Electricity suppliers are starting to warn their customers of temporary outages to be expected this winter. Just like last year, only automatically activated devices will remain turned off during a specific time slot in order to save energy. Here’s what we know so far.
Last winter, following a rather unfortunate combination of circumstances, the whole of France feared power cuts. Rather than risking outages on the network, the government and Enedis opted for a gentler solution: cutting off the automatic activation of certain devices during off-peak hours. This measure then ended with the return of good weather, when the tension on the network finally went down.
Now that autumn is starting to creep in, the question of winter 2023 arises. An email sent recently by TotalEnergies to its customers provides an answer. In the latter, the electricity supplier confirms that the measure will return in the coming months. The system remains the same: during off-peak hours, some devices will no longer be activated automatically.
What we know about the power cuts coming this winter
“To contribute to securing the electricity supply this winter, the public authorities are asking, like last winter, the network manager Enedis to suspend the automatic triggering of equipment controlled by the meters for a maximum period of 2 hours over the time slot Meridian Off-peak Hours”, explains TotalEnergies in the email received by the Phonandroid editorial staff.
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This measure will be applied from November 5, 2023 and can last until April 1, 2024 at the latest. Only devices that are usually automatically active will no longer be active over a period of 2 hours maximum between 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.. This concerns in particular the hot water tank, which will not heat up during the cut-off. “It is safe for your equipment and does not impact the rest of your uses”, says TotalEnergies. The customer’s invoice will not be impacted either.
At the same time, the government is also considering reducing the maximum consumption allowed by our meters in order to save energy this winter. The Ministry of Energy Transition ensures that the network is “in much better conditions than last winter.
