The Eiffel Tower’s lights will be shut off an hour earlier than normal to save energy this winter, Paris’s mayor announced on Tuesday.
The water temperature in municipal pools in the French capital will also be lowered and the heating of public buildings delayed under the energy-saving plan.
The measures are aimed at meeting President Emmanuel Macron’s goal that industry, households, and municipal authorities reduce their energy consumption by 10% in response to Russia’s cut to gas supplies and spiralling energy prices.
Around Europe, countries are looking for ways to cut energy consumption and fill up their gas stores in preparation for a possible total cut-off.
France is not as exposed to Russian gas as some neighbours but a record number of nuclear reactor outages has forced France to import power when it would typically be an exporter, exacerbating the pressure on power markets.
“France will always be the City of Light,” Mayor Anne Hidalgo said.
The Eiffel Tower is currently illuminated until 1am by a lighting system that lends it a golden glow. At the top of each hour while lit, it twinkles thanks to 20,000 flashing bulbs. Extinguishing the monument’s lights at 11.45pm would mean a 4% reduction in its power consumption.
Ms Hidalgo said that from September 23 lighting in Paris’s public buildings would be switched off at 10pm while the water temperature in pools would be reduced to 25C from 26C. The heating in public building will be dialled down to 18C.
The city’s energy bill would hit 90 million euros this year, 35 million more than usual even with long-term electricity and gas contracts shielding authorities from the worst of the cost increases.
