How Europe plans to cut gas usage

From cutting down on shower time, driving slower and fining shopkeepers for not closing their doors, Europeans are embarking on a target of reducing energy usage in time for winter, and some citizens have taken to social media to share their experiences.

For example, German Christopher Hipp offered tips on Twitter on how to defrost a freezer, saying that more electricity is saved the more frost-free the kitchen device is.

Cindy, who lives in the Netherlands, shared her attempts at trying to shower within a 5 minute time target — failing with 6 minutes and 21 seconds. “It took 48 seconds for the shower to get hot,” she tweeted.

Ruud Vuik and his daughter, who also reside in the Netherlands, tried the same feat by using a blue water droplet-shaped shower timer for a week, which starts at 5 minutes before trickling away to a blaring alarm.

These targets are part of EU’s wider effort to cut natural gas demand this winter, with an arsenal of methods of their own choosing.

The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, in July agreed on a voluntary target to cut gas use by 15% until March 2023, compared to what the average consumption was from 2016 to 2021.

These are what some of the EU governments have recommended: 

France

President Emmanuel Macron called for a gas use reduction of 10%, and warned that forced energy savings will be on the table if voluntary efforts prove to be insufficient. Russian gas imports account for 15% of France’s gas consumption, making it less reliant on Russia than most of its EU peers.

• Lights from the iconic Eiffel Tower will switch off about an hour earlier at 11.45 p.m., Paris’ mayor announced on September 13.
• Shop owners who leave the doors of air-conditioned stores open will be fined 750 euros ($751).
• Illuminated ads will be banned from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. 

Germany

Germany has been the most exposed to Russian gas supply cuts. Germany’s Economy Minister Robert Habeck released a statement introducing a slew of measures which came into effect on Sept. 2 in the hope of reducing gas usage by around 2%.

• Public buildings are heated to a maximum of 19 degrees Celsius.
• Shopfronts banned from being illuminated at night.
• A ban on heating private swimming pools.

Austria

Austria is also heavily reliant on Russian gas, obtaining over 80% from Moscow in prior years. Last week, Austria’s climate department launched an energy-saving campaign dubbed “Mission 11,” with these recommendations:

• Drive slower to save energy — at a suggested speed limit of 100km/h
• Regularly defrosting a freezer.
• Reduce shower time.

Spain

While Spain is not as dependent as other EU members on Russian gas, which accounted for 14.5% of its imports, Spain’s Parliament…