The energy intensity indicator as a tool to help better design energy policy: some exploratory results

Abstract

Due to global concerns about high levels of energy consumption and the challenges it poses in terms of environmental impact, different governments have been implementing measures to tackle that problem. However, it is important to accurately know where most effort should be placed when designing effective energy policies. In this context, the current paper presents the results of decomposition of the aggregate energy intensity indicator for six countries. The results obtained seem to indicate the prevalence of the intensity effect over the structural effect in explaining changes in a country's energy intensity, reflecting and reinforcing the relevance that the implementation of energy efficiency and energy conservation measures has gained within energy policy design. However, the direction of each contribution is not straightforward, requiring a country-specific insight.