LUXEMBOURG / RankWire.AI / – European Union increased its spending on petroleum oil imports significantly in the second quarter of 2026, despite physical volumes remaining nearly unchanged. According to Eurostat, import values surged by 55.8% compared to the monthly average of 2025. The oil import volume hit 36.7 million tonnes, marking a 1.2% rise. These figures highlight a considerable gap between the growth in expenditure and the amount of oil arriving in the bloc. As a result, the quarter saw a much larger change in value than in tonnage.
In contrast, EU imports of liquefied natural gas exhibited different trends during the same period. LNG import value increased by 4.1%, while the volume decreased by 5.6% from the 2025 monthly average. The amount of natural gas delivered in gaseous form grew in both value and volume. Its import value rose by 18.5%, and physical volume increased by 3.4%. These quarterly figures show the energy products bought by EU countries from suppliers outside the union. They enable a direct comparison across the main imported fossil energy categories in the EU.
During the second quarter, the United States remained the top supplier of petroleum oil to the EU, accounting for 18.8%. Norway followed with 14.3%, and Kazakhstan supplied 13.4%. These three nations together made up 46.5% of the EU’s petroleum oil imports in that period. The concentration of suppliers was higher for liquefied natural gas, where the United States held a significantly larger market share. The data also reveal distinct supply patterns for oil, LNG, and pipeline gas.
US Leads in EU LNG Deliveries
In the second quarter of 2026, the United States supplied 63.2% of the EU’s liquefied natural gas imports. Russia’s share was 17.3%, with Algeria providing 8.1%. These three suppliers made up 88.6% of LNG imports for the period. This distribution differs from the petroleum oil market, where the top three suppliers accounted for less than half of total imports. The figures reflect each country’s share within the relevant EU energy import category, separating LNG trade from gaseous natural gas imports.
Norway led in supplying natural gas in gaseous form, holding 51.2% of the share. Algeria came second at 18.2%, and the United Kingdom supplied 11.1%. Russia accounted for 10.2% of these imports. Eurostat compiled these data from Comext trade figures and statistical estimates. The dataset covers crude petroleum oils, liquefied natural gas, and natural gas in gaseous form. This breakdown allows comparison of import shares without combining different fuel types.
Petroleum Oil Imports Rebound After 2025 Decline
The rise in petroleum oil import value in the second quarter followed a decline throughout 2025. In that year, EU petroleum oil import value dropped by 17.8% compared to 2024, while volume fell by 6.1%. Overall, the bloc imported €336.7 billion worth of energy in 2025, with a total volume of 723.3 million tonnes. The total energy import value decreased by 11.1%, and volume declined by 0.6%. These annual figures serve as a benchmark to assess the recent quarterly movements in oil, LNG, and gaseous natural gas.
Energy imports into the EU in 2025 remained below the levels seen in 2022. That year, the bloc imported €693.4 billion worth of energy, with a volume of 849.6 million tonnes. By 2025, the energy import value had fallen by 51.4%, and volume was down by 14.9%. As of the second quarter of 2026, oil imports showed a significant increase in value, with only a modest rise in physical volume. The latest data indicates the quarterly oil volume remains close to last year’s monthly average.