The City of Namur announced on Friday a new set of measures intended to reduce its energy consumption in order to cope with rising energy prices.
As it stands, Namur will have a 130% increase in energy costs expected in 2023, the municipal administration has estimated.
Added to this is the indexation of civil servant salaries and rising inflation, which is affecting most of the supplies.
Also taking into account the climate context, the municipal college met on Friday to work on an action plan coordinated by the Councillor for Ecological Transition, Charlotte Mouget (Ecolo).
The measures will be a requirement for the Namur administration, the CPAS and other intra-municipal entities. In the short term, staff members will be asked to reduce their consumption as much as possible by turning off all appliances when this can be done or even by eliminating small energy-intensive auxiliary appliances.
Boiler rooms will also be better regulated, and the temperature in buildings will be reduced to 19 degrees. The reduction in consumption should also see a cut in public lighting for part of the night between November and March.
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“In this respect, technical meetings still have to take place with ORES to determine the feasibility and flexibility of such a system”, explained the municipal college on this subject. This involves in particular evaluating the security aspect for the citizens, knowing that Namur is a major student city with a bustling nightlife.
At the same time, the end-of-year illuminations will be limited, as will the lights that illuminate the citadel.
The ice rink hosted by the Walloon capital at the end of each year has also been called into question. A reflection is underway with the operator to set up a less energy-intensive alternative.
