IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v16y2023i10p4169-d1149977.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Changes in the Pattern of Weekdays Electricity Real Consumption during the COVID-19 Crisis

Author

Listed:
  • Nicolae-Marius Jula

    (Department of Economical and Administrative Sciences, Faculty of Business and Administration, University of Bucharest, Regina Elisabeta Blvd., 4-12, Sector 3, 030018 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Diana-Mihaela Jula

    (Department of Economic, Social and Legal Sciences, School of Advanced Studies of the Romanian Academy (SCOSAAR), National Institute for Economic Research, 050711 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Bogdan Oancea

    (Department of Economical and Administrative Sciences, Faculty of Business and Administration, University of Bucharest, Regina Elisabeta Blvd., 4-12, Sector 3, 030018 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Răzvan-Mihail Papuc

    (Department of Economical and Administrative Sciences, Faculty of Business and Administration, University of Bucharest, Regina Elisabeta Blvd., 4-12, Sector 3, 030018 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Dorin Jula

    (Institute for Economic Forecasting, National Institute for Economic Research, Romanian Academy, Casa Academiei, Calea 13 Septembrie nr.13, Sector 5, 050711 Bucharest, Romania
    Faculty of Financial Management, Ecological University of Bucharest, Doina Cornea Blvd., 1G, 061341 Bucharest, Romania)

Abstract

In this paper, using data from Romania, we analysed the changes in electricity consumption generated during the COVID-19 crisis, and the measures taken against the spread of the coronavirus to limit the effects of the pandemic. Using a seasonal autoregressive econometric model, we found that, beyond seasonal (weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly) effects, the average daily electricity real consumption in Romania, during the state of the emergency period (16 March 16 to 14 May 2020) decreased by −194.8 MW (about −2.9%), compared to the historical data (2006–March 2022), and this decrease is not due to the action of some random factors, and it is not a manifestation of domain-specific seasonality. The literature discusses the hypothesis that during the pandemic time, the profile of daily electricity consumption on weekdays was close to the typical Sunday profile. We tested a similar hypothesis for Romania. As a methodology, we tried to go beyond the simple interpretation of statistics and graphics (as found in most papers) and we calculated some measures of distances (the Mahalanobis distance, Manhattan distance) and similarity (coefficient of correlation, cosines coefficient) between the vectors of daily electricity real consumptions, by hourly intervals. As the time interval, we have analysed, for Romania, the electricity real consumption over the period January 2006–March 2022, by day of the week and within the day, by hourly intervals (5911 observations). We found (not very strong) evidence supporting a hypothesis that, in the pandemic crisis, the profile of electricity consumption approaches the weekend pattern only for the state of the emergency period, and we could not find the same evidence for the state of the alert period (June 2020–March 2022). The strongest closeness is to the hourly consumption pattern of Saturday. That is, for Romania, in terms of electricity consumption, “under lockdown, every day is a Sunday” (Staffell) it is rather “under lockdown, every day is (almost) a Saturday”! During the state of the alert period, consumption returned to the pre-crisis profile. Since certain behaviours generated by the pandemic have been maintained in the medium and long term (distance learning, working from home, online sales, etc.), such studies can have policy implications, especially for setting energy policy measures (e.g., in balancing load peaks).

Suggested Citation

  • Nicolae-Marius Jula & Diana-Mihaela Jula & Bogdan Oancea & Răzvan-Mihail Papuc & Dorin Jula, 2023. "Changes in the Pattern of Weekdays Electricity Real Consumption during the COVID-19 Crisis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-20, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:10:p:4169-:d:1149977
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/10/4169/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/10/4169/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stephen Snow & Richard Bean & Mashhuda Glencross & Neil Horrocks, 2020. "Drivers behind Residential Electricity Demand Fluctuations Due to COVID-19 Restrictions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-20, November.
    2. Jinning Wang & Fangxing Li & Hantao Cui & Qingxin Shi & Trey Mingee, 2022. "Electricity consumption variation versus economic structure during COVID-19 on metropolitan statistical areas in the US," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-11, December.
    3. Dobrescu, Emilian, 2011. "Sectoral Structure and Economic Growth," Journal for Economic Forecasting, Institute for Economic Forecasting, vol. 0(3), pages 5-36, September.
    4. Lin Sun & Wei Shi & Wen-Tsao Pan, 2022. "Investor Sentiment and Stock Market Reactions to COVID-19: Evidence from China," Discrete Dynamics in Nature and Society, Hindawi, vol. 2022, pages 1-10, May.
    5. Imlak Shaikh, 2022. "Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the energy markets," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 55(1), pages 433-484, February.
    6. Rouleau, Jean & Gosselin, Louis, 2021. "Impacts of the COVID-19 lockdown on energy consumption in a Canadian social housing building," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 287(C).
    7. Chong, Cheng Tung & Fan, Yee Van & Lee, Chew Tin & Klemeš, Jiří Jaromír, 2022. "Post COVID-19 ENERGY sustainability and carbon emissions neutrality," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    8. Beniamino Callegari & Christophe Feder, 2022. "A Literature Review of Pandemics and Development: the Long-Term Perspective," Economics of Disasters and Climate Change, Springer, vol. 6(1), pages 183-212, March.
    9. Benatia, David, 2022. "Ring the alarm! Electricity markets, renewables, and the pandemic," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    10. Jula, Dorin & Jula, Nicolae Marius, 2013. "Economic Growth and Structural Changes in Regional EmploymenT," Journal for Economic Forecasting, Institute for Economic Forecasting, vol. 0(2), pages 52-69, June.
    11. Diana-Mihaela Jula, 2021. "Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Romanian Electricity Consumption," Global Economic Observer, "Nicolae Titulescu" University of Bucharest, Faculty of Economic Sciences;Institute for World Economy of the Romanian Academy, vol. 9(1), pages 166-179, June.
    12. Pastory Dickson & Emmanuel Munishi, 2022. "Volatility shocks in energy commodities: The influence of COVID-19," International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science (2147-4478), Center for the Strategic Studies in Business and Finance, vol. 11(2), pages 214-227, March.
    13. Abel Brodeur & David Gray & Anik Islam & Suraiya Bhuiyan, 2021. "A literature review of the economics of COVID‐19," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(4), pages 1007-1044, September.
    14. García, Sebastián & Parejo, Antonio & Personal, Enrique & Ignacio Guerrero, Juan & Biscarri, Félix & León, Carlos, 2021. "A retrospective analysis of the impact of the COVID-19 restrictions on energy consumption at a disaggregated level," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 287(C).
    15. Ku, Arthur Lin & Qiu, Yueming (Lucy) & Lou, Jiehong & Nock, Destenie & Xing, Bo, 2022. "Changes in hourly electricity consumption under COVID mandates: A glance to future hourly residential power consumption pattern with remote work in Arizona," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 310(C).
    16. Yasunobu Wakashiro, 2022. "Causal impact of severe events on electricity demand: The case of COVID-19 in Japan," Papers 2206.02122, arXiv.org.
    17. Khlystova, Olena & Kalyuzhnova, Yelena & Belitski, Maksim, 2022. "The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the creative industries: A literature review and future research agenda," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 1192-1210.
    18. Dogan, Eyup & Majeed, Muhammad Tariq & Luni, Tania, 2022. "Analyzing the nexus of COVID-19 and natural resources and commodities: Evidence from time-varying causality," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    19. Sławomir Bielecki & Tadeusz Skoczkowski & Lidia Sobczak & Janusz Buchoski & Łukasz Maciąg & Piotr Dukat, 2021. "Impact of the Lockdown during the COVID-19 Pandemic on Electricity Use by Residential Users," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-32, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Indre Siksnelyte-Butkiene, 2021. "Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic to the Sustainability of the Energy Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-19, November.
    2. Diana-Mihaela Jula, 2022. "Renewable Energy during the Pandemic Crisis," Global Economic Observer, "Nicolae Titulescu" University of Bucharest, Faculty of Economic Sciences;Institute for World Economy of the Romanian Academy, vol. 10(1), pages 34-48, June.
    3. Minseok Jang & Hyun Cheol Jeong & Taegon Kim & Dong Hee Suh & Sung-Kwan Joo, 2021. "Empirical Analysis of the Impact of COVID-19 Social Distancing on Residential Electricity Consumption Based on Demographic Characteristics and Load Shape," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-15, November.
    4. Xiaoxiong Xie & Seeram Ramakrishna & Matteo Manganelli, 2022. "Smart Building Technologies in Response to COVID-19," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(15), pages 1-23, July.
    5. Marcin Malec & Grzegorz Kinelski & Marzena Czarnecka, 2021. "The Impact of COVID-19 on Electricity Demand Profiles: A Case Study of Selected Business Clients in Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-17, August.
    6. Yugang He & Ziqian Zhang, 2022. "Energy and Economic Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from OECD Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-13, September.
    7. Tomasz Wołowiec & Iuliia Myroshnychenko & Ihor Vakulenko & Sylwester Bogacki & Anna Maria Wiśniewska & Svitlana Kolosok & Vitaliy Yunger, 2022. "International Impact of COVID-19 on Energy Economics and Environmental Pollution: A Scoping Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-26, November.
    8. Rizzati, Massimiliano & De Cian, Enrica & Guastella, Gianni & Mistry, Malcolm N. & Pareglio, Stefano, 2022. "Residential electricity demand projections for Italy: A spatial downscaling approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    9. Nametala, Ciniro Aparecido Leite & Faria, Wandry Rodrigues & Lage, Guilherme Guimarães & Pereira, Benvindo Rodrigues, 2023. "Analysis of hourly price granularity implementation in the Brazilian deregulated electricity contracting environment," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    10. Raileanu Szeles, Monica, 2014. "A Multidimensional Approach to the Inclusiveness of economic Growth in the New Member States," Journal for Economic Forecasting, Institute for Economic Forecasting, vol. 0(2), pages 5-24, June.
    11. Georgeta Soava & Anca Mehedintu & Mihaela Sterpu & Eugenia Grecu, 2021. "The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Electricity Consumption and Economic Growth in Romania," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-25, April.
    12. Natarajan, Anisha & Krishnasamy, Vijayakumar & Singh, Munesh, 2022. "Occupancy detection and localization strategies for demand modulated appliance control in Internet of Things enabled home energy management system," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    13. Şahin, Utkucan & Ballı, Serkan & Chen, Yan, 2021. "Forecasting seasonal electricity generation in European countries under Covid-19-induced lockdown using fractional grey prediction models and machine learning methods," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 302(C).
    14. Costa, Vinicius B.F. & Pereira, Lígia C. & Andrade, Jorge V.B. & Bonatto, Benedito D., 2022. "Future assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the electricity market based on a stochastic socioeconomic model," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 313(C).
    15. Silvia Perez-Bezos & Anna Figueroa-Lopez & Matxalen Etxebarria-Mallea & Xabat Oregi & Rufino Javier Hernandez-Minguillon, 2022. "Assessment of Social Housing Energy and Thermal Performance in Relation to Occupants’ Behaviour and COVID-19 Influence—A Case Study in the Basque Country, Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-22, May.
    16. Dorin JULA & Nicolae-Marius JULA, 2017. "Foreign Direct Investments and Employment. Structural Analysis," Journal for Economic Forecasting, Institute for Economic Forecasting, vol. 0(2), pages 29-44, June.
    17. Pizarro-Irizar, Cristina, 2023. "Is it all about supply? Demand-side effects on the Spanish electricity market following Covid-19 lockdown policies," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    18. Zhiang Zhang & Ali Cheshmehzangi & Saeid Pourroostaei Ardakani, 2021. "A Data-Driven Clustering Analysis for the Impact of COVID-19 on the Electricity Consumption Pattern of Zhejiang Province, China," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-22, December.
    19. Prajowal Manandhar & Hasan Rafiq & Edwin Rodriguez-Ubinas & Juan David Barbosa & Omer Ahmed Qureshi & Mahmoud Tarek & Sgouris Sgouridis, 2022. "Understanding Energy Behavioral Changes Due to COVID-19 in the Residents of Dubai Using Electricity Consumption Data and Their Impacts," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-23, December.
    20. Domenico Palladino & Silvia Di Turi & Iole Nardi, 2021. "Energy and Environmental Effects of Human Habits in Residential Buildings Due to COVID-19 Outbreak Scenarios in a Dwelling near Rome," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-24, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:10:p:4169-:d:1149977. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.