Development of electrical heating in the Czech Republic and its consequences

After 1990 the necessity to improve ecological conditions in the Czech Republic increased significantly. One of the measures to achieve this aim was the governmental support of households to replace fossil fuel heating by gas or electrical heating. This support, connected with the fact that prices of the electricity for households were and still are below a cost level resulted in a substantial increase of the electricity consumption of these consumers. This increase had a very unfavorable influence on the whole electrical system. While a consumption of industrial consumers had decreased after the year 1990 (as a result of changes in the national economy) and started to increase slowly only last year, the household consumption has recorded a continuous increase (of 17 % in 1994, for example). At present the installed capacity by direct electrical heating is estimated to amount up to 2200 MW while it was practically zero in 1991. The consumption diagram has accordingly changed. The difference between the summer minimum and the winter peak load has substantially increased. With nearly the same average consumption, the peak load in 1995 was about 800 Mw higher than in 1989. In the same period, the needed regulation capacity increased too. The increase in power demand for electrical heating will probably increase in the next years and accordingly new power capacities and new peak sources will be required. (author) 3 figs., 2 tabs