Private households more careful than industry: This is how individuals and companies in the region use gas and water

Private households more careful than industry This is how individuals and companies in the region use gas and water

Bonn/Region · The use of gas and water varies in private households and companies in Bonn, Rhein-Sieg, Ahrweiler and Neuwied. Some suppliers have seen a sharp drop in usage, while others have seen only a slight change in consumption.

07.09.2022 , 09:16 Uhr

In the summer months, private households use gas mainly for showering.
Foto: Patrick Pleul

Are the calls to save money working or is it mainly the warm weather that is helping reduce the amount of gas being used? The EU wants its member states to consume 15 per cent less gas so that there is no supply shortage in winter. The German government is aiming for 20 percent. In Germany, consumption is indeed falling, but it is still far from the targeted savings. Nationwide, the Bundesnetzagentur (Federal Network Agency) reported a significant decline in gas consumption in the first seven months compared to the previous year. In January, the amount of gas used was down by nine percent in Germany, in February it was down 13 percent, in March 16 percent, in April 14 percent, in May 25 percent, in June 14 percent and in July three percent. Overall, in the first seven months of 2022, gas consumption fell by around 14 per cent compared to the previous year.

What are the people and companies in the Bonn, Rhine-Sieg, Ahrweiler and Neuwied region doing? Are they following politicians' calls to save in order to avoid a gas shortage in winter by consuming less?

More holidaymakers

"There is a tendency towards decreasing natural gas consumption in our area," says Rhenag spokesman Detlev Albert. The quantities that Siegburg-based Rhenag purchases via the upstream network operator have decreased by about ten percent, adjusted for temperature. But Albert says there are various reasons behind the drop. "Many customers have started taking long holidays again this year, and industrial production is also down in some places, with one reason being the shortage of raw materials." He says it is therefore difficult to say with certainty whether appeals for austerity are being taken to heart in the region.

Weather affects consumption

Bad Honnef AG's gas customers also reduced their consumption by about 16 per cent from January to July compared to the same period in 2021, says marketing manager Daniela Paffhausen. But it’s probably because of the weather. 2021 was significantly cooler than 2022, especially during the winter months. In May 2021, for example, consumption was just under 50 gigawatt hours (GWh) and thus about twice as high as in May 2022. If you compare the years 2018 to 2022 in the period from January to July, the peak figure (457 GWh) was recorded in 2021. In 2022, gas consumption up to July was 384 GWh. If you compare this figure to July 2020, which was also warmer than average, the differences are rather small (379 GWh). Deviations from the long-term average are therefore quite marginal and so far do not indicate a change in consumption patterns.

"In general, we assume that changes in consumers’ behaviour are weather-related. We won’t be able to see if there are any reactions to increased energy prices until the winter months," said Paffhausen. Current savings in gas and water usage probably resulted from a less energy and water being used in manufacturing, as more and more companies have stopped production or reduced their business operations. According to the Federal Network Agency's gas situation report, natural gas consumption by industrial customers in Germany in July was around 21.3 per cent below the July average for the years 2018 to 2021.

Fluctuating industrial consumption

Energieversorgung Mittelrhein AG (EVM), the basic utility in some areas of northern Rhineland-Palatinate, has also noticed significant savings in gas consumption. In the first seven months of the year, there was a drop of more than ten per cent compared to the same period last year, says company spokesman Marcelo Peerenboom. However, fuel demand is subject to strong fluctuations, mainly due to industrial consumption, which can vary significantly depending on the number of orders. This is why in May alone, consumption was 30 per cent lower than in the same month of the previous year.

Overall, private households are saving significantly more than manufacturing. "We are hearing that some companies have decided to produce more in advance because they fear further increases in energy prices and also want to take precautions in case of a gas shortage," Peerenboom said. Overall, industrial consumption is at the previous year's level, while private households are saving ten percent and more.

Falling demand due to high prices

Stadtwerke Troisdorf GmbH also recorded a significant decline in gas consumption. However, it is not as great as in Germany as a whole. The German Association of Energy and Water Industries had announced that in June 2022 almost a quarter less gas was consumed than in the same month of the previous year. "The increasing awareness of citizens to save as much energy as possible is bearing fruit: In personal exchanges with our customers, we learn that the wish to conserve energy plays a central role, but we cannot represent this in figures," says company spokesperson Silke Schmitz. There are certainly several factors behind the decline. On the one hand, the order situation of many large customers has developed negatively, for example due to the pandemic and the war in Ukraine; on the other hand, high prices are behind the drop in demand.

Decreased consumption since May

Figures in Bonn are more differentiated: from January to April of this year, Stadtwerke Bonn customers used about as much gas as last year, explains spokesperson Clarissa Pütz. Since May, BonnNetz has recorded a decreased use of natural gas in the network. The reasons could be varied: "One reason will be the mild weather in the summer months. Furthermore, the savings can partly be attributed to customers being more careful about their energy consumption."

In the summer months, natural gas is mainly used in private households for heating water, she said. "So we can’t say anything yet about the upcoming domestic heating season," says Pütz. In the commercial and industrial sector, gas is used for production purposes. Here, a deliberate energy saving can be assumed, which will presumably also continue in the forthcoming heating season. Stadtwerke Bonn has saved natural gas by using only the steam from its waste incineration plant for district heating instead of natural gas.

Companies reduce production

E-regio from Euskirchen does not yet want to draw any conclusions as to whether usage behaviour has changed due to calls to save energy: "Gas consumption is strongly influenced by the weather and can only be compared to a limited extent," says company spokesperson Sebastian Zimer. Also, the heating period has not yet started, so that savings measures have hardly influenced gas so far. Some industrial customers who use gas for their production processes have announced that they will reduce their gas consumption because they can switch to other energy sources.

WATER CONSUMPTION More water does not flow in all areas than during cooler summers

The region's energy suppliers are also noticing varying patterns of water consumption. "Consumption is currently below that of the dry year 2020," explains Rhenag spokesman Albert. But here, too, it is difficult to say exactly what the underlying effect is. The increase in the number of people going on their summer holiday compared to 2020 probably plays a role as well. He said that 2021 could not be compared with this year because it was not a dry year.

At Bad Honnef AG, the total amount water used per year in private households decreased from 1991 to 2017. Since 2018, there has been a slight increase again, he said. "One reason for this is probably climate change causing extremely hot summers," explains Marketing Manager Daniela Paffhausen. Comparing January to July of 2018 with 2022, Bad Honnef AG, whose supply area includes Bad Honnef and Unkel, said the highest water consumption in private households was in 2020 with about 1.42 million cubic metres. "This compares with 2.3 per cent less in 2022 with 1.39 million cubic metres," Paffhausen said. If you compare May to July in 2020 and 2022, there were only insignificant deviations that were less than one per cent. The reduced consumption is therefore in the months of January to April and is thus not a consequence of the call to save energy." The lowest drinking water consumption in private households in a comparison of the years 2018 to 2022 was in 2020 with 1.32 million cubic metres. The summer of 2021 was very wet in Germany compared to previous years. In July this year, customers would have used almost 23 per cent more drinking water than in July last year. "This data confirms the assumption that the differences in consumption in recent years are probably mainly weather-related," Paffhausen said.

Energieversorgung Mittelrhein AG, based in Koblenz, cannot see any savings effect in water. In the month of July, for example, the amount consumed was around 20 per cent higher than in July 2021, according to company spokesperson Marcelo Peerenboom. The figure was also above that of 2020 and minimally below that of 2019, he said. Water consumption from January to July 2022 was about five per cent higher than in the same period in 2021, he said, while in the same period in 2019, it was eight per cent higher than in 2022.

At Stadtwerke Troisdorf, water consumption clearly reflects the very wet and rainy month of July 2021, which stands in contrast to the hot month of July this year, when significantly more water was consumed. But in July 2022, less was consumed than in the same month in 2018, 2019 and 2020, explains company spokesperson Silke Schmitz. 2.9 million cubic metres were used in each of the years 2018 to 2020 and "only" 2.8 million cubic metres in 2021 and 2022. If the period under consideration is extended to a full year, five million cubic metres were produced in each of the years 2018 to 2020. In 2021, consumption fell for the first time to 4.8 million cubic metres, said Schmitz.

At Stadtwerke Bonn, from January to the end of August, about 1.2 per cent more drinking water was consumed in the Bonn city area overall compared to last year. "This is directly related to the weather, because in the summer months in particular, drinking water consumption is always tied to the outside temperatures: the warmer it is, the more water we drink," says spokesperson Clarissa Pütz. This is why in August, which was exceptionally hot and dry, about 13 percent more water was consumed than in the same month last year. The small overall increase in demand this year up to the end of August compared to the same period in 2021 could in turn indicate lower green space irrigation in the months of May to July. As there had already been very warm and dry years in Bonn in 2018 and 2019, a slight increase (0.1 per cent) in water consumption had already been observed then. In the following years 2021 and 2020, which were comparatively less dry and hot, 3.6 percent less was consumed. During longer periods of heat and drought, the most water is no longer used in the morning, but in the evening. "This is because more people need water for personal hygiene and for watering the garden in the evening after a hot day," says Pütz. In general, he said, it can be seen that climate change is already having an impact on water management. E-Regio spokesman Sebastian Zimer points out that the number of people who are travelling also affects water consumption.

Original text: Claudia Mahnke

Translation: Jean Lennox