eCO2mix - Electricity consumption in France

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Track real-time electricity consumption in mainland France and view the different forecasts made the day before and on the same day.

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Electricity consumption in France

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Compare daily peaks to average temperature

Tracking and understanding France’s electricity consumption
 

Track real-time electricity consumption in mainland France and view consumption forecasts made the day before and on the same day.
This graph shows you:

  • France’s power consumption in real time;
  • The "D-1" consumption forecast made the previous day;
  • The "D0" consumption forecast, updated in the course of the day.

    

Spotlight on France’s electricity consumption


Electricity consumption varies throughout the day. It peaks and dips depending on the time, on the day of the week, on holiday periods and public holidays, as well as on the seasons and on weather conditions. It reflects the day-to-day life of the French population and the French economy.

RTE is constantly adjusting power output to user needs.

  • For generation facilities connected to RTE’s grid, real-time remote measurements are fed into the power system’s monitoring software.
  • For generation facilities connected to distribution networks, our partners (Enedis and local distribution companies) as well as some wind and solar generation facilities send RTE their own remote measurements.

However, not all data can be remotely monitored: RTE uses mathematical models to produce estimates or "flat rates". This provides éCO2mix with real-time indicators which are compiled from remotely monitored data supplemented by forecasts.

Spotlight on the D-1 electricity consumption forecast


RTE’s role is to maintain a balance between electricity supply and demand in France:

  • Demand is forecast by RTE (consumption forecast);
  • Supply comes from generation facilities, sellers and unit commitment schedulers (generation forecasts).

In mainland France, consumption forecasts made the previous day for the following day are the result of a predictive model that uses:

  • Weather data (historical records and forecasts);
  • Power-consumption data (historical records);
  • Demand-side response data (historical records and forecasts), i.e. certain customers’ ability to reduce their power consumption;
  • Heat sensitivity and summer/winter rates, i.e. the rise in consumption due to falling temperatures;
  • Calendar (public holidays, week-ends, school holidays, etc.).

 

At the end of the day (at around 20.00), you can check the next day’s consumption forecast by selecting the date.

Differences between forecast and actual electricity consumption


Differences between forecast and actual electricity consumption are primarily due to changing weather conditions. For example, temperature and natural light are factors that directly influence electricity consumption, which is difficult to forecast accurately. Similarly, in spite of all the available historical consumption records, it is impossible to accurately predict residential and business customer behaviours in advance.

For all the aforementioned reasons, there is always some difference between forecast and actual electricity consumption, even when time periods are as short as a few hours, as is the case with "D0" forecasts.

Browsing through the power-consumption calendar


The calendar enables you to view data over a period of one day or more (up to 8 weeks on desktop and 1 week on a smartphone).

 

Historical data is updated twice following initial publication:

 

  • In the course of the following month, historical data is consolidated ("consolidated data" in green in the calendar, based on available metering data).
  • In the course of the first half of the following year, historical data is finalised ("final data" in red in the calendar, based on all metering data).

Using the "consumption vs temperature" function

 

Click on this button below the graph to view daily consumption spikes
depending on average temperatures since the 1st of January 2012.
You will note that electricity consumption is primarily affected by weather conditions and calendar periods.

 
You can select the days of the year that interest you.
You can select up to 4 different dates in order to observe consumption behaviours depending on temperature. In order to delete selected days, click on the "x" next to the selected dates.

 

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