Concerns regarding members of the public travelling to holiday homes during the Easter break appear to be unfounded, with an 83% reduction in energy consumption in holiday homes over the Easter weekend when compared to the same time last year.
The latest Savills-Pinergy Energy Monitor also shows that energy consumption amongst families is up 12.4%, as many households see adult children moving home for the coronavirus lockdown period.
It also shows that consumption amongst professionals is up 13.4%, with the majority of office-based employees now working from home.
The monitor noted that the first spike in consumption amongst this category was seen on March 12, when all 8,000 of Google's staff in Ireland were instructed to work from home.
Energy consumption in both suburban and rural homes is up 10.7%, likely again driven by adult children returning home from city locations while city renters' consumption is up slightly by 4.7%.
But consumption by young renters and students is down 45.8%, reflecting the migration of the young adult population back home.
Sharyn McAndrew, Head of Energy and Sustainability at Savills Ireland, said that despite concerns about members of the public flouting current Government guidelines, it appears, on the whole, that compliance remains high.
"However, we do expect a significant change in energy consumption patterns over the next month, as the Government's five phase plan to ease Covid-19 restrictions begins," she added.
