Power cuts: who does not have priority during load shedding?

Winter has already started well, and the drop in temperatures is not about to stop. Faced with the disastrous condition of the French nuclear fleet and the ensuing energy shortages, power cuts are to be feared in the coming months. Electricity network operators have already warned: load shedding measures would come into effect in the event of a network overvoltage.

We would then see two-hour cuts in certain predetermined sectors. The population will be notified 3 days before the facts, and it will be possible to know if one is directly concerned the day before the potential cut. Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne has also officially communicated through a circular to prefects across France that it was necessary to prepare concretely for these possible load shedding measures, as reported by the JDN.

Corsica is the only territory in mainland France to be completely spared: indeed, the island is attached to the Italian electricity network, and not the French one. In the rest of France, it will therefore be necessary to monitor the EcoWatt signal, also known as the “electricity weather forecast”, and make efforts to reduce its consumption if the signal turns orange or red.

Some households will be systematically spared from load shedding. Indeed, priority establishments, such as hospitals and police stations, will in some way immunize nearby homes, since the electricity will never be cut off. In high-density metropolises such as Paris, a large part of the inhabitants are therefore not at risk of cuts.

However, some people for whom electricity is a vital need are not included in the priority lists… Find out below what it is all about!