Offices, pubs, and restaurants were the only non-residential building types to show a decrease in median electricity consumption last year, according to the Central Statistics Office.
Mean electricity consumption increased in community and daycare centres (+8%), primary health care facilities (+7%), and retail units (+2%), whereas it decreased in offices (-7%) and pubs and restaurants (-6%) year on year.
Restaurants and Public Houses used 167-kilowatt hours of electricity per square metre in 2021 compared with 137 kWh per square metre for retail units in 2021.
These figures were much higher than the amount of electricity per square metre used by other types of premises in 2021: Offices at 84 kWh/m2; Primary Health Care at 83 kWh/m2; and Community / Day Centre at 81 kWh/m2.
Electricity use in offices tripled year on year, from 11,611kWh to 31,027kWh on average, but CSO said the study’s varied range of premises made the median a more stable indicator of usual usage.
The CSO’s non-domestic electricity consumption by building energy ratings 2021 release shows that A and B-rated buildings used an average of 133kWh of electricity per square metre in 2021.
This compares to electricity usage per square metre of 124kWh for C-rated buildings, 106kWh for D-rated buildings, 98kWh for E-rated premises, and 98kWh for F and G-rated premises, highlighting how better-rated buildings tend to use more energy.
The mean electricity consumption for non-residential buildings from 2005 to 2021 was 199kWh per square metre, with more energy-efficient buildings constructed during that time tending to have a larger floor area.
A and B-rated non-residential buildings had an average of 571sq m compared with an average of 331sqm for C-rated buildings and 248sq m for F and G ratings.