Investigation on household energy consumption of urban residential buildings in major cities of Indonesia during COVID-19 pandemic

The implementation of the movement control order (MCO) to curb the spread of the 2019 novel corona virus disease (COVID-19) have influenced household energy consumption patterns around the world. This study aims to investigate household energy consumption of urban residential buildings in major cities of Indonesia during COVID-19 pandemic. Three representative major cities of Indonesia were selected to investigate detailed information about household appliances and gas consumption through face-to-face interviews in 2021 (n = 311). The factors affecting household energy consumption were investigated by multiple regression analysis. The results showed that, overall, the average annual energy consumption of all samples during pandemic was approximately 23.5 GJ, 3.0 GJ larger than before pandemic. The difference was primarily attributed to the use of air conditioning and cooking. The statistical analysis clearly indicated that the increase in household income (low-to high-cost houses), which would increase household size and number of appliances including air conditioning, thus increased total household energy consumption. We recommended the following potential energy-saving strategies for urban houses in Indonesia: (a) control the number of family members, (b) use more energy efficiency standards for electrical appliances and (c) encourage energy-saving lifestyles, particularly to younger adults by adopting passive cooling techniques (window opening) whereever possible.