The Paris town hall is expected to announce tomorrow, i.e. on Tuesday, that the lighting of the French capital’s iconic structure will be turned off at 11:45 p.m. instead of 1 a.m, according to Bloomberg.
With the iconic monument set to start falling dark at 11:45 pm when the final visitors leave, the tower will no longer twinkle at midnight.
This step is being taken due to the energy crisis, with spiraling energy costs grappling Europe, which have been aggravated by the war in Ukraine.
The Eiffel Tower is currently illuminated after dark until 1 am by an elaborate lighting system that gives it a golden glow. In addition, the monument twinkles for five minutes on the hour from nightfall thanks to 20,000 flashing bulbs, as per The Guardian.
Jean-François Martins, the head of Eiffel tower’s management, reportedly said, “It’s a highly symbolic gesture – part of the growing awareness around energy sobriety.”
Besides the iconic tower, city authorities are also reducing the night-time lighting of important sites. Monuments in Marseille including the Pharo Palace will switch lights off earlier from the end of September in order to save energy.
RHM/PR