'Last Tool in the Drawer': Danes Warned of Unprecedented Power Failures in the Coming Winter

According to Aalborg University professor of energy planning Brian Vad Mathiesen, it is high time to revive the oil crisis mentality of the 1970s. In order to survive the energy crisis, he urged fellow Danes to “take responsibility” and get used to darker and colder rooms.

As Denmark – and the whole of Europe – is facing an unprecedented power crisis, the Nordic country has been warned of looming outages during the coming winter, with experts heralding a new era of electricity consumption.

“There is an increased risk of a lack of power this winter,” Klaus Winther, deputy director at Energinet, the Danish national transmission system operator for electricity and natural gas, told TV2.

Winther cited a growing uncertainty across European electricity markets, exorbitant prices, technical challenges and maintenance at key European power plants, an unusually hot and dry summer and growing concerns over security of supplies resulting in what he referred to as a “perfect storm.”

“The production of electricity cannot keep up with the demand, and this increases the probability of a power failure”, Klaus Winther said.

Winther assured that while Denmark is definitely not facing a total blackout, individual distribution companies may be forced to shut down electricity for a few hours at a time, a situation never experienced before.

“There is no doubt that power cuts are the absolutely last tool we have in the drawer. I hope it doesn't happen, but we are ready if it comes to that,” Winter assured.

Brian Vad Mathiesen, professor of energy planning at Aalborg University, called on fellow Danes to revive the oil crisis mentality of the 1970s and get used to saving electricity. This, he mused, may include getting used to darker and colder rooms. “We must create energy-saving campaigns on a scale we cannot imagine, and everyone must take responsibility,” the professor concluded.

Denmark's northern neighbor Sweden has already voiced concerns about a lack of power in the coming winter. The risk of power outages has been increased from “low” to “real”, with the situation being particularly perilous in the southern and most populous part of the country.

“This winter, at its coldest, there is a real risk that we will have to interrupt electricity consumption in parts of southern Sweden,” strategic operations manager for Swedish power grid operator Svenska Kraftnät, Erik Ek, said in a press release.

According to Svenska Kraftnät, at most the outage may correspond to approximately 2 percent of the total electricity consumption in the country.

The energy crisis, exacerbated by the West's backfiring sanctions war against Russian energy over Moscow's special operation in Ukraine, has affected all of Europe. For instance, Germany has adopted a slew of measures intend to lower the country's total energy consumption by 20 percent. Among others, the heating in public buildings will be lowered to 19 degrees, cooling and air conditioning will be turned off in absence of personnel and and the lighting of public buildings and monuments at night will be turned off.