EBA Statistical Report 2025

Brussels, 10 December 2025 – The European Biogas Association (EBA) today unveils the 15th edition of its Statistical Report, the landmark annual publication offering the most comprehensive assessment of biogas and biomethane markets in Europe. The 2024–2025 dataset underscores the strategic importance of biogases for Europe’s energy independence and defossilisation pathway, while warning that persistent regulatory uncertainty is slowing the sector’s growth at a decisive moment.

With EU-27 gas consumption at 332 bcm, and 273 bcm still imported, the report highlights the urgent need to scale domestic, renewable gas solutions. Biogases offer a direct pathway to reducing strategic energy dependence while increasing the competitiveness of Europe in its ambition to phase-out of fossil fuels. At the same time, the EU’s dispatchable power generation capacity has fallen markedly, from 424 GW in 2012 to around 380 GW in 2023, despite the growing need for flexibility. As a clean, dispatchable energy source, biogases are essential for balancing the grid during extended periods of low solar and wind production.

The report reveals modest growth on biogas and biomethane production (22 bcm in 2024, compared to 21.7 bcm in 2023), which concentrated mostly on EU-27 countries (19 bcm). Current EU-27 production is equivalent to the entire inland gas demand of Belgium, Denmark, and Ireland together, 6% of the EU’s natural gas consumption. Biomethane continues to be the fastest-growing segment (5.2 bcm of which 4.3 produced in EU-27) supported by an installed capacity of 7 bcm/year in Europe by early 2025.

Europe closed 2024 with 1,620 biomethane-producing facilities, 111 more than in 2023. At least 86% of the plants are grid-connected. The number of countries producing biomethane has now reached 25, with Portugal joining in 2022, Lithuania and Ukraine in 2023, and Poland injecting its first biomethane into the grid in 2025. Ahead of 2030, €28.4 billion in private investment has already been committed to biomethane development in Europe.

The average size of a biomethane plant in Europe is 483 m³/h, almost four times the size of biogas plants producing electricity and heat. Production trends also show a continued shift towards sustainable feedstocks offering the highest greenhouse-gas savings, including agricultural residues, organic municipal solid waste, sewage sludge, and industrial by-products.

Additionally, Europe generated 25 Mt (DM) of digestate in 2024. Its established role as a soil improver and organic fertiliser is expanding, with new valorisation pathways gaining momentum. Digestate already has the potential to replace 17% of the EU’s nitrogen-based fertilisers. With projected sector growth, digestate could substitute over 65% of non-renewable nitrogen in the EU by 2040.

Unlocking these resources will require stronger coordination between EU institutions and national governments to deliver coherent, predictable, and efficient policy frameworks. The potential for a Biogas Tripartite Agreement represents a critical opportunity to strengthen the coherence and predictability of policies at both European and national levels, key to restoring growth momentum and increasing demand for renewable gases.

The EBA Statistical Report 2025 is available for free for all EBA members; upon purchase for external parties, and a print-on-demand purchase option is available for all readers.

• • Get the full report for free (EBA members)
  • Buy the full report (non-members)
  • Get the printed version (paid option for all)

Contact

Ángela Sainz Arnau, EBA Communications Director sainz@europeanbiogas.eu

Note for editors

About biogas and biomethane (biogases): Biogas is produced from the decomposition of organic materials. These residues are placed in a biogas digester in the absence of oxygen. With the help of a range of bacteria, organic matter breaks down, releasing a blend of gases: 45 – 85 vol% methane (CH4) and 25 – 50 vol% carbon dioxide (CO2). The output is a renewable gas which can be used for multiple applications. Biomethane – purified biogas – is a renewable alternative to natural gas. Its multiple applications include heat and power supply for our buildings and industries, and renewable fuel production for the transport sector.

Impact of biogases beyond energy: Beyond energy, biogas plants operate as modern biorefineries, transforming waste into high-value products that directly strengthen the EU bioeconomy. Biomethane can be converted into hydrogen, methanol, or syngas for bio-based chemicals and plastics, reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels. Digestate, as a nutrient-rich co-product, can be processed into biofertilisers, improving soil health, supporting food security, and replacing fossil-based alternatives. Likewise, biogenic CO₂ can be captured for industrial uses, including e-fuels, greenhouses, food and beverage production. By generating multiple circular products alongside renewable energy, biogas systems create a low-carbon, resource-efficient value chain that boosts industrial competitiveness and advances Europe’s circular bioeconomy.

About the EBA Statistical Report: The EBA Statistical Report offers the most comprehensive overview of the current status and future potential of Europe’s biogas and biomethane sectors. It covers EU-27 Member States as well as Iceland, Serbia, Switzerland, Norway, the UK, and Ukraine. The report features in-depth analysis of the European energy landscape, the diverse applications of biogases, digestate and bio-CO₂ production, and the sectors’ economic contribution to Europe. It also includes detailed country-by-country profiles. The report is free for EBA members, and a print-on-demand purchase option is available for all readers.