UK electricity use continues to fall

DSC_1734UK electricity use is continuing to fall and no one is sure why.  The electricity use in the EU is rising.   Last year the decline was 2% and there has been a 9% fall since 2010.  Up until now declining industrial production explained the fall (although the EU has had this as well).   The explanation for the EU increases are easier to explain.   The huge migration of refugees in recent years, bitcoin mining and increased electric vehicles.

Personally I think the fact that the UK electricity use is continuing to fall is down to the use of more efficient products.  Every time something wears out and we replace it the item we replace it with uses an order of magnitude less power.  LED bulbs have plummeted in price.  Not only is the light indistinguishable but the price is such that you  do not need to be an eco enthusiast to use them.  Many people I know like myself are gradually replacing conventional bulbs with them.   This use of more efficient products  has in my view been driven partly by the large rises in electricity prices over the last 10 years.  Prices in most EU countries were higher to start off with and UK prices have caught up.  How much longer this fall in UK electricity use will continue is a moot point with electrification of the economy but for the moment this is good news.

Neil

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