What Ann-Cathrin and Maximilian would do without the university, they prefer not to imagine at the moment. The fact that face-to-face teaching is back suits the young couple studying in Cologne. Because of the fellow students, of course, but mainly because the university is heated and there are plenty of sockets to charge the laptop. “We don’t use anything there,” says Maximilian, “we think so.”
The energy suppliers’ price increases have arrived in their mailbox and on their bank statements. For their poorly insulated 60-square-meter apartment in Cologne, this means they no longer pay a 71-euro deduction per month for electricity, but 160 euros. For gas, which they use for hot water and radiators, the discount has increased from 43 to 152 euros. Saving energy wherever possible is therefore the order of the day. One-pot dishes are now being cooked. Anything that makes do with a stovetop is good. They even turned out a few of the lamps in the living room to eliminate unnecessary consumers, they say.