Electricity consumption in Irish households has seen a significant increase, with every county in the country showing a rise. The latest report from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) highlights some interesting facts about usage in Dublin and other areas.

In 2024, Dublin postal districts had the highest proportion of residential consumption at 19%, followed by Cork (12%), Dublin County (6%), Galway (6%), and Kildare (5%). The report indicates a 4% overall increase in both residential and non-residential consumption between 2023 and 2024, with Urban Residential consumption growing by 5% and Rural Residential by 3%.

Within the Dublin postal districts, Dublin 15 (10%), Dublin 24 (9%), and Dublin 18 (6.5%) had the highest proportions of residential electricity consumption, while Dublin 2 (1.9%), Dublin 10 (1.6%), and Dublin 20 (1.3%) had the lowest.

Dublin 15 and Dublin 24 were among the top consumers of electricity, using 172 Gigawatt hours (GWh) and 152GWh respectively. While consumption increased in all Dublin postal districts between 2023 and 2024, there have been fluctuations in electricity usage over the past decade due to various factors such as weather conditions and energy prices.

Orla McCarthy, Senior Statistician at the CSO's Climate & Energy Division, notes that factors like the percentage of BER A-rated homes in a postal district can influence consumption patterns. The report also highlights that the coding of postal districts should be considered broadly correct due to certain uncertainties.

Looking at the country as a whole, median residential electricity consumption rose by 2.3% in 2024 compared to the previous year, with all counties showing an increase. Counties with the lowest median consumption included Donegal, Leitrim, and Mayo, while Kildare and Meath recorded the highest figures.

Overall, total metered electricity consumption in 2024 reached 31,903 GWh, with non-residential consumption constituting the largest share at 72% of the total. Data centres were identified as large energy users, accounting for 31% of consumption in 2024, up from 30% in 2023.

The report also highlighted the rise in metered electricity consumption by stand-alone Electric Vehicles (EV) charge points, increasing by 43% from 23 GWh in 2023 to 33 GWh in 2024. The number of residential customers with smart meters also saw a significant increase, reaching 1.9 million by the end of 2024.