Energy consumption increased by 3.7% in 2023, with heat waves and increased economic activity

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Homes and small businesses consumed 2.5% more energy than in 2022. Use of refrigeration equipment due to heat is the main reason for the increase. Electricity consumption increased by 3.7% in 2023, compared to the previous year. The data comes from the Electricity Trading Chamber (CCEE) and was released this Thursday (1st). According to CCEE, the increase was driven by heat waves and the increase in the free energy market – where large companies are located, which can negotiate the purchase of energy directly with the supplier or producer. “The heat waves that crossed the country in the second half of the year and the good performance of some sectors of the economy were the main factors for the increase”, says the CCEE in a note. Residential and small business consumption increased by 2.5%. In this market, called “captive”, people and companies can only buy energy from the local distributor. “The more intense use of household appliances such as fans and air conditioning boosted demand, especially in the last months of the year, when temperatures reached records in much of the country”, states the Chamber of Commerce. Energy consumption with fans and air conditioning increased especially at the end of the year. Freepik/Rorozoa In the free market, the increase in consumption was 5.9%, driven by the performance of sectors such as metallurgy, services and commerce. CCEE also points out that migration from the captive market to the free market influenced the result. According to the entity, growth in consumption in the free market is associated with the following factors: greater activity in some productive sectors; new companies joining the free market; impact of heat on sectors such as commerce and services, which also needed to use refrigeration equipment more. Excessive heat anticipates peak energy consumption in Brazil Successive records The increase in demand for energy had already been signaled by the National Electric System Operator (ONS) in its daily reports. In November, the heat wave that hit most of Brazil caused energy demand to break consecutive records, reaching more than 101 GW (gigawatts) at peak times. With the heat wave, there was greater demand for energy, with the use of air conditioning, fans and other household appliances, for example. Heat waves are common in the transition period between spring and summer. However, in the opinion of experts, the climate phenomenon El Niño and global warming intensified the increase in temperatures.

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