Chapter 2: Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the European Union Economy, Energy and Environment

While much of the world’s attention has focused on the human cost of COVID-19, the economic cost caused by the pandemic has also had and is having a strong impact on European economies, energy markets and the environment. This chapter first investigates the social effects of the pandemic, with particular emphasis on the ratio of deaths to cases in different countries, which may reflect the quality of health care, vaccine management and quality of life in regions of the world, especially in relation to the European continent. Secondly, this chapter examines the main effects that the pandemic has had over time on the European Union economy, especially on trade, transport, tourism, gross domestic product (GDP), unemployment, the inflation rate and the savings rate of Europeans. Thirdly, the chapter analyses the effects of the pandemic on the demand, production and prices of fossil and renewable energies in Europe, as well as the effect on the transition from fossil to renewable energies. Fourthly and finally, the chapter analyses the distortion generated by the pandemic on carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere and the momentary improvement of the environment. Against this backdrop, this chapter summarises the impact of COVID-19 on the European Union economy, energy, and environment.