The Louvre and the Palace of Versailles will begin to turn off the light earlier

MOSCOW, 17 Sep — PRIME. The facade of the Palace of Versailles and the pyramid of the Louvre will be turned off earlier in the evening to save energy, even if these measures are purely symbolic, French Minister of Culture Rima Abdoul-Malak said on Saturday during an interview on France 2 TV channel.

“We are going to turn off the Louvre pyramid earlier, tonight. Instead of turning off the pyramid at 1 am, the Louvre will turn it off at 23 o’clock… We will also turn off the facade of the Palace of Versailles at 22 o’clock instead of 23 o’clock from next week,” she said.

The Minister added that these symbolic measures are not enough, it is important to mobilize citizens for an environmental emergency, but it is important to take concrete measures for the ecological transition.

“For example, the Musée d’Orsay reduced energy consumption by a third by simply replacing light bulbs and switching to LEDs, which we will try to do in all museums,” she said.

Earlier, the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, said that the illumination of a number of administrative buildings in Paris will stop working after 10 pm in order to save energy.

Hidalgo noted that Paris needs state support so that investment in urban projects does not stop. She also urged the government to turn off the lights in administrative buildings.

This summer, the French government launched an “energy sobriety” program with the goal of reducing electricity consumption by 10% to avoid shortages in the coming winter. The government called on businesses and transport companies to submit specific plans to reduce energy consumption. Some French companies, including two major glassmakers Duralex and Arc, said they had already reduced production volumes and transferred a number of employees to part-time work. Also, due to increased energy bills in the metropolis, about 30 swimming pools have stopped working, including the Pailleron, the largest sports complex in Paris.