The sobriety plan drawn up by the government aims to reduce consumption by 10% in two years compared to 2019
France has declared a general mobilization to save energy in a winter that promises to be complicated without Russian gas and with many nuclear reactors shut down due to maintenance or technical problems. Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne presented an Energy Sobriety Plan this Thursday that aims to reduce consumption by 10% in two years compared to 2019 and by 40% by 2050.
In the short term, the government hopes this program will make it possible to avoid power cuts during the war in Ukraine, in which “Russia is using its gas as a ‘weapon of war’,” said Energy Minister Agnès Pannier-Runchacher. Transition.
In the long term, the goal is to lift the country out of its dependence on fossil fuels. Pannier-Runchacher believes that “the general mobilization in favor of sobriety is the best response to the energy and climate crises we are experiencing.” “Every gesture counts. Let’s save energy’, is the message of the communication campaign that the Executive will be launching next Monday.
The plan is not intended to impose restrictions or sanctions, but to encourage everyone – citizens, businesses, communities and public administration – to conserve energy. The government ensures that small gestures are enough for this: from lowering the heating or reducing the consumption of hot water to promoting teleworking, improving the insulation of houses, installing a programmable thermostat or turning off the heating. lights of the signboards of shops for night or luminous advertising.
“By acting together, we can avoid shortages, austerity and limit the economic impact of Russia’s near-total disruption of gas supply,” said Borne, who promised the state and public administrations will set an example.
The president, Emmanuel Macron, warned that energy sobriety “does not mean producing less or going into a degrowth economy”, but rather “making gains in efficiency”. “If the entire nation manages to maintain that goal, which in the worst case is completely voluntary, we will get through the winter,” Macron said before traveling to Prague to attend the European Political Community summit.
The government has promised to publish the evolution of electricity and gas consumption on a weekly basis to check whether the target is being achieved or not. Citizens can also view it in person thanks to Ecowatt, a platform that allows to monitor consumption and warn users when there is a risk of targeted power outages.
France currently has its gas reserves at 99%, a level higher than the average of other years. According to the French Energy Regulation Commission, “this volume represents about two-thirds of the winter consumption of SMEs and private individuals.”
Source: La Verdad
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