Reacting to questions caused by the recent use of the MonEcoWatt device at the national level, the operator of the electricity transmission network RTE declared, this Monday, February 8, 2021, that the security of the electricity supply was ensured for this winter in France. , despite lower temperatures.

Faced with falling temperatures, RTE has launched the MonEcoWatt system at national level

This Thursday, February 4, 2021, the electricity transmission system operator RTE triggered the MonEcoWatt system at national level, to respond to the cold snap expected the next day (temperatures between −4 and −4.5°C below seasonal normals). RTE has thus called on French people to reduce their electricity consumption, on Friday February 5, 2021, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., via “eco-gestures”.

According to RTE, consumption was likely to exceed 88,000 MWh that day, for a production of 88,2000 MWh, sufficient “to cover all needs”. But, to avoid any risk of localized cuts, in the event of technical problems or an accident, the network manager has decided to appeal to the behavior of citizens.

MonEcoWatt is one of three possible levers to ensure ad hoc flexibility in the national electricity grid, and to respond to an unforeseen peak in consumption, which risks exceeding production and import capacities.

The other two are the one-off shutdown of electricity distribution at large industrial sites, as part of load shedding contracts – an effective, but more expensive solution –, or the 5% voltage drop on the distribution network – a solution that “requires” all consumers to operate their electrical appliances with 5% less electricity, which can be problematic for the most modest households wishing to heat properly on a very cold day.

MonEcoWatt is frequently used in Brittany and PACA, two regions "having a lower level of interconnection than the others with the rest of the network", according to Anne Blavette, CNRS researcher at the SATIE laboratory (Systems and applications of information and energy) from the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Rennes.

RTE reassures citizens about the security of electricity supply

These flexible solutions avoid having to resort to new infrastructures. In the end, consumption on Friday February 5 was limited to approximately 87,000 MWh, without the authorities being able to identify the share of eco-gestures in this result. This lower consumption can in fact also come from higher luminosity than expected or from weaker economic activity.

However, RTE's national message could be interpreted by some people as a risk to the security of electricity supply in the face of the current cold snap. Especially since RTE itself had indicated, in September 2020, that in the event of a particularly harsh winter 2020-2021, the French electricity network risked being under tension, and that great vigilance was necessary.

To reassure the population, RTE has decided to publish a press release, this Monday, February 8, 2021, which indicates that "the security of electricity supply" is "assured" in France, in particular in the face of the drop in temperature this week. RTE thus specifies that the peak consumption expected on Thursday February 11 (86,400 MWh) remained lower than the peak observed this winter at 88,154 MWh on January 11, when no blackout was observed.

"The available production (between 88,000 and 90,000 MWh) as well as the import possibilities (up to 11,000 MWh) are sufficient to ensure the supply of electricity to the French with sufficient safety margins to cope in the event of hazards or incidents", completes RTE in its press release.