Energy use during pandemics
There are many moving parts within an economy, and the elements that make it up. Energy is like any other element, in that the balance is governed by supply and demand.
Economies are currently being buffeted by a global pandemic, with the human population acting in less predictable ways than normal. Society has become so widely dependent on energy that its production and consumption is influenced by human behaviour to a greater extent than almost every other commodity.
Possible changes in consumption
So how might energy consumption being affected by the current pandemic? Since the 2003 SARS epidemic, our society has become more digitally dependent - the iPhone wasn't launched until 2007 and Skype had only just been launched - and so work patterns and personal habits have changed considerably.
Here are a few ways in which our energy usage might change during this pandemic.
For gaseous and petroleum-based fuels, there is sometimes a considerable time lag between production and consumption that makes it more difficult for lay-people to measure the effects. But given the near-perfect match between demand and supply for electricity (it's hard to store) there are lots of statistics available to everyone online: here is a great site for seeing historical and even realtime data. The FT recently published an article suggesting that "French demand for power has so far fallen 15 per cent and Spanish by 7-10 per cent", presumably over predicted use versus this time last year (and adjusted for temperature, as France at least heats predominantly using electricity).
Economies are currently being buffeted by a global pandemic, with the human population acting in less predictable ways than normal. Society has become so widely dependent on energy that its production and consumption is influenced by human behaviour to a greater extent than almost every other commodity.
Possible changes in consumption
So how might energy consumption being affected by the current pandemic? Since the 2003 SARS epidemic, our society has become more digitally dependent - the iPhone wasn't launched until 2007 and Skype had only just been launched - and so work patterns and personal habits have changed considerably.
Here are a few ways in which our energy usage might change during this pandemic.
For gaseous and petroleum-based fuels, there is sometimes a considerable time lag between production and consumption that makes it more difficult for lay-people to measure the effects. But given the near-perfect match between demand and supply for electricity (it's hard to store) there are lots of statistics available to everyone online: here is a great site for seeing historical and even realtime data. The FT recently published an article suggesting that "French demand for power has so far fallen 15 per cent and Spanish by 7-10 per cent", presumably over predicted use versus this time last year (and adjusted for temperature, as France at least heats predominantly using electricity).
Possible changes in production
Most natural gas and oil in Europe is extracted via offshore rigs. Like naval vessels, these are an almost perfectly isolated location. Though like with navies, workers on them are scheduled to come back on shore, but in their case to be replaced by another cohort. To avoid this danger, it's possible that the energy companies will look to want to extend workers' tour of duty, to avoid the risk replacement workers incubating a virus bringing it to such an isolated location. The example of the Diamond Princess cruise boat is a good example of the risk presented by a virus spreading in an offshore location, where space is often at a premium.
Power stations are likely to be acutely aware of their workforce being impacted by a virus outbreak, and will probably have enacted long-drawn up plans for some workers to sleep at the sites. This is certainly the case in the civilian nuclear sector, where safety is paramount.
Most natural gas and oil in Europe is extracted via offshore rigs. Like naval vessels, these are an almost perfectly isolated location. Though like with navies, workers on them are scheduled to come back on shore, but in their case to be replaced by another cohort. To avoid this danger, it's possible that the energy companies will look to want to extend workers' tour of duty, to avoid the risk replacement workers incubating a virus bringing it to such an isolated location. The example of the Diamond Princess cruise boat is a good example of the risk presented by a virus spreading in an offshore location, where space is often at a premium.
Power stations are likely to be acutely aware of their workforce being impacted by a virus outbreak, and will probably have enacted long-drawn up plans for some workers to sleep at the sites. This is certainly the case in the civilian nuclear sector, where safety is paramount.
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