percent. EU reliant on Russian exports With the production of natural gas in decline, the EU is expected to become more reliant on international imports. Overall, there was a six percent increase of imports in 2019 when compared to the previous year. Currently, the main exporter of gas to the EU is Russia, who in 2017 exported ** percent of all imports. Plans for a 746-mile gas pipeline from Russia to Germany in the Baltic Sea are set to go ahead. The Nord Stream 2 project has received critics from the US and EU over fears it will increase Europe’s reliance on gas imports from Russia.

Between 2005 and 2014, Germany saw a gradual reduction in its natural gas consumption, with levels falling to **** billion cubic meters. Over the following years, the country’s consumption experienced a mostly increasing trend, reaching *****billion cubic meters in 2024. In comparison, domestic production has been in annual decline since 2003. Demand is expected to increase in the future because of a move away from coal and nuclear power. These energy sources made up around ***percent of Germany’s energy mix in 2024. Dependence on energy imports Due to increased demand and falling production, Germany is heavily reliant on energy imports, with its dependency rate increasing to **** percent in 2018. In 2023, Germany's natural gas imports reached******billion cubic meters, by far the highest rate throughout Europe. Imports are expected to increase further as coal and nuclear power are phased out.