Characterization of the household electricity consumption in the EU, potential energy savings and specific policy recommendations

Abstract

Although significant improvements in energy efficiency have been achieved in home appliances and lighting, the electricity consumption in the European Union household has increased by 2% per year during the past 10 years. Some reasons are associated with an increased degree of basic comfort and level of amenities and with the widespread utilization of new types of loads. Wishing to increase the understanding of the energy consumption in the EU households for the different types of equipment including the consumers' behaviour and comfort levels, and to identify demand trends, an energy monitoring campaign, was carried out in 12 geographically representative EU countries, accompanied by a lifestyle survey. From the measurements carried out it was concluded that Information Technologies and entertainment loads are key contributors to the power demand. In basically all types of loads there is wide range of performance levels in the models available in the market. Available technology, associated with responsible consumer behaviour, can reduce wasteful consumption. Based on a bottom up approach the European residential sector potential electricity savings that can be implemented by existing technologies and improved behaviour can reach 48%. The paper presents policy recommendations promoting market transformation and behavioural changes in the equipment selection and operation.

Modelling, assessing, and ranking public procurement options for a climate-friendly catering service

“…Moreover, a large share of appliances used today already belongs to high classes according, for example, to the EU Energy Labelling Directive (2010/30/EU). For example, De Almeida et al (2011) estimated that 90% of domestic appliances sold in the EU are already in class 'A' or higher. Ardente and Mathieux (2014) estimated that, referring to the current European energy labelling of washing machines, the substitution of a product of energy class 'A' to one of class 'A+' implies a reduction of 12% of the energy consumption during use, while substituting it with a washing machine of class 'A++' would allow a reduction of the energy consumption of about 22%.…”

A Case Study on Household Electricity Uses and Their Variations Due to Occupant Behavior in Chinese Apartments in Beijing

“…For example, in addition to emphasizing the variation of household electricity use among dwelling units, the variations of major end-use loads have also been described and analyzed based on field measured data. Some efforts have been made to identify typical use patterns of individual appliances [15][16] . To explore the energy saving potential relating to electric appliance purchase, Anibal et al 16) analyzed the annual electricity saving from replacing existing inefficient technologies with the Best Available Technology (BAT), in a typical household.…”

“…Some efforts have been made to identify typical use patterns of individual appliances [15][16] . To explore the energy saving potential relating to electric appliance purchase, Anibal et al 16) analyzed the annual electricity saving from replacing existing inefficient technologies with the Best Available Technology (BAT), in a typical household. Moreover, Lopes et al 17) have provided detailed information about the use patterns of major domestic appliances such as TVs, rice cookers and refrigerators, for both their operation mode and length of use.…”

“…In the past several decades, a number of studies on occupant behavior in residential buildings have been carried out in European countries, Australia, the USA and Japan [13][14][15][16][17][19][20][21][22][23][24] , before the importance of occupant behavior was officially realized in China. For example, in addition to emphasizing the variation of household electricity use among dwelling units, the variations of major end-use loads have also been described and analyzed based on field measured data.…”

Information, communication and entertainment appliance use—Insights from a UK household study

“…Such work can help to 24 evaluate the effectiveness of existing policies and identify new patterns of consumption. Results from recent 25 European monitoring campaigns [10,11] have provided important insights into household electricity 26 consumption, but these did not include UK homes. 27 Although it is important to undertake energy monitoring, it is also important to understand why patterns of 28 electricity consumption occur by gathering behavioural data.…”