LUXEMBOURG / RankWire.AI / – In the first quarter of 2026, greenhouse gas emissions within the European Union increased slightly to 837 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, according to Eurostat. This marks a 0.3% rise from 835 million tonnes in the previous quarter. During the same period, the EU’s gross domestic product remained stable, showing no quarterly change. These figures offer the latest insights into emissions generated by economic activities and households across the 27-member bloc.
Compared to the first quarter of 2025, emissions decreased by 1.2%, while EU GDP grew by 0.8%, Eurostat data indicated. The reported emissions include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases, all expressed in CO2-equivalent terms. Eurostat adjusts the quarterly emissions data for seasonal factors to facilitate comparisons between successive periods. Data from the Netherlands, Slovenia, and Spain were provided by those countries themselves, whereas Eurostat estimated emissions for the remaining European Union member states.
The sector with the most notable increase was electricity, gas, steam, and air-conditioning supply, which rose by 4.8%. Emissions from water supply, sewerage, and waste management grew by 0.7%. Household emissions declined by 1.3%, while manufacturing, construction, and transportation and storage each saw a decrease of 0.6%. Manufacturing remains the largest contributor to total EU emissions at 20.8%, followed closely by households at 20.2%. The electricity, gas, steam, and air-conditioning sector accounts for an additional 16.5% of overall emissions.
Emission increases observed across 20 EU countries
greenhouse gas emissions rose in 20 out of the 27 EU member states during the quarter, with seven countries experiencing declines. Estonia saw the most significant increase at 9.7%, followed by Finland at 6.4% and Bulgaria at 4.6%. Eurostat attributed these rises mainly to increased emissions from construction and the electricity, gas, steam, and air-conditioning supply sectors. Conversely, Slovenia experienced the largest decrease at 5.0%, with Luxembourg down by 3.8% and Romania by 2.7% during the same period.
Of the 20 countries where emissions increased, 18 also reported economic growth during the quarter. Four of the seven nations that reduced emissions—Spain, Greece, France, and Slovenia—also saw their GDP remain stable or grow. These data provide a detailed country-by-country comparison, illustrating how emissions and economic output shifted during the first three months of 2026 across member states.
Emissions for the year still below 2015 levels
Eurostat’s annual figures reveal that in 2025, EU economy and household greenhouse gas emissions totaled 3.3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent. This total represents a 17.2% reduction from the levels recorded in 2015. The annual measurement encompasses all economic activities and households combined. The most recent quarterly data indicate that emissions at the start of 2026 remained below their year-earlier levels, despite a slight increase compared to the last quarter of 2025.
Eurostat publishes quarterly estimates of greenhouse gas emissions to supplement economic indicators such as GDP and employment figures. The data categorize emissions by economic sector and household activity, enabling sectoral and cross-country comparisons within the EU. For the first quarter of 2026, the reported figures show a modest increase in quarterly emissions while EU GDP stayed steady. When compared to the same period in 2025, the trend was reversed: greenhouse gas emissions declined by 1.2%, while economic output increased by 0.8%.