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Energy industry in Luxembourg
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General State of the Economy

Luxembourg is a landlocked country in northwestern Europe. The country borders Belgium to the west and north, France to the south, and Germany to the northeast and east. According to 2023 statistics, Luxembourg, which in terms of size is 182th in the world, is home to around 650 thousand people.  

Luxembourg / Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
Capital: LuxembourgDensity: 253/km2Currency: Euro (€) (EUR)
Official languages:  LuxembourgishLife expectancy at birth: 83.05 yearsGDP (PPP): $92.704 billion (2023)
National Day: 23 JuneArea: 2,586 km2GDP - per capita (PPP): $139,106 (2023)
Population: 654,768 (2023)Coastline: 0 kmInternet country code: .lu

Source: [1,2,3,4,5]
 

In terms of population density the country is 55thin the world out of 248 countries considered. Luxembourg is a parliamentary democracy in the form of a constitutional monarchy, it's the only Grand Duchy in the world [1,2,3].

Luxembourg. Old Bridge - Passerelle Bridge Or Luxembourg Viaduct In Luxembourg. Envato Elements. XTJYAVHK9S

The ranking positions of Luxembourg relative to other countries have been determined for an extensive list of economic, energy, innovative and educational indices, as well as for metrics reflecting the state of the environment. The economic indices include, for example, GDP per capita, annual average GDP growth, high-technology exports, and others. The list of energy indices includes proven reserves of oil, gas and coal, production-consumption ratio combined, and energy use, etc. Each of the indices has a ranked list of included member countries. Since the number of countries in each rating is different for each index, the positioning of the country of interest is displayed on a special chart, where the vertical axis is a uniform relative scale from 0 to 1, whereas the horizontal axis denominates the various indices and respective numbers relating to the descriptions given underneath.
Thus, in such a relative “0-1” diagram, the country’s position is marked with a dot in proportion to its location in the original rating list. If the country is among the leaders regarding the selected indicator, it will be marked close to 1 in the upper green zone on the relevant chart “0-1”, if the country is an outsider in the rating list, then it will be marked in the lower red zone of the chart “0-1”, etc. A single list of indices is used for all countries. If a country is not in the ranking list for any index, then the corresponding position on the charts is not displayed.

 Sources:
1. GDP (purchasing power parity), 2020 est. / The World Factbook/Library/Central Intelligence Agency *228
2. GDP - per capita (PPP), 2020 / The World Factbook/Library/Central Intelligence Agency *229
3. Inflation rate (consumer prices), 2019 est. / The World Factbook/Library/Central Intelligence Agency *228
4. Charges for the use of intellectual property, receipts (BoP, current US$), 2020 / International Monetary Fund, Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook, and data files. / License: CC BY-4.0 *88
5. The Global Competitiveness Index 2019 / Rankings / Reports / World Economic Forum *141
6. High-technology exports (current US$) 2019-2020 / United Nations, Comtrade database through the WITS platform / License: CCBY-4.0 / Data *134
7. 2021 Index of Economic Freedom / International Economies / The Heritage Foundation *178
8. Reserves of foreign exchange and gold, 2017 est. / The World Factbook / Library / Central Intelligence Agency *195
9. Annual average GDP growth in %, for the last 10 years (2011-2020) / World Bank national accounts data, and OECD National Accounts data files / License: CC BY-4.0*206
10. Public debt (% of GDP), 2017 est. / The World Factbook / Library / Central Intelligence Agency(from smallest to largest) *210
  * Total number of countries participating in ranking

Figure 1. Economic Indices of Luxembourg
 

For the majority of the economic indicators shown in the chart, Luxembourg is above the middle of the ranking lists. The country has the best indices among those presented for the GDP per capita (0.99), Index of Economic Freedom (0.90) and the Public debt (0.87). The weakest spots in the country’s economic indicators are reserves of foreign exchange and gold (0.30) and annual average GDP growth (0.53). Overall, Luxembourg is financially stable country with relatively strong economic system.

Energy Resources

Luxembourg has practically no reserves of fossil energy resources [6], or significant renewable energy resources. A selection of basic indicators of this type of resource is presented in Table 1.
The level of global horizontal radiation in most of the country does not exceed 3.0 kWh/m2/day [7]. The distribution of wind resources is as follows: in most of the country's territory the wind speed does not exceed 5.4 m/s [8], while in the north-west of the country it can reach 6.5 m/s at a height of 50 metres.

Table 1. Renewable energy resources of Luxembourg

Resource/
Explanations		Solar Potential
(GHI)*		Wind Potential
(50 м)*		Bio Potential
(agricultural area)		Bio Potential
(forest area)		Municipal Solid
Waste
Value2.7 - 3.04.8 - 5.451.534.5712
UnitkWh/m2/daym/s% of land area% of land areakg per capita
Year20222022202220222023
Source[7][8][9][10][11]

*for the majority of the territory of the country 

In 2022, about 51.5% of the country was covered by agricultural land [9]. This area is decreasing, however the country is experiencing a slight increase in forested area, which covered 34.5% of the country in 2022 [10].
In 2023 the level of municipal waste generation in Luxembourg was 712 kg per person, higher than, for example, Germany (615 kg per person) [11]. This resource is a valuable raw material for recycling or producing energy, the technologies of which have reached a very high level of development in the country.

LUXEMBOURG, LUXEMBOURG
Latitude: 49.63, Longitude: 6.21  

Average daily sky coverage over 10 years of observations, %

CLR - clear, SCT - scattered from 1/8 TO 4/8, BKN - broken from 5/8 TO 7/8, OVC - overcast, OBS - obscured, POB - partial obscuration

Source: based on NOAA U.S. Department of Commerce
Detailed information: Interactive map of solar resources

LUXEMBOURG, LUXEMBOURG
Latitude: 49.63, Longitude: 6.21 
Average speed: 3.37 m/s, Operational share: 59%

Average daily wind speed for 10 years of observations, m/s, 10 m above the ground

Source: based on NOAA U.S. Department of Commerce
Detailed information: Interactive map of wind resources  

Energy Balance

According to [6], in 2023 in Luxembourg, the total production of primary energy was 0.005 quadrillion Btu, while consumption was at the level of 0.15 quadrillion Btu. Thus, the share of domestic production in primary energy consumption was about 3.3%. This makes Luxembourg a country dependent on energy imports.

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Sep 2024) / www.eia.gov

Figure 2. The production and consumption of fossil fuels in Luxembourg (coal – left, gas – in the center, oil – right)

Natural gas consumption in Luxembourg has declined gradually from 2001 to 2023, with small annual fluctuations, and amounted to 19.66 billion cubic feet in 2023. The country's crude oil consumption has declined significantly between 2003 and 2023, reaching 50.55 thousand barrels per day in 2023. Coal consumption in the country has been sharply declining from 2006 to 2023, amounting to 35.02 thousand short tons in 2023 (Figure 2).
Over the past 10 years, Luxembourg has reduced its electricity production by almost half, with the use of fossil fuels significantly reduced and the share of renewable energy increased (Figure 3). According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration in 2023, Luxembourg produced 1.19 TWh of electricity, where renewables accounted for 85%, hydropower for 7.9%, and fossil fuels for 7.1% (Figure 6).

                                     Sources: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Sep 2024) / www.eia.gov

                                     Figure 3. Electricity production in Luxembourg

Luxembourg’s position in the comparative diagram of energy index is shown in Figure 4. Due to the lack of significant reserves of fossil resources, the country is not represented for the first three indices of the chart.

 Sources:
1. Crude oil proved reserves, 2021 / International Energy Statistic/Geography / U.S. Energy Information Administration (Nov 2021)*98
2. Natural gas proved reserves 2021 / International Energy Statistic / Geography / U.S. Energy Information Administration (Nov 2021) *99
3. Total recoverable coal reserves 2019 / International Energy Statistic / Geography / U.S. Energy Information Administration (Nov 2021) *81
4. Combination production-consumption for Crude oil 2018 / International Energy Statistic / Geography / U.S. Energy Information Administration (Nov 2021) *219
5. Combination production-consumption for Natural gas 2019 / International Energy Statistic / Geography / U.S. Energy Information Administration (Nov 2021) *123
6. Combination production-consumption for Coal 2019 / International Energy Statistic / Geography / U.S. Energy Information Administration (Nov 2021) *128
7. Electricity – from other renewable sources (% of total installed capacity), 2017 est. / The World Factbook / Library / Central Intelligence Agency *170
8. GDP per unit of energy use (PPP per unit of oil equivalent), 2020 *66
Primary energy consumption - BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2021/BP;GDP (purchasing power parity) - The World Factbook/Library/Central Intelligence Agency
9. Energy use (primary energy use of oil equivalent per capita) 2020  *127
Primary energy consumption – BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2021; Population - United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs,
Population Division (2019). World Population Prospects 2019, custom data acquired via website. Retrieved 15 November 2021*66
10. The Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report (EAPI) 2017 / Rankings / Reports / World Economic Forum
11. Electric power consumption (kWh per capita), 2016 *217
Electricity Consumption - The World Factbook / Library / Central Intelligence Agency; Population - United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs,
Population Division (2019). World Population Prospects 2019, custom data acquired via website. Retrieved 15 November 2021
12. Combination of electricity production-consumption (kWh)/The World Factbook/Library/Central Intelligence Agency *216
* Total number of countries participating in ranking

Figure 4. Energy indices of Luxembourg
 

Luxembourg is slightly above the middle (0.63) in the combined coal production-consumption. The country is well-positioned in electricity from other renewable sources (0.99), GDP per unit of energy use (0.88), energy use (primary energy use of oil equivalent per capita) (0.91), electric power consumption (kWh per capita) (0.82) and the Global Energy Architecture Performance Index (0.95). In terms of the combination of electricity production-consumption, the country is at a minimum level.

Energy Infrastructure

A territorial map showing the distribution of the largest infrastructure projects of the fossil fuel sector in Luxembourg is shown in Figure 5 – storage and transportation of fossil fuels. According to U.S. Energy Information Administration, primary energy production in Luxembourg accounts for 3.33% of total energy consumption in 2023. Oil is delivered to Luxembourg by rail and pipeline transport (Fig. 5).
Map of oil and gas infrastructure in Luxemburg
Figure 5. Basic infrastructural facilities of the fossil fuel sector in Luxembourg (click on the map to view a PDF version)

Transportation of petroleum products is carried via pipelines with a length of 36 km. The Luxembourg gas system include 279 km of transmission system network and some 1 925 km of distribution system network (Fig. 5).
The map of the territorial distribution of the largest infrastructure facilities for electricity generation in Switzerland is shown in Figure 6.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the share of hydropower in electricity production in Luxembourg in 2023 was 7.9%, which is represented by both pumped storage plant and large and small hydroelectric power stations (Fig. 6). The main pumped-storage complex is Vianden, with an installed capacity of 1,269 MW [12]. The largest hydroelectric power plant is Esch-sur-Sûre Dam with an installed capacity of 13.62 MW [13]. At the beginning of 2020 Luxembourg registered about 20 small-scale hydropower plants up to 10 MW with a total installed capacity of 25.3 MW [14].
The country has Esch-sur-Alzette CCGT combined power plant, with an installed capacity of 385 MW [15].
Map of power plants in Luxembourg
Figure 6. Electricity production in Luxembourg (click on the map to view a PDF version)

Figure 7 shows the main infrastructure facilities in Luxembourg for the production of renewable energy.
In zones of high wind activity there are 11 large wind parks with a capacity of more than 5 MW each. The largest is Wandpark Duelem with an installed capacity of 21 MW [16].
As noted in the previous section, the level of global horizontal radiation in some parts of the country can reach 3 kWh/m2, which is a sufficient resource for energy production [7]. As a result, a number of solar energy facilities are located on this territory, including 8 PV power plants that have a capacity of at least 1 MW. The largest is RTL GROUP Beidweiler I, II with an installed capacity of 7.7 MW [17]. Solar energy is also used in the heating systems of residential buildings.
Luxembourg is actively engaged in the use of hydrogen as an energy source for vehicles. As of 2024, there were two hydrogen filling stations operating in the country, shown in the Figure 7 [18].
In 2023, about 0.21 TWh of electricity was generated from bioenergy in Luxembourg (Fig. 7).
Map of Renewable energy infrastructure in Luxembourg
 Figure 7. Renewable energy in Luxembourg (click on the map to view a PDF version)

The country has biomass and municipal waste processing plants; biogas and pellet production (Fig. 7). Kronospan operates a biomass power plant in Sanem, Luxembourg, which generates approximately 216 GWh of green energy [19].
The main Luxembourg enterprises processing biomass are: Biogas Beckerich plant, and Kiowatt Pellets SA [20,21]. The leader in the generation of electricity from municipal waste is EEW Energy from Waste Leudelange S.à r.l., with an installed capacity of 170 000 t/y [22].
According to the Luxembourg's integrated national energy and climate plan for the period 2021-2030 (PNEC) the country’s share of renewable energy in gross final energy consumption is set to reach 25% by 2030 through a constant deployment of wind, solar and heat pumps. Luxembourg's priority goes to energy efficiency and direct electrification. Renewable hydrogen can play a role in the integration of energy sectors in the long term [23]. 

Education and Innovation

The following chart shows Luxembourg's positions in terms of education and innovation:

 Sources:
1. The Global Innovation Index 2021, Rankings / Knowledge / World Intellectual Property Organization / Cornell University, INSEAD, and WIPO (2021):
Energizing the World with Innovation. Ithaca, Fontainebleau, and Geneva *132
2. Patent Grants 2011-2020, resident & abroad / Statistical country profiles / World Intellectual Property Organization *185
3.Patents in Force 2020 / Statistical country profiles / World Intellectual Property Organization *109
4. QS World University Rankings 2022 *97
5. SCImago Country Rankings (1996-2020) / Country rankings / SCImago, (n.d.). SIR-SCImago Journal & Country Rank [Portal]. Retrieved 17 Nov 2021 *240
6. Internet users in 2018 / The World Factbook / Central Intelligence Agency *229
7. Internet users in 2018 (% Population) / The World Factbook / Central Intelligence Agency *229
8. Government expenditure on education, total (% of GDP), 2019 / United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Institute for Statistics.
License: CCBY-4.0 / Data as of September 2021*177
9. Research and development expenditure (% of GDP), 2018 / UNESCO Institute for Statistics. License: CCBY-4.0 / Data *119
10. Scientific and technical journal articles, 2018 / National Science Foundation, Science and Engineering Indicators. License: CCBY-4.0 / Data *197
  * Total number of countries participating in ranking

Figure 8. The indices of education and innovation in Luxembourg
 

The majority indices describing the country‘s positioning in the various international rankings related to education and innovation are above average. The lowest spot in the country is the Internet users  (0.35) and Government expenditure on education (0.42). Luxembourg has the highest position of those presented for Internet users in 2018 (% Population) (0.94) and Research and development expenditure (% of GDP)  (0.78).

Beaufort castle ruins in Luxembourg. Envato Elements. B9RWG7YCFQ

Ecology and Environment Protection

Indicators related to environmental issues are presented in the following diagram:

 Sources:
1. CO2 total emission by countries 2020 / European Commission / Joint Research Centre (JRC) / Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR)*208
2. CO2 per capita emission 2020/European Commission/Joint Research Centre (JRC) / Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) *208
3. Forest area 2020 (% of land area) / The Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020 / Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations *234
4. Forest area change 2010-2020 (1000 ha/year) / The Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020 / Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations *234
5. The Environmental Performance Index (EPI) 2020 / Rankings / Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy / Yale University *180
6. Annual freshwater withdrawals (m3 per capita), 2017 *179
Annual freshwater withdrawals, total (billion m3), 2017 – Food and Agriculture Organization, AQUASTAT data. /License: CC BY-4.0; 
Population – United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2019).
World Population Prospects 2019, custom data acquired via website. Retrieved 15 November 2021
7. The National Footprint Accounts 2017 (Biocapacity Credit / Deficit) / Global Footprint Network *188
8. Methane emissions (kt of CO2 equivalent), 2018 / Data for up to 1990 are sourced from Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center, Environmental Sciences Division,
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee, United States. Data from 1990 are CAIT data: Climate Watch. 2020. GHG Emissions. Washington, DC: World Resources Institute.
Available at: License : Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)  *191
9. The Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2022 / Overall Results / Jan Burck, Thea Uhlich, Christoph Bals, Niklas Höhne, Leonardo Nascimento /
Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute & Climate Action Network *60
  * Total number of countries participating in ranking

Figure 9. Environmental Indices of Luxembourg
 

Luxembourg belongs to the group of countries with high carbon dioxide emissions – per capita (0.08), in total (0.54), methane emissions (0.86). This fact is partly responsible for its low ranking in the National Footprint Accounts (0.01). On the other hand, among positive indicators, there is a clear upward trend in the forested areas (0.6), the Environmental Performance Index (0.99), and the Climate Change Performance Index (0.72). 

References

[1] List of sovereign states and dependencies by area / Wikipedia / en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sovereign_states_and_dependencies_by_area
[2] List of countries and dependencies by population density / Wikipedia / en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_and_dependencies_by_population_density
[3] Luxembourg / The world factbook / Library / Central Intelligence Agency / www.cia.gov
[4] GDP, PPP (current international $) / World Bank, International Comparison Program database. License: CC BY-4.0 / Data / The World Bank / www.worldbank.org
[5] GDP per capita, PPP (current international $) / World Bank, International Comparison Program database. License: CC BY-4.0 / Data / The World Bank / www.worldbank.org
[6] Luxembourg / International Energy Statistic / Geography  / U.S. Energy Information Administration / www.eia.gov/beta/international/
[7] Solar resource data obtained from the Global Solar Atlas, owned by the World Bank Group and provided by Solargis / Global Solar Atlas / globalsolaratlas.info
[8] Wind Map / Global Wind Atlas 2.0, a free, web-based application developed, owned and operated by the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) in partnership with the World Bank Group, utilizing data provided by Vortex, with funding provided by the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP). For additional information: globalwindatlas.info
[9] Agricultural land (% of land area) / Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site. License: CC BY-4.0 / Data / The World Bank / www.worldbank.org
[10] Forest area (% of land area) / Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site. License: CC BY-4.0 / Data / The World Bank / www.worldbank.org
[11] What a Waste 2.0 / Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site. License: CC BY-4.0 / Data / The World Bank / www.worldbank.org
[12] Vianden Pumped Storage Plant / Wikipedia / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vianden_Pumped_Storage_Plant
[13] Barrage d'Esch-sur-Sûre / Wikipedia / https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrage_d%27Esch-sur-S%C3%BBre
[14] World Small Hydropower Development Report (WSHPDR) 2022 / United Nations Industrial Development Organization / https://www.unido.org/WSHPDR2022
[15] Esch-sur-Alzette CCGT Power Plant Luxembourg / Wikipedia / https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kraftwerk_Twinerg
[16] Wandpark Duelem / Soler S.A. / https://www.soler.lu/unsere-standorte
[17] RTL GROUP Beidweiler I, II / Enovos Luxembourg / https://renewables.enovos.lu/fr/?filter_category=energie-solaire
[18] Luxembourg / H2 Stations Map / https://www.h2stations.org/stations-map/?lat=49.139384&lng=11.190114&zoom=2
[19] Sanem, Kronospan / Kronospan / https://kronospan.com/en_GE/company/news/view/clean-and-efficient-power-64
[20] Biogas Beckerich / Biogasvereenegung A.s.b.l. / https://biogasvereenegung.lu/produzent/biogas-beckerich/
[21] Kiowatt Pellets / KIOWATT, Zone artisanal and commercial Klengbousbierg / https://kiowatt.lu/en/#production-of-badger-pellets
[22] EEW Energy from Waste Leudelange S.à r.l. / EEW Energy from Waste GmbH / https://www.eew-energyfromwaste.com/en/our-sites/leudelange/
[23] Luxembourg's integrated national energy and climate plan for the period 2021-2030 (PNEC) / The Luxembourg Government / https://gouvernement.lu/en/dossiers/2023/2023-pnec.html

The sources of charts and curves are specified under the images.

For more information about the energy industry in Luxembourg see here

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