According to a new report by the energy industry federation Energia, the United States of America has become Belgium’s biggest supplier of oil. In 2024 the US took over the top spot from the country that had previously been Belgium’s leading oil supplier Norway.
As a response to Russia invasion of Ukraine, the EU imposed an embargo on Russian oil in December 2020. This created opportunities to other countries to fill the void. Prior to the war in Ukraine, Russia was Belgium’s biggest oil supply, accounting for 22% of our oil supply.
Initially, it was Norway that stepped into Russia’s shoes as Belgium’s biggest oil supplier. However, new figures released by the energy industry federation Energia, the United States has overtaken Norway. In 2024 Norway exported 5.537 million tonnes of oil to Belgium, while we imported the 5.641 million tonnes from the United States.
The US's market share rose from 13% in 2023 to 18% last year. Energia says that one explanation for this might be a sharp increase in US oil production. Furthermore, Belgium also has strong economic links with the US oil industry, exporting finished products such as petrol to customers there.
Kazakhstan follows the United and Norway and is Belgium's third-biggest oil exporter. It accounted for 3.67 million tonnes and a 12% share in 2024. Meanwhile, imports of oil from the Middle East continue to decline. They accounted for just 10% of the total in 2024.