The share of energy from renewable sources reached 16.0 percent in the European Union (EU) in 2014, according to a recently-released report from Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU.

The represented almost double the level of 2004, at 8.5 percent, the first year for which the data is available.

The share of renewables in energy consumption is one of the indicators of the Europe 2020 strategy. The target to be reached by 2020 for the EU is a share of 20 percent energy from renewable sources.

Member states have already agreed on a new EU renewable energy target of 27 percent by 2030.

Compared with a year ago, the share of renewable sources in consumption of energy has increased in 24 of the 28 member states of the EU. Sweden had by far the highest share in 2014, with 52.6 percent of energy from renewable sources, ahead of Latvia and Finland, both with 38.7 percent, Austria, with 33.1 percent, and Denmark, at 29.2 percent.

At the other end of the spectrum, the lowest proportions of renewables were registered in Luxembourg

(4.5 percent), Malta (4.7 percent), the Netherlands (5.5 percent) and the United Kingdom (7.0 percent).

Among the 28 EU member states, one-third have already reached the level required to meet their national 2020 targets: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Croatia, Italy, Lithuania, Romania, Finland, and Sweden. Denmark and Austria are less than one percentage point away. France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Ireland are the furthest away from their targets.

Renewable energy sources cover solar thermal and photovoltaic energy, hydro, wind,geothermal energy and all forms of biomass, including biological waste and liquid biofuels.