CLASSIFICATION OF EUROPEAN UNION MEMBER STATES ACCORDING TO ELECTRICITY PRODUCTION FROM BIOENERGY

The aim of the study is to classify European Union member states according to their electricity production from bioenergy. The research question concerns the volume of electricity generated from bioenergy in EU member states in 2020 and 2024, and the identification of country groups showing similarities in 2024. The econometric toolbox includes the TOPSIS method and the k-means clustering algorithm. The classification of EU member states based on the bioenergy electricity production index for 2024 indicates the dominant position of Germany (first place) and the strong performance of Scandinavian countries – Finland, Denmark, and Sweden, which ranked second, fourth, and sixth, respectively. Notably, eight of the ten highest-ranked economies are EU-15 countries. Conversely, among the ten lowest-ranked countries, seven are EU-12 states that joined the EU in or after 2004. In 2024, the clusters correspond closely to the ranking structure. Countries such as Finland and Sweden (cluster 2), Germany (cluster 3), and Denmark, Estonia, and Luxembourg (cluster 4) all appear within the top six positions. These countries possess substantial forest or arable areas, a factor that clearly supports biomass production. The EU-15 group dominates the upper half of the classification, reflecting their earlier and more intensive engagement in bioenergy and renewable energy development compared to EU-12 countries.