For the past century, through two world wars and the Great Depression, the quantity of electricity used in Australia increased every year. That is, until 2010.
In the last three years, the quantity of electricity used each year continues to fall and there is no evidence of a reversal in this trend, according to a report by the Australia Institute entitled “Power Down: Why is electricity consumption decreasing?”.
If electricity consumption had continued to grow from 2005 onward at the same rate it had for the previous 20 years, consumption would have been about 37TWh higher in 2013 than it actually was, the report says.
This difference is equal to the output of almost 5,000 megawatts of coal fired generation capacity.
Put simply, year on year falls in demand for electricity are entirely without precedent in Australia’s history.
Commentators have put forward many reasons to explain the fall from the growth in rootfop photovoltaics to the uptake of solar water heating and more energy efficient buildings.
All of these factors are covered in this comprehensive report as well as reduced output from manufacturing, energy efficiency programs, a change in consumer behaviour, more energy efficient air conditioners, higher electricity prices and even milder summers.
The report says the efficiency (measured by the Coefficient of Performance -COP) of air conditioners has increased considerably over the past decade, about 15 per cent in the four years from 2003 to 2007, which was followed by further significant improvements since 2007.
The Australia Institute is a Canberra-based think tank, for information visit www.tai.org.au