An analysis by the Energy Management Institute based on data from Eurostat shows that electricity consumption within the European Union is below the levels from previous years.
Since mid-March 2020, EU Member States have taken restrictive measures to slow down the spread of COVID-19. These measures include closing businesses, schools, restaurants, bars and hotels and requiring people to stay at home. Many companies have lowered their production levels due to lack of demand or disruption of their supply chain. These measures were in full force throughout April 2020. By the end of May and continuing in June, many countries had begun to partially lift restrictions and the tourist season had begun.
However, June data show lower electricity consumption in most Member States. The total electricity consumption in the EU in June 2020 is 7.6% lower than the lowest value in June, registered between 2016 and 2019.
Compared to the lowest level in June since 2016, Greece, Spain, Croatia, Cyprus, Poland and Slovenia show a decline of more than 10%. As tourism is an important sector for most of these countries, reducing the number of tourists is likely to lead to a reduction in electricity consumption. The tourism sector declined significantly due to travel warnings and quarantine measures. This can be seen from the tourism data for June.
Seven Member States (Denmark, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Austria, Portugal and Finland) show a decrease in electricity consumption by 5% to 10%, while for eight Member States the decrease is between 1% and 5% (Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Hungary, the Netherlands, Romania and Slovakia). In Latvia and Lithuania, the situation remained stable (up to + 1%), while other countries (Estonia, Ireland, Malta and Sweden) reported an increase in electricity consumption compared to the lowest level in June.
Although Denmark and Bulgaria show an increase in electricity consumption from March to May 2020, in June both registered a decrease in electricity consumption compared to the lowest value in the reference month between 2016 and 2019.
Source: Energy Management Institute
