Alternative Energy Limited

As a group, households are one of the largest users of energy. In the European Union (EU), they collectively consume 300 Mtoe in 2004. This constituted 26.2% of total energy consumption in the EU of 1,141 Mtoe. Over the period from 1995, the amount of energy consumed increased by 11.1%. Natural gas (38%), Electricity (21%) and Gas/Diesel (19%) are the leading types of fuel used in the energy mix of a typical EU household.

On a per household basis, space and water heating is a major energy guzzler. These two uses accounted for almost 85% of total energy consumed. The average EU household electricity consumption per annum is 4,175kWh. The total energy consumed per household annually is about 20MWh. Households in the EU spent more than €70 billion annually on electricity alone for part of their household energy needs.