Vattenfall Energy Savings Barometer: Smart measures and investments against the energy crisis
Among age groups, younger
people between 18-35 years have so far been least likely to change their
behaviour in daily life to save energy. Compared to other countries, the
French seem to have adapted most in their efforts to consume less energy
while the most innovative consumers live in the Netherlands. These are
some of the results in Vattenfall’s new energy savings barometer.
"The results show that customers perceive the energy crisis to be
overcome by joint social efforts. It is the sum of small and big steps
that will help to keep prices under control in the short run and transform
our energy system towards a fossil free future," says Martijn Hagens,
Head of Customers & Solutions and Heat at Vattenfall.
On behalf of Vattenfall, research institute Statista surveyed a total of
5,000 representatively selected consumers in Germany, Finland, France,
Sweden and the Netherlands between 13 and 23 January.
According to the results, nine out of ten consumers are concerned or very
concerned about the high energy prices. French consumers are worried the
most, fearing that the situation will continue to worse. The Finns and
the Dutch are slightly more optimistic. There, almost every second consumer
believes that prices will remain the same or decrease in the future.
Consequently, nine out of ten consumers consider it as relevant or very
relevant to lower their energy consumption. This is mainly due to financial
considerations: For more than 90 percent of respondents, the main motive
for saving energy is to save money. Over 70 percent agree that they lower
their energy use to protect natural resources while more than 65 percent
do it to be less energy dependent from other countries. The French show
the highest motivation to save energy for environmental and climate reasons
among all five countries.
“Wholesale energy prices have gone down recently and each kilowatt hour
of gas and electricity that is saved can have a positive impact,“ says
Martijn Hagens.
According to newly released figures from Eurostat, gas consumption in the
European Union fell by almost 20 percent between August 2022 and January
2023.
People between 18 and 35 years have so far been the least likely age group
to change their behaviour in daily life to reduce energy consumption. This
is a trend that can be observed in all countries. Older generations more
often experienced various crises in the past. This could mean that they
are more used to adapt to restrictions during certain periods. Younger
people have also taken fewer investments in small-scale energy saving measures
such as using LED lights compared to all other age groups. This age gap
disappears among house owners, that most often invested in insulation,
heating and solar panels.
But young consumers do not live wastefully in terms of energy resources
either. Even if a smaller proportion has implemented specific measures,
they show a high willingness to adapt their daily behaviour and to invest
in energy efficient features in the future. This age group also shows a
high degree of optimism. They expect the biggest energy savings from the
measures taken. The older people are, the more sceptic they become that
their measures will actually help to save energy.
Among house owners, the picture differs per region. The majority of house
owners in the Nordic countries (54 percent) made investments in heat from
renewable sources – for example with a heat pump. In the countries surveyed
in Continental Europe, the majority of investments goes into the insulation
of houses, more than half took this measure. Solar panels are especially
attractive in the Netherlands, 47 percent of house owners made an investment
already. Sweden and Finland can expect a higher demand for solar panels,
around two thirds of house owners are willing to invest in this technology
in the future. A high demand for heat pumps can be expected for Germany
and for the Netherlands, more than 55 percent are willing to invest in
renewable heating.
According to the survey, the most innovative consumers live in the Netherlands.
Their homes are most often equipped with energy-efficient technology both
with features that can be easily implemented and by having insulated their
homes and installed solar panels.
When it comes to governmental investments, most consumers would like states
to invest in building fossil free infrastructure and mentioned this as
their preferred solution. The support for building fossil free infrastructure
is highest in Sweden (35 percent) and Finland (30 percent). Among German
consumers, the most favoured governmental measure is direct support to
households to reduce the financial burden for them (23 percent), closely
followed by investments in fossil free and decentralised infrastructure.
More results from the survey:
To consume less energy, consumers have made a wide range of behavioural
changes in their everyday life:
- Using less light
was most often mentioned as reduction measure in Sweden (77 percent), Finland
(80 percent) and France (81 percent)
- 80 percent of Germans
cook with a lid
- 82 percent of Dutch
consumers reduced the temperatures in their homes
- Consumers in the
Nordics are less flexible to adapt their heating behaviour. Around 60 percent
of people reduce temperatures at home or heat only the most frequently
used rooms (nearly half of respondents)
- More than two out
of three take shorter showers. And one out of three take cold showers,
the Finns most often implemented this measure (41 percent)
- About a quarter go
to bed earlier than they used to do
Many consumers have
also made small and medium-sized purchases:
- More than 72 percent
switched to LED lights
- 70 percent of Germany
purchased power stripes with off switches, only 42 percent of Swedes did
that
- 56 percent of Dutch
people bought a water-saving shower head. In Finland, only 33 percent of
consumers made such an investment