Indeed, the report revealed that electricity use in the EU service sector increased by 15.8% in 2006, while industry consumption grew by 9.5% in the same period. Electricity consumption in the residential sector of the EU25 has grown to the point that it effectively nullifies overall savings between 1999 and 2004, the EU said.
The average consumption for a single household in the EU25 was 4098kWh in 2004. This could be reduced by 800kWh per house per year, or about 20% less electricity consumption in each household, if the replacement of existing appliances and equipment and a full phase-out of incandescent lighting were to be actively promoted in all EU member states.
The report shows that, although a number of EU policies have permanently changed the face of the appliance market for the better in terms of efficient energy use, particularly for equipment such as refrigerators and washing machines, electricity consumption in the EU25 continues to increase across all of the residential, service and industry sectors.
The report highlighted two key areas that can be blamed for the increase in energy use. The increasingly common phenomenon of household electronics on standby mode has a significant impact on electricity consumption, while incandescent light bulbs waste a staggering 95% of the electricity they use to produce visible light, the EU said.
However, the report comments that new technologies may be able to produce equipment with very low standby losses and to produce more efficient light bulbs.
The EU’s report, carried out by its in-house scientific service, the Joint Research Centre, highlights the key findings of an in-depth 2006 survey on electricity consumption in buildings in the enlarged EU, and the market share of energy-efficient appliances and equipment.
