The high temperatures of June caused Estonians to consume more electricity, increasing their electricity bills considerably.
Summertime electricity consumption in Estonia is always lower during summer than in winter as longer days and warmer temperatures take care of heating homes. Still, the recent heatwaves have led Estonians to look for cooling, fans flew off the shelves and air conditioners were turned on again. All this increased electricity bills considerably in June.
“This year, consumption was 4% higher than last year. There could be two sides: on one side, the economy has revived and on the other, the second half of [June] was warmer. Meaning, we have noted that if the average daily temperature exceeds 20 degrees, it means additional consumption for the general network,” said Elektrilevi network service product manager Tonu Roosve.
While looking to cool off during hot days is completely natural, Roosve says there are a few tricks to decrease electricity consumption.
“The general recommendation from a cost perspective is to use devices at specific times when electricity prices are lower – nighttime and weekends, generally. Currently, with us having very warm weathers, it should be checked if any heating devices have not been left on,” Roosve said.
According to Elering’s energy market development manager Erkki Sapp, there are clever solutions to go with long-known tricks.
“There are more and more devices entering the market that do this for us and are capable of monitoring prices and setting its actions accordingly. This ensures the consumer a similar level of comfort,” Sappi said. (ERR/Business World Magazine)