Weather forecasts for energy should lead to greener and cheaper energy use

From today, a new energy weather forecast will be online every week, in which viewers will receive information and advice on how to reduce their energy consumption. If many people follow the advice of energy weather forecasts According to the initiator, this can save a few percent in gas consumption.

For example, if it is cloudy on Tuesday and there is little wind, people may be advised not to do laundry or load the car that day. Because due to the climate, there is little renewable energy available. If the sun is shining and the wind is blowing on Wednesday, then there is a lot more energy available for things like laundry and car charging.

“If you use electricity at a smart time, you don’t need to use fewer gas-fired power plants to produce enough electricity. This can make a big difference,” says Olof van der Gaag of the Dutch Association for Sustainable Energy (NVDE ).

The first energy weather forecasts are online this morning:

The energy weather forecasts are presented by meteorologist Helga van Leur and last about a minute and a half every week. She also gives general tips for saving energy, such as “turn off the heat an hour before bedtime” and “only turn on the lights in the rooms you use”.

Van der Gaag hopes that hundreds of thousands of people will look at the energy weather forecast every week. At least until the end of January, an episode will be made every week. Then it is checked if they continue with it. For the energy weather forecast, the NVDE, the electricity grid operator Tennet, the gas grid operator Gasunie and KNMI are working together.

It is inspired by a French example. This has been around since 2020, but has been seen by more and more people in recent months due to high energy prices.