European electricity demand in February was down 2.8% year on year, the fourth monthly decline in a row amid exceptionally mild weather so far this winter, according to analysts at Societe Generale Commodities Research.
The data is based on a focus group model of demand figures from France, the UK, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Denmark, Greece and Poland representing almost two-thirds of total EU power consumption.
Last year, the SG Elec Pulse registered a slight gain of 0.4% for all of 2015 compared with 2014 mainly due to colder than normal weather conditions in Q1 and a heatwave across Southern Europe in Q3 with demand in the final quarter of 2015 already down 2.1% on year, it said.
For the whole of 2016, the analysts predict stagnation with average real GDP growth revised lower, it said.
Gas demand across the European focus group declined 4.9% in January, following a 1.2% drop in January and a massive 9% drop in December, it said.
