Romanians used more electricity in the first nine months of 2011 than in the same period of 2010, shows data from the country's Statistics Institute. Electricity consumption went up by 4.2 percent year-on-year, reaching 47.9 billion KWh. Electricity exports were down 6.6 percent during this period, to 2.3 billion KWh.

While individuals used more electricity – up 3.1 percent, public lighting saved some. Consumption here was down 8.7 percent. The country's internal production increased by 1.7 percent, but Romania also imported 6.2 percent more electricity.

Electricity consumption is among the indicators of a country's economic evolution. During tough economic times, people tend to cut their electricity bills. In 2008, Romania was the 46th country in the world based on its electricity consumption. The US ranked first, followed by China and the EU as a whole. Japan, Russia and India were next in the top, according to data from CIA World Factbook (more here).

editor@romania-insider.com

(photo source: Photoexpress.com)