Winter promises to be difficult in France from an energy point of view. In fact, France could experience localized power outages due to insufficient power capacity to meet all needs.
However, and so that no one is caught off guard, there are several ways to be notified before and during an event of this type in order to make the best arrangements.
- Use the EcoWatt service
Made available to the public by RTE last September, the Ecowatt mobile application (available on Android and iOS) allows you to monitor the voltage status of the French electricity grid in order to adapt your consumption accordingly.
The country’s electricity consumption, updated in real time in the application, is symbolized by a color code: green for normal consumption, orange for a tight electrical system, and red for a very tight electrical system.
During the red period, the app, which can set four-day consumption forecasts for the country, can send notifications to indicate that power outages are expected and encourage users to implement the green gestures listed within the app.
- Receive an SMS alert that encourages you to reduce your energy consumption
Faced with the risk of voltage in the French electricity grid, RTE launched an SMS alert service. Reception of the message does not systematically indicate that load shedding is about to occur, but simply that the situation is tense.
Thus, it allows people to be aware of a potential risk of an upcoming power outage in their geographic area. The SMS received will also invite users to be more energy efficient by encouraging them to follow a series of eco-budgets: turn down the heating, turn off unnecessary lights or even postpone the use of certain electrical appliances such as the washing machine.
- Find out through the media
Since October 3, the channels of the France Télévisions group include forecasts on the energy situation in France in their classic weather reports. Objective of this “electric weather forecast”: to inform the French about the state of the network to encourage them to moderate in the event of peak consumption.
Using Ecowatt’s colored pictograms (green, orange, red), these programs indicate the departments likely to be affected by power outages and also recommend resources to consult, for example the RTE website, in the event of a power outage.
Source: BFM TV
