Sweden: Electricity consumption down by 6.5% in February 2023

Sweden's electricity consumption fell by 6.5% year-on-year in February 2023, according to figures from all of the country's network owners. Since September 2022, the monthly decline has been at least 5% compared with the same months in 2022. The biggest drop was in December 2022 by 8.2%, followed by 7.1% in January. Erik Ek, Strategic Operations Manager of grid operator Svenska Kraftnät, says the decline corresponds to an average output of around 1,200 MW, which is as much as the production of one of the largest nuclear reactors in Sweden. The decrease has been greatest in southern Sweden (Electricity Area 4), 10%, while electricity consumption has increased by 1.1% in northern Sweden (Electricity Area 1), partly due to new industries.