Europe’s energy import bill climbs as leaders seek alternatives
Europe is paying substantially more to secure energy, and its leaders are weighing both immediate relief and a longer-term change in how the continent gets its power. At a meeting of European Union energy ministers in Dublin, EU energy commissioner Dan Jørgensen put the bloc’s additional energy-import costs since the start of the Iran war at more than €100 billion, or about $113.5 billion.
That is a measure of the extra cost of imports across the EU, not a charge added directly to household bills. Its significance is that Europe is spending more to buy essential fuel without necessarily receiving more of it. The money flowing out to suppliers leaves households, businesses and governments facing difficult choices as colder weather approaches.
What the figures mean at home
Fuel prices provide the clearest immediate example. In some European countries, motorists are paying nearly 50% more at the pump than before the disruption, with prices equivalent to more than $11 a gallon. Those figures describe particularly affected markets, not an EU-wide average. A family’s experience will depend on where it lives, how much it drives and whether it uses oil or gas to heat its home.
The pressure extends beyond drivers. Higher diesel costs can raise expenses for deliveries, farming and other businesses that move goods. Heating costs matter more as winter approaches. But an increase in the wholesale price of energy does not appear on every household bill at once: the timing and size of the change depend partly on contracts, regulated prices and government support.
Europe’s exposure is rooted in its reliance on imports. EU statistical figures for 2024 show that net imports met about 57% of the bloc’s overall energy needs. Dependence was much higher for oil and petroleum products, at about 97%, and natural gas, at 85%. Disruption near the Strait of Hormuz matters to global prices because, before the war, roughly a fifth of traded oil passed through the waterway.
Diesel presents an additional worry. International Energy Agency executive director Fatih Birol has warned that Europe enters winter heavily exposed to that market. About half of its diesel supply comes directly from the United States. Proposals by some U.S. politicians to restrict diesel exports have therefore drawn concern in Europe, although no ban should be treated as a settled outcome. Ireland’s energy minister, Darragh O’Brien, said he considered one unlikely but argued that Europe should prepare for the possibility.
The government trade-off
For governments, the first task is to help people and businesses absorb higher costs. France, for example, has announced a €450 million package expanding fuel assistance for eligible workers and support for fuel-intensive industries. It is also bringing forward energy vouchers for eligible families facing winter bills. Such measures can protect those most exposed, but they require public money and may need to be revised if high prices persist.
Tax cuts and subsidies offer relief more quickly than a new power plant or electricity network can be built. They also present a budget choice: broader aid reaches more people, while targeted aid concentrates limited funds on households and industries least able to manage the increase. Neither approach, on its own, produces more fuel or removes Europe’s exposure to the next supply disruption.
That is why ministers are also discussing faster electrification and expanded electrical infrastructure. More electricity generated within Europe could reduce the amount of imported oil and gas needed for transport, heating and industry over time. Finland’s environment minister, Sari Multala, has pointed to her country’s largely domestic electricity supply as one example of how a different energy mix can limit exposure. Reproducing that position across the EU would take investment and years of work, however; it cannot erase this winter’s fuel bills.
The €100 billion-plus figure captures the scale of the current import-price shock, not a forecast of what every European will pay next. Whether household bills rise further will depend on fuel supplies, winter demand, prices and the protection each government provides. The decision facing leaders now is how to soften the immediate blow while reducing the likelihood that the next disruption produces another costly scramble for imports.
