Energy

The pandemic is a reminder of how essential home energy is to domestic life – nobody would like to imagine quarantine life without electricity.

When commercial power users like offices, schools, shops and factories closed due to shutdowns, utilities witnessed how lockdown life affected their electricity supply. Weekday patterns of consumption started to resemble a quiet Sunday. Offsetting the silence that fell across trade and transport was a demand spike in the residential sector.

Home energy usage in the U.S. increased 22 percent overall since COVID-19 and total residential demand is up throughout the day. Mid-day energy consumption increased 35 percent compared to 2019, and the “duck curve” typically seen in home energy consumption on an average weekday flattened as people shelter in place. 

Not only did households use more electricity, consumption patterns shifted noticeably. For example, UK utility National Grid found that TV pickups made a comeback – the Queen’s address on April 5, 2020 attracted 24 million viewers. This viewing figure affected electricity usage with a 500-600MW pickup at the end of the Queen’s address.

As consumers become central actors in the energy market, they will expect flexibility and new types of services integrated alongside other digital services they receive via apps or online.

Ongoing favorable weather conditions in Europe over the first six months of 2020 saw renewable generation levels increase substantially compared to 2019. The impact of lockdown measures and this higher renewable production drove demand for non-renewable generation down.

Preferences on EV charging location vary by region. Drivers in the U.S. and United Arab Emirates (UAE) say they would most likely charge at publicly provided charging stations or fuel retailers. The majority of German (50 percent) and French (55 percent) drivers seek publicly available charging stations. In the UK, grocery retailers are a preferred place to charge a vehicle while away from home.

When it comes to suppliers, only a third of customers want to buy energy from a traditional fuel company. This means that competition from suppliers is heating up. Traditionally, companies in the fuel retail business are not dominating, as 29 percent of drivers do not have a preference or brand loyalty.

Other companies that typically don’t play in an energy space, like retailers and tech companies, are viable energy providers for EV charging stations. Amazon operates huge fleets of trucks, so it’s easy to see how it could become a charging supplier, with customers paying for an EV charge through a Prime account. In fact, our research finds 13 percent of U.S. drivers would buy energy from an Amazon charging station away from home. Of UAE drivers, 18 percent would choose Amazon as an EV charge supplier.

In the U.S., contactless or scan-and-go payment options and charging stations for EVs top the list of services or experiences that people most want a fuel station to provide. Half of shoppers in the UAE are interested in banking or currency services and ATMs at fuel stations.

In France and Germany, most are interested in EV charging facilities. In Italy, 42 percent are interested in coffee shop or café services. In Japan, vehicle cleaning services and auto detailing, banking services and charging stations are the top three services of interest.

This trend indicates that fuel stations with convenience stores are well-placed to expand and diversify their product and service offering to capture the changing needs of customers, particularly drivers with EVs that who have longer waiting times when charging their vehicle.