Due to the lockdown measures with the aim of slowing down the spread of the coronavirus, lower electricity consumption was noticed in the European Union. The closing of factories, schools, restaurants, stay-at-home orders and other measures affected lower electricity consumption.
The measures were in force during April and a part of May, therefore May electricity consumption was at the lowest level for all EU member states. At the EU level, electricity consumption was 10.8 % lower than the lowest May consumption recorded between 2016 and 2019.
Electricity consumption in May was very low in several EU member states, especially in Spain and Poland (- 13.7 % compared to May 2019), which are followed by Slovenia (-13.4 %), Croatia (-11.9 %), Romania (-11.8 %) and Portugal (-11.6 %).
In two member states – Bulgaria and Latvia, electricity consumption was relatively stable, with +/- 1 % variations, while it rose in four member states.
