If you’ve read the news at any point since 2021, you’ll know UK energy has been… a vibe. Not a relaxing vibe. More like “why is my direct debit doing parkour?” vibe.
- First: a quick note on dates (because stats lag real life)
- Where Does the UK Get its Gas From?
- What about UK Oil Imports?
- Why doesn't the UK just drill more gas and oil from the North Sea?
- How Much Gas Does the UK Use Every Year?
- What does the UK use all this gas for?
- If we don’t buy Russian gas, why did 2022–2025 still hit UK prices?
So it’s no surprise people keep asking:
Where does the UK actually get its gas from?
Did Russia ever supply much to the UK - and does it now?
Why do UK prices jump even when we don’t buy much from Russia?
Let’s break it down using the latest available official figures (and yes, we’ll tell you exactly what year they cover, so nobody can accuse you of quoting dinosaur data).
First: a quick note on dates (because stats lag real life)
UK energy stats are published with a delay.
The latest fully-audited annual government figures are for 2024 (published in DUKES / UK Energy in Brief 2025, released 31 July 2025).
The most recent government “live-ish” updates are the Energy Trends and Prices release (26 Feb 2026), which includes data up to December 2025.
For a “what actually happened in 2025?” overview, Great Britain’s system operator NESO published a 2025 review (helpful context, not a replacement for DUKES tables).
So: 2024 is the latest full-year official breakdown, and 2025 has provisional/operational summaries.
The short answer:
The UK gets its gas from three main “pipes”:
UK production (mainly the UK Continental Shelf / North Sea)
Pipeline imports (mostly Norway)
LNG imports (shipped in from countries like the US and Qatar)
In 2024, Norway supplied 76% of UK gas imports (up from 58% in 2023).
Also in 2024, LNG made up 25% of UK gas imports, and 68% of that LNG came from the US.
In Q3 2025, Norway still dominated - it accounted for 90% of total UK gas imports (imports were affected by Norwegian outages, but Norway remained the main source).
Where Does the UK Get its Gas From?
You may be surprised to learn that the UK currently sources around 50% of its natural gas from its own territory, with the North Sea accounting for an estimated 50%.
The remaining 50% of UK gas supplies are imported from various different countries around the world, including Norway, the United States and Russia.
In the infographic below we provide a complete breakdown of the latest official figures on UK gas and oil imports.
If the image is used, please attribute it by linking to: heatable.co.uk
At present, official figures indicate that Norway accounts for the majority of the UK gas imports at around 1,440,000 metric tons, which makes it responsible for one-third of all imports.
The United States accounted for the second highest importing around 93,000 metric tons of gas.
Meanwhile, Denmark and Belgium each imported around 45,000 metric tons.
Interestingly, Russia only accounted for 3% of UK gas imports at just 9,000 metric tons, while France imported just 8,000 metric tons.
What about UK Oil Imports?
Oil and gas often get lumped together, but they behave differently.
For crude oil, the latest annual official stats (2024) show:
The US was the UK’s largest source of crude oil imports in 2024 (~16 million tonnes, over a third)
Norway was second (~13 million tonnes, ~31%)
Why doesn't the UK just drill more gas and oil from the North Sea?
Because “just drill more” is not a tap you turn on.
Here’s what actually blocks the fantasy version:
Time: new projects take years
Decline rates: mature basins naturally decline without constant investment
Market reality: UK-produced oil and gas is sold into global markets - it doesn’t automatically mean cheap “UK-only” energy
Policy and climate commitments: new licensing and investment decisions exist inside a political and regulatory framework
Energy Help Guides:
How Much Gas Does the UK Use Every Year?
According to the government’s DUKES natural gas commodity balance (Table 4.1), total UK gas demand in 2024 was:
688.6 TWh (that’s 688,624 GWh)
That was down about 2.3% from 2023 (about 704.6 TWh), and it took UK gas demand to the lowest level since 1992.
What does the UK use all this gas for?
Heating homes (still the big one)
Most UK homes still rely on gas for heating.
In England in 2023–24, around 21.2 million households (86%) used gas-fired main heating.
Electricity generation (still important, but not “half” anymore)
In 2024:
Low-carbon sources (renewables + nuclear) produced 64.7% of UK electricity generation
And NESO’s 2025 review adds useful context:
In 2025, wind was the largest source and gas provided 26.8% of electricity generation.
If we don’t buy Russian gas, why did 2022–2025 still hit UK prices?
Because gas is priced in a global market.
When a major supplier is disrupted (or sanctioned), everyone competes for the remaining supply:
LNG cargoes get diverted
Prices rise across regions
The UK feels it through wholesale markets, even if the UK isn’t buying directly from the disrupted source
So the UK’s exposure is less “we buy from Russia” and more “the global price moves, and we’re part of that market.”
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