Lighting, temperature: supermarkets agree to reduce their energy consumption

These measures, which have been taken by E.Leclerc, Carrefour, Système U, Les Mousquetaires Intermarché, Auchan, Casino, Franprix, Monoprix, Lidl and even Picard. ROMAIN LAFABRÈGUE / AFP E.Leclerc, Carrefour, Système U, Les Mousquetaires Intermarché, Auchan, Casino, Franprix, Monoprix, Lidl or even Picard… the retail sector has agreed on an “energy sobriety” plan which will be deployed in the fall, according to a press release published Monday, July 18. “Faced with the risk of electricity supply shortages announced by the government for this winter”, the Perifem federation, which brings together all the distribution players to act on energy or environmental issues, has defined “common and concrete measures to reduce energy consumption in stores, starting October 15. It is planned to turn off the illuminated signs “as soon as the store closes” – against generally one hour after closing at present – and to “systematise the reduction in light intensity”, by halving the lighting of the surface of sale before the public arrives and 30% during “critical periods of consumption”. “Other measures” are also planned, such as “cutting off air renewal at night, delaying ice production”, for example, and emergency measures providing, in particular, for lowering the temperature of the points selling temperature at 17 degrees, if requested by a regulatory authority. Emmanuel Macron explained on July 14 that the State was preparing an energy “sobriety plan” to deal with the risk of shortage linked to the war in Ukraine, calling for “collectively returning to a logic of sobriety”. Read also: Article reserved for our subscribers Sobriety: companies are starting to overhaul their “business model” 40% drop in consumption by 2030 These measures are also cost-saving measures for brands, which are, like the French , faced with rising energy costs. While “the electricity bill represented 30%” of the net income of the brands “before the recent surges in energy costs”, it is “essential to reduce the energy bill and to mobilize together to avoid too significant an impact on the price for consumers”, recognizes the federation, while the ELAN law (evolution of housing, development and digital technology) also provides for a reduction in the energy consumption of stores by 40% by 2030. “The time has come for energy sobriety, this will profoundly change our consumption habits”, estimates in the press release from Perifem its president, Thierry Cotillard, for whom this protocol “must be long-term”. Read also: Energy sobriety: the need for a public discourse The federation also wants to believe that this protocol can serve “as a basis for all trade and distribution federations for the generalization of these measures”, which will be presented to them “at a meeting on July 26”. The World with AFP