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Against the background of fears of an energy crisis in the coming winter due to reduced or completely stopped Russian supplies and rising prices on a global scale, more and more people are thinking about how to save energy.

But how to do this?

Unlike cash, whose decrease we quickly understand when it happens to us, for many of us energy is a much more abstract "currency" when we use it in our daily lives, writes BTA. 

We can hardly estimate the amount of electricity we use, mostly because we don't see it "going down" like the bills in our wallets.

And yet, how do we control how much electricity we use?

To save energy: A degree less and turn off the heating for an hour from October in Italy

The universal unit of measure for measuring energy is called the kilowatt hour (kWh).

One kilowatt hour is the amount of energy needed to power a 1000 watt appliance for one hour, explains the ENERGO-PRO company on its website.

You can do a lot if you understand what this means, or you can do almost nothing, adds DPA.

What can we do with 1 kilowatt hour of electricity?

To help us understand how much energy we normally use in our home, the German Energy Efficiency Association (HEA) calculates what we can do with 1 kilowatt hour of electricity. 

So... 1 kWh of electricity is enough for:

- to make about 70 cups of coffee;

- to cook a meal for 4 people in an electric cooker;

- almost 2 hours of cleaning with a 600-watt vacuum cleaner;

- to dry about 11 kilograms of laundry using the eco program of a washing machine that operates in a mode between 40 and 60 degrees Celsius;

- to be baked a cake;

- about 130 slices of toast should be prepared;

- a man should shave about 2000 times;

- to dry your hair for 1 hour with a 1000 watt hair dryer;

- to iron for about half an hour with an electric steam iron;

- one lamp with a 9-watt energy-saving bulb should shine for about 111 hours;

- watch about 12 hours of TV on a 55-inch (140 cm) flat-screen TV;

- to play on a game console "PlayStation" (PlayStation) for about 5 hours.

How much electricity do we use?

Have you ever thought about how many kilowatt hours of electricity you use per year?

Basically, it depends on the country you live in. 

According to data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), the annual average per capita electricity consumption in 2019 ranged from under 100 kWh in the world's poorest countries, to 4,260 kWh in Hungary, to 4,750 kWh in Bulgaria , 5,005 kWh in Greece, 6,306 kWh in Germany and 6,702 kWh in France, up to 12,154 kWh in the US and 14,612 kWh in Canada. 

In 2019, the highest annual electricity consumption per capita was in Norway (23,210 kWh) and Iceland (51,699 kilowatt hours). 

Generally, the larger a household, the lower the annual electricity consumption per person in it.

The reason - most often all persons in the household jointly use a number of appliances, such as a TV, cooker or refrigerator, DPA specifies.

Governments and EU leaders are urging citizens to save energy

The leaders and governments of a number of European Union countries are urging their citizens to save energy due to the reduction or suspension of Russian supplies and fears of an energy crisis in the coming winter. 

A few days ago, French President Emmanuel Macron, quoted by the Associated Press, called for a sharp 10 percent reduction in energy consumption in France in the coming weeks and months to avoid a blackout. 

Radev guarantees: Bulgarians will not stay in the dark

Macron warned that forced energy savings may have to be considered if voluntary efforts are not enough. 

A power regime plan is being prepared, which will be implemented as a "last resort" if necessary, the French president said. 

"The best energy is the one we don't use," Macron said.

He urged French businesses and households to save energy, including by reducing heating or cooling of premises. 

Energy saving measures were introduced in Spain in August.

They provide for the lighting of public buildings and shop windows to be turned off at night.

Air conditioning units in public buildings, hotels, restaurants and shops have been ordered not to cool below 27 degrees Celsius, Reuters reported. 

Other EU countries are also introducing energy-saving measures and running campaigns to raise awareness of energy and its importance. 

Italy has announced it will limit heating in homes and offices in winter to conserve gas and reduce risks of shortages in the event of a complete shutdown of Russian gas supplies.

The government plan in Rome, announced on Tuesday (September 6) and cited by Reuters, calls for the temperature in residential and public buildings to be fixed at 19 degrees Celsius, one lower than previously envisaged, and in industrial buildings - at 17 degrees.

The heating, moreover, will be turned on for an hour less each day.

A German minister shares something very personal in the name of energy efficiency 

Germany, which is the most dependent on Russian fuels in the EU, is also introducing a number of energy saving measures.

They envisage that in winter public buildings will be heated to a maximum of 19 degrees Celsius.

These restrictions do not apply to hospitals and nursing homes.

The water in public pools will be heated to a lower temperature, and the municipal administrations of some cities, such as Augsburg, for example, are thinking about which traffic lights to stop in order to save electricity.

Against this background, the German Minister of Economy, Robert Habeck, proved to be the most original.

At the end of June, he made a surprising confession to the German edition "Spiegel". 

Habek said that since the start of the war in Ukraine, he "showers much faster to save energy."

"I adhere to the recommendations that my ministry made. I have significantly limited the time I take a shower," the minister said.

This is how Habek answered a question from a journalist from "Spiegel" about how he personally saves energy in his everyday life. 

France and Germany will help each other in the energy crisis

"I have never taken a shower in five minutes in my life. I really take a quick shower," said the German economy minister, who regularly urges his countrymen to save energy.

What next?

Robert Habeck's confession very well illustrates what awaits us if we face an energy crisis in the coming winter, analysts say. 

Each of us should probably ask ourselves how to limit our personal energy consumption, especially since its prices keep rising.

And whether he will start bathing "faster" and will no longer leave the air conditioner or TV on 24/7 - that's a decision that everyone can make. 

electricity