EU Records €186.6 Billion Trade Surplus With U.K. In 2025

The European Union recorded a €186.6 billion trade surplus with the United Kingdom in 2025, according to new data released by Eurostat. EU exports to the U.K. reached €345.3 billion during the year, while imports totaled €158.7 billion, leaving the bloc with a substantial surplus in goods trade.

Trade Share Has Declined, But The U.K. Remains A Major Market

Although the U.K. continues to be one of the EU’s largest trading partners, its share of overall EU trade has declined over the past decade. In 2015, the U.K. accounted for 11.2% of all EU imports and 16.9% of total exports. By 2020, those shares had fallen to 9.9% and 14.4%, respectively.

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Following the U.K.’s departure from the EU single market in 2021, export flows remained relatively stable. EU exports to the U.K. represented 13.0% of total exports in 2021 and 13.1% in 2025. Over the same period, the share of imports from the U.K. declined from 7.0% to 6.3%.

Vehicles, Machinery And Energy Products Dominate Trade Flows

Trade between the EU and the U.K. continues to be concentrated in several key industrial sectors. The five largest product categories accounted for 47.1% of all EU exports to the U.K. in 2025. Vehicles other than railway or tramway rolling stock represented the largest category at €55.8 billion, or 16.2% of total exports.

Machinery, mechanical appliances and parts followed at €44.9 billion (13.0%), ahead of electrical machinery and parts, audio-visual equipment and accessories at €27.2 billion. Pharmaceutical products accounted for €20.4 billion, while mineral fuels and oils reached €14.5 billion.

Imports From The U.K. Show A Similar Concentration

A similar pattern was visible on the import side, where the five largest categories accounted for 48.5% of all goods imported from the U.K.Machinery, mechanical appliances and parts ranked first at €22.6 billion, representing 14.3% of total imports. Mineral fuels and oils followed closely at €22.0 billion (13.9%), while vehicles other than railway or tramway rolling stock accounted for €15.1 billion.

Pharmaceutical products totaled €9.0 billion, and imports of electrical machinery and parts, audio-visual equipment and accessories reached €8.3 billion. The data show that vehicles, machinery, pharmaceuticals, and energy products remained among the most traded goods between the EU and the U.K. in 2025, despite changes in the trading relationship since Brexit.

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Cyprus Moves To Unlock More Solar Power With First Large-Scale Battery Storage Contracts

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

June 23, 2026

Cyprus is preparing to sign the first contracts for large-scale electricity storage batteries on Tuesday, a project expected to improve the grid’s ability to manage growing renewable energy production and reduce the curtailment of solar power.

A Long-Awaited Grid Fix

Energy Minister Michalis Damianos said the agreements will cover 120MW of centralised storage capacity that will be managed by the transmission system operator. The project, valued at €50 million, is expected to deliver the batteries in January 2027, with installation scheduled to take place over the following two to three months.

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According to Damianos, the system should become operational by the summer of 2027, a period when both electricity demand and solar generation typically peak. He said the storage facilities will allow energy currently lost due to a lack of storage capacity to be retained and used when needed.

Why Storage Has Become Essential

The batteries are designed to absorb excess renewable electricity during periods of overproduction and release it back into the system when demand increases. Their introduction is expected to reduce the curtailments currently affecting solar generators and improve the use of renewable energy already being produced across the island.

Former Energy Minister George Papanastasiou told Sigma that planning for the project began in 2023 in cooperation with the European Commission. The objective was to address growing losses from renewable energy generation that the electricity network cannot currently absorb.

By the end of May 2026, approximately 160,000 megawatt hours of renewable energy had been lost through curtailments affecting residential photovoltaic systems, commercial solar parks, and wind installations. According to Papanastasiou, renewable electricity production exceeds demand during several hours of the day, leaving part of the output unable to be utilised.

The Cost Of Growing Faster Than The Grid

The challenge has become more pronounced as renewable generation capacity has expanded faster than the infrastructure required to manage surplus electricity. Data from the distribution system operator show that around 306 gigawatt hours of renewable energy were curtailed in 2025, compared with approximately 167 gigawatt hours a year earlier.

Papanastasiou acknowledged criticism that storage deployment has not kept pace with the growth of renewable energy projects, although he noted that regulatory and financing challenges slowed implementation. He added that the development of storage and generation capacity needs to progress in parallel, a challenge faced by many energy markets.

Private Capital Is Also Entering The Market

The state-backed battery installation forms part of a broader expansion of energy storage capacity across Cyprus. Alongside the project managed by the transmission system operator, the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) and private developers are advancing their own investments.

Current figures show 36 applications for battery storage projects with a combined requested capacity of approximately 925MW. The EAC has submitted applications for storage facilities in Dhekelia and Moni with a combined capacity of 180MW, while private-sector projects exceeding 150MW have progressed through various stages of the approval process.

Grid Stability Comes First

According to Papanastasiou, the state-owned battery system will primarily serve grid stability and energy security objectives rather than operate as a commercial trading asset. The facilities will store electricity during periods of surplus generation and release it when demand rises or when supply pressures emerge.

Privately operated storage projects could also contribute to the market by storing lower-cost renewable electricity and dispatching it later when demand and prices are higher.

As renewable energy continues to account for a larger share of Cyprus’ electricity mix, storage infrastructure is expected to play an increasingly important role in balancing supply and demand, reducing curtailments, and improving the overall efficiency of the power system.

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