Involving People in the Mitigation of Electric Demand Peaks: Attitudes and Behaviours in a Peak Pricing and Load Shedding Experiment

As part of the current quest to reduce energy demand in buildings, people behaviors are increasingly seen as one of the main factors driving households consumption, making them potential levers for energy savings or peak shifting. Peak shifting is an increasing concern in a context where electricity demand grows while networks need massive investments and generation becomes less flexible in the process of its decarbonisation.

Among the different ways people can be driven to shift their electricity consumption from peak to off-peak time, we’ve studied load shedding remote signals and tariff incentives effects through a field trial. How do people perceive those interventions? How do they change their daily practices? What are the outcomes in terms of peak shifting and energy consumption?

Our work relies on both qualitative and quantitative materials. In depth interviews and observations at home revealed the diversity of the changes and actions undertaken by people in reaction to the signal and/or incentive. A comprehensive analysis of the energy consumption main dimensions (usage, project, context) was carried out, from the motivations leading people to take part in the experiment to the underlying semantic fields and the antagonisms structuring them: individualism/community, comfort/moderation, transformation/preservation, efficiency/morality. Eventually those attitudes and behaviours could be related to the measured consumption shifts and load shedding acceptance, providing insights on how to enhance or mitigate existing dynamics in people practices impacting energy consumption.