RTE lowers from “medium” to “low” the risk of electrical network tensions for the end of winter

The risk of strains on the power grid for the rest of the winter has gone from “AVERAGE” To “weak”, according to the operator of the high and very high voltage network RTE. He had already passed“pupil” To “AVERAGE” December 20.

“The mid-February update for the end of winter confirms the diagnosis of recent months: the risk relating to the security of electricity supply has now largely been eliminated”estimated RTE in the latest update of its outlook for winter, Friday 24 February.

Declining electricity consumption

The use of the Ecowatt alert system cannot be ruled out “in the event of a large-scale climatic event (late and intense cold snap)”. That “however seems unlikely”supplements RTE.

After initially fearing cuts in the heart of winter, France is finally finding a favorable scenario. It owes this in large part to an electricity consumption down 9% on average over the last four weeks compared to the reference average before the health crisis (2014-2019).

The drop in consumption affected all sectors, from individuals to industry and the tertiary sector. “The improvement in the situation is reflected on the economic level, with electricity and gas prices having largely fallen in recent months”notes RTE.