Why you should continue to conserve electricity
Although the season of the highest electricity prices seems to be behind us, you should still conserve it, says Anna Pasma, managing director of Oulun Energia Sähköverkko Oy. Conserving it will help keep electricity prices affordable in the future, as the market price of electricity is largely determined by supply and demand.
“As an electricity network distributor, we also want to continue to encourage our customers to conserve electricity and to schedule its use, as this ensures sufficient electricity, especially during cold frosts next winter. By moving consumption away from the most congested hours of the electric power network, we can avoid situations in which we do not have sufficient electricity generation and import of electricity to cover our electricity consumption.”
According to Anna Pasma, people should increasingly schedule their electricity usage and avoid times when electricity is most expensive and consumption is at its highest. Peak consumption hours, or the most expensive times, are usually 8–10 a.m. and 4–6 p.m. on working days.
There are about 13,000 electrically heated homes in the Oulun Energia Sähköverkko Oy operating area. They have the highest electricity consumption of all households and also the greatest potential for benefiting from conserving it.
In January, Oulun Energia Sähköverkko Oy launched a new free service for customers with a time-of-use rate. In general, these customers heat their homes electrically. For them, the measurement of electricity is based on peak/off-peak times, where the cheaper off-peak electricity is in effect from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.
“Customers are now able to switch on their night load at 1 a.m. instead, allowing them to better benefit from the cheaper hours of exchange electricity.”
Anna Pasma says that this period of expensive electricity has been educational for the whole energy sector.
“We have seen the impact of talking about it and encouraging people to conserve. I doubt anyone in Finland has been able to escape the knowledge of how to reduce the use of electricity.”
6 tips for conserving electricity in the summer!
It is wise to conserve electricity even in the summer. Use these six specific tips to help you optimise your energy use.
- Utilise the roller shutters for passive energy conservation during both summer and winter. In cold frosts, closed curtains or blinds help to retain heat in the room, and in the spring sun, they should be kept up to help heat the room. In hot weather, they help to keep rooms cool and reduce the need for using the cooling function on the air source heat pump.
- You can monitor your hourly electricity consumption on Oulun Energia’s Energiatili service and on the mobile app. You can easily and tangibly see the impact turning the electric sauna stove on has on consumption, for example.
- Before the summer, go through the contents of your freezer and use up any remaining seasonal products before the new season. Empty and clean the freezer for the next season.
- Use the air source heat pump correctly. When using the air source heat pump for cooling, do not set the target temperature too low, only to the temperature you need. Whether summer or winter, do not use the automatic function of the air source heat pump, which may result in both cooling and heating.
- The electricity consumption of refrigeration appliances increases during hot weather. Ensure air flow around the appliances and move the appliances away from the rear wall. Do not open refrigeration appliance doors frequently and also leave room inside the refrigerator and freezer for air flow.
- You can keep the room temperatures cool by avoiding using the electric oven and reducing the use of other electrical appliances that generate heat. This also reduces the need for mechanical air conditioning.
