• Energy Research
• 2021-2025close
• 11. Sustainability close
• Energy Policy close

Abstract This paper analyzes the energy consumption behavior of urban households in Nepal during the energy crisis induced by the unofficial Indian economic blockade in 2015. Our findings suggest that urban households have a smaller marginal utility attached to the consumption of one more unit of electricity relative to other dirty energy sources like firewood. The 2015 economic blockade had some deteriorating impacts on a household fuel choice as they were forced to degrade to firewood for cooking. However, to some extent, the blockade also seems to have acted as a push factor for some households towards cleaner sources like electricity largely due to the distrust in the supply of petroleum fuels. There is a variation in energy consumption behavior of households, which is explained by different demographic and socioeconomic attributes of the household. Households with a better educated head and those headed by a female are generally more amenable to cleaner fuels such as electricity. On the other hand, larger households and those residing outside the Kathmandu valley are less likely to make the jump to cleaner fuels. House ownership and number of rooms used were found to have no significant association with the energy consumption behavior of households residing in urban Nepal.

This paper aims to fill a research gap in the area of consumer-citizen attitudes to business models for decentralized energy storage, at the level of households and buildings. The study focuses on the interaction of such attitudes and their underlying motivation factors with socio-cultural, contextual factors. Self-determination theory (SDT) is used as a theoretical framework, to connect interpersonal and contextual factors, addressing the question of how contexts influence the motivation to support energy storage. Drawing on SDT, this study examines the role of autarky (independence from the energy system), autonomy (control over energy management) and relatedness (degree of sharing required) in this regard, embedded and interpreted in the socio-cultural local context of two demonstration sites in Sweden and Portugal. A mixed method approach is used. Quantitative survey data provides information on local social and cultural dimensions, followed by stakeholder consultation workshops that elicit participants’ views on different models of decentralized energy storage. The findings raise questions of how to improve autarky and autonomy for prosumers, while keeping the need for time investment low and provide flexibility regarding the required degree of interaction between prosumers. Implications for business models and policy support for citizen-centered sustainable urban energy systems are derived.

Abstract In modern developed economies, one of the primary objectives is to manage the transition from polluting to cleaner technologies as efficiently as possible. By now, in the current empirical literature, one can identify technological spillovers from environmental innovations as a major driver of this process. Specific energy policy aspects connected with industry behaviour have yet to be explored. The aim of this paper is to investigate energy efficiency via environmental innovation and the resulting degree of resilience and adaptation of both developed and developing countries. The work applies the non-parametric DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) framework and Tobit analysis. For this scope, it is built a panel dataset made of some 5000 observations based on energy policy and sustainable development variables for 136 OECD and non-OECD countries. The results show that knowledge spillovers from environmental innovations reduce inefficiency and therefore strengthen the resilience of economies that decide and manage to invest adequately in the transition to more sustainable technologies. Besides, OECD countries improve their energy efficiency scores over time, whilst non-OECD countries do not. This implies that sustainable technologies transition is made more efficient by environmental innovation but the process is fostered by disposing of a resilient economic system – hence, vulnerability can affect the transition. These hypotheses lead to important economic, social and environmental implications for energy policy modelling.

Abstract Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) and EPC digital registers are key tools to evaluate different aspects of the building stock and its energy consumption. This paper presents several detailed energy performance evaluations on the Italian buildings based on a sample of over 2,000,000 EPCs extracted from the national EPC register (SIAPE), contributing to the definition of an updated energy performance baseline of the Italian building stock. This is the first work using the Italian EPC register to define such a baseline to the extent of the authors’ knowledge. Furthermore, combined analyses of EPC data were carried out to obtain information on the influence of the Italian energy regulations on building characteristics and on the effectiveness of energy strategy application for building renovation. This study underlines the relevance of EPC registers and how the combined analysis of EPC parameters can provide a large amount of useful information on several aspects of the building stock, allowing the monitoring of the impact of the Italian energy policy framework on buildings energy performance. Finally, based on these results, the paper supports public authorities and decision-makers in planning and developing future energy programs and identifying the best practices on the Italian territory.

Abstract Hydrogen as an energy carrier faces challenges such as high costs of hydrogen supply, high cost of fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), and substantial infrastructure requirements. However, leading countries have announced long-term plan and targets in developing hydrogen energy. Should the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) follow up such developments? This study asks if hydrogen-based road transport, especially FCEVs in the fleets of passenger cars, buses, and trucks, could be economically justified in the ASEAN member states. If not, what strategies to take for ASEAN member states? The study applies a well-to-wheel model and a total cost of ownership model to compare the energy consumption, carbon emissions, as well as the costs of FCEVs with those of alternative powertrains. This practice shows the scale of the cost gaps. Subsequently, it estimates the implications of predicted future developments of both hydrogen and FCEVs, in terms of costs and carbon emissions reduced. The results indicate the areas in which FCEVs are most likely to become competitive in the near future, and thus could be targeted and prioritised. By comparing the country-specific results, implications are extended to what policies are most relevant in facilitating the development of hydrogen and fuel cell.

Abstract In line with global trends towards energy efficiency, Dubai's Government introduced Al Sa'fat Green Building Rating System (GBRS) to reduce the energy intensity of its building sector. This study presents the first comprehensive evaluation of Al Sa'fat with emphasis on building energy performance, shedding light on its effectiveness, limitations, and techno-economic potential. Following a comparison of Al Sa'fat to international and regional GBRSs, a detailed energy-efficiency analysis is conducted using building performance simulations applied to local residential and commercial building archetypes. The benefits of adopting Al Sa'fat at the urban scale are then estimated using a macro techno-economic analysis. Results confirm the potential of Al Sa'fat in curbing current consumption patterns with energy savings ranging from 22% for hotel buildings to 63% for single-family villas. The anticipated monetary savings from adopting Al Sa'fat in Dubai are equally significant and could exceed USD 100 Billion over the next 25 years. Finally, recommendations are made to overcome critical limitations of Al Sa'fat, including the minimal emphasis on water efficiency measures and limited differentiation between its current certification levels (i.e., bronze, silver, gold, and platinum), which could discourage building owners and developers from pursuing high certification levels.

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement have ushered in a new era of policymaking to deliver on the formulated goals. Energy policies are key to ensuring universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy (SDG7). Yet they can also have considerable impact on other goals. To successfully achieve multiple goals concurrently, policies need to balance different objectives and manage their interactions. Refining previously contemplated design principles, we identify three key principles - complementary, transparency and adaptability - as highly pertinent for multiple-objective energy policies based on a synthesis of seventeen coordinated policy case studies. First, policies should entail complementary measures and design provisions that specifically target non-energy objectives (complementarity). Second, policy impacts should be tracked comprehensively in both energy and non-energy domains to uncover diminishing returns and facilitate policy learning (transparency). Third, policies should be capable of adapting to changing objectives over time (adaptability). These principles are rarely considered in current policies, implying the need to mainstream them into the next generation of policymaking by pointing to best practices and new tools.

Climate change related environmental problems are pushing a constantly growing number of countries to set carbon neutrality goals. Increasing reliance on ecologically friendly technologies is widely considered to be a crucial means of achieving this objective. Many existing studies measure environmental performance using carbon dioxide emissions, or carbon sources, but do not consider the amount of carbon offset through sequestration in carbon sinks. We define carbon neutrality performance as the difference between the carbon sinks and carbon sources and quantify its relationship with green technological innovation, approximated using the notion of environmental productivity. We rely on the Chinese province-level data from 2001 to 2019 and demonstrate that green innovation can significantly facilitate the attainment of carbon neutrality objectives. Our mediation model suggests that low-carbon innovation can help reach carbon neutrality by decreasing net emissions directly, but also by inhibiting the urbanization rate and promoting renewable energy generation. Our analysis helps shed light on the possible strategies that policymakers in China and other developing countries can follow to realize their carbon neutrality aspirations.