Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands: Which European countries have the greenest transport?

When it comes to ‘green’ transport in Europe, one country appears to be well ahead of the pack.

Sweden has the highest share of renewables in its transport at 33.7 per cent in 2023, according to the latest figures from Eurostat, which also show a gradual improvement across the bloc. 

That makes it the only country to have already achieved the EU-wide target of 29 per cent renewables in transport by 2030.

The Nordic nation has led the way with a quick uptake of electric vehicles. But there’s a catch, campaigners say, as most of the legwork is being done by biofuels - a controversial energy source. 

Here’s how European countries compare on renewable-powered transportation, and the role that biofuels are playing in the transition. 

In 2023, the share of renewable energy in our transport reached 10.8 per cent across the EU, Eurostat announced last week: a 1.2 per cent increase on the year before. 

Meeting the 2030 goal requires significant acceleration. Namely, an annual average increase of 2.6 per cent between 2024 and 2030. 

But these published 2023 figures are on the generous side, campaign group Transport & Environment (T&E) cautions. The share of renewables used in transport energy is actually likely to be lower and closer to 8 per cent in physical terms, it says, when so-called ‘multiplier mechanisms’ that promote certain fuel types are excluded.

As Europe’s power sector undergoes a “deep transformation”, transport is benefitting from a greater supply of renewable electricity. 

This green source increased 50 per cent in 2023 thanks to an increased share of renewables in the EU grid (45 per cent in 2023) and a higher uptake of electric vehicles. 

“This is good news,” T&E data analyst Simon Suzan tells Euronews Green, “and more