On Thursday 8 September 2022, Luxembourg's Minister of Energy, Claude Turmes, the Minister for Home Affairs, Taina Bofferding, and the Minister for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, Lex Delles, together with representatives of the Syvicol, Serge Hoffmann, of the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, Fernand Ernster, and the Chamber of Trades, Alexander Kieffer, presented the national campaign to reduce energy demand.
To cope with the reduction in Russian gas deliveries, the European Union (EU) Member States have agreed on a reduction (in a first phase of a voluntary nature) of 15% of the demand for natural gas over the period of reference from 1 August 2022 to 31 March 2023. The Luxembourg Government has joined in this reduction effort and is calling for immediate vigilance and solidarity from all players.
Minister Turmes appealed to the willingness of all players to contribute to this national effort: "State, municipalities, citizens and companies - every effort counts and every resource we save makes our energy supply more secure, reduces costs and helps us achieve our climate goals".
Voluntary measures to achieve a reduction in natural gas consumption
The voluntary measures aim to encourage all natural gas consumers to make every effort to achieve a reduction in their natural gas consumption of at least 15% compared to the average consumption in the reference period from 2017 to 2021. This first voluntary phase provides specific measures for four categories of actors.
1. State actors: leading by example
The government decided in the Council of Government on 2 September 2022 on energy saving measures with the State; an instruction note describing the consumption reduction measures to be implemented will be sent to all ministries and administrations and a note has already been sent to all State personnel. These measures provide in particular for a reduction in the heating temperature to 20°C, as well as general principles for reducing energy consumption and will be accompanied by energy advice.
The measures decided upon are not limited exclusively to the reduction of natural gas consumption, given that any energy saving on any energy vector (electricity, heating oil, fuels, etc.) can also contribute significantly indirectly to a reduction in natural gas consumption at European level.
This measure could bring about a 10% to 20% reduction in the State's natural gas consumption.
2. Municipal actors: key players in reducing energy consumption
The municipalities that are committed to the Climate Pact are already making efforts and are active in the continuous improvement of their energy efficiency, with the aim of reducing their energy consumption and consequently their energy costs. A circular (no. 4168) was sent to them at the beginning of August, proposing concrete measures for energy sobriety within the framework of the various communal activities. With these measures, a saving of 10% to 20% of natural gas can be obtained by the municipal actors. Municipalities also have the opportunity to take advantage of the advisory service that has been set up as part of the Climate Pact 2.0.
"In addition to the measures, we must strengthen the resilience of municipalities in terms of energy. It is important to prepare for extreme and unforeseen situations, even while being confident that the measures adopted will be sufficient", highlighted Minister Bofferding.
To this end, Minister Bofferding announced that collaboration with the municipalities to better prepare for all possible scenarios will be addressed at the next meeting of the "resilient municipalities" working group within the framework of the national platform for the reduction of the risks of disaster.
3. Companies: advisory service and concrete measures in progress
Companies are also called upon to implement measures to reduce their consumption of natural gas and electricity, with the means at their disposal. To this end, a voluntary commitment programme will be launched. Concrete measures in the industrial sector have been discussed and prepared with FEDIL. In order to help companies find potential for reducing consumption, the Chamber of Trades and the Chamber of Commerce, with the Klima-Agence, will set up an advisory service in this area and a hotline allowing companies to easily obtain information. These measures can bring about a 20% to 30% reduction in the natural gas consumption of companies and the industrial sector.
Added to this is a call for solidarity and vigilance from Luxembourg traders to support measures aimed at saving energy. In the context of the national information campaign "Zesumme spueren – Zesummenhalen", the General Directorate for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, the Luxembourg Confederation of Commerce, the Federation of Craftsmen and the Chamber of Commerce will send a letter to all traders in the Grand Duchy in order to raise their awareness and support them in their energy saving projects with recommendations and examples of good practice.
Minister Delles highlighted: "Saving energy is an objective which concerns all the players in our society. In this context, companies play an important role, as they can make a significant contribution to reducing energy consumption. I particularly welcome the productive and close exchange with the professional chambers and federations which support companies in their efforts to save energy, in particular through the national information campaign 'Zesumme spueren – Zesummenhalen'".
4. Citizens: "Zesumme spueren - Zesummenhalen"
The general public, each individual citizen, also has an important role to play in achieving consumption reduction targets. A national awareness campaign has been launched: "Zesumme spueren – Zesummenhalen". The multimedia campaign will be accompanied by a website (www.zesumme-spueren.lu) intended to inform each citizen about the measures to be put in place to save energy and therefore also money. Households that use gas heating, for example, can save up to 10% just by lowering the temperature by 1°C to 2°C in their home and more in unoccupied rooms. In addition, the website informs citizens about the various financial aids that are available to facilitate energy renovation works and the transition to renewable energies and to support low-income households.
According to the estimates of the respective savings potentials mentioned above, the reduction of 15% can be achieved thanks to voluntary measures, provided that each actor is ready to make efforts at his / her level and to invest actively in the campaign.
