Ever since the period of confinement started with the declaration of the state of emergency in Spain on 14 March to stop the spread of coronavirus, the daily demand for electricity has lowered in respect to what might be expected during the same days of March in the past years.

The professor of the Faculty of Economics points out that even though the electricity is being consumed in larger amounts at homes, there has been a significant reduction in the demand for electricity for the industrial and commercial uses.

In this context, Mª Dolores Furió adds that the sources of renewable energy such as the hydraulics, hydraulic pumping system, or photovoltaic solar energy have increased their participation in the mix. As a result, their prices have reduced drastically roughly between 44% of the daily market prices and 25% of the Voluntary Price for Small Consumer (PVPC).

In her analysis, Furió points out that the authorities should continue opting for the energy transition policies such as the provision of renewable energy, energy saving, or energy efficiency while designing plans and stimulating measures to reactivate the economy after the healthcare crisis and to protect the citizens’ health.

Finally, the professor of the Department of Financial and Actuarial Economics explains that “no one can deny the direct relations between the levels of atmospheric contamination and the respiratory diseases which might have added to the vulnerability of a large part of the population to the novel coronavirus.”