Diagnosing Energy Poverty in Portugal through the Lens of a Social Survey
Abstract
:1. Introduction
1.1. Motivation
1.2. Related Work
1.3. Contribution
1.4. Paper Organization
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. The REVERTER Project
- Create nine roadmaps.
- Facilitate the renovation of more than 800 houses during the implementation of the project and within five years after its end.
- Create a positive impact on more than 3000 vulnerable people.
- Demonstrate the effectiveness and replicability of the proposed solutions among 20,000 energy-vulnerable households.
- Trigger the investment of about EUR 8 million in sustainable energy and primary energy savings/renewable energy to generate 12.3 GWh/year during the implementation of the project and within 5 years after its end.
- Use 10 existing and new “tailor-cut” complementary indicators to measure energy poverty.
- Create a knowledge database and analyze deep renovation measures by employing economic, environmental (via LCA), technical, and social criteria, and by using cost–benefit and multicriteria approaches.
- Identify viable financial schemes, support best practices, and shape future policies aimed at alleviating EP through energy retrofits by creating/adapting 15 pieces of legislation, policies, or strategies during the implementation of the project and within 5 years after its end.
- The identification of energy-vulnerable households;
- The analysis of building stock;
- The assessment of deep renovation measures;
- The establishment of “one-stop-shops” (OSS);
- Capacity building using energy ambassadors, awareness, and training campaigns.
2.2. Social Survey
- Test the EP identification methodology;
- Develop a set of tailor-made materials that will be used in the one-stop shops to support community capacity-building programs;
- Recruit households willing to participate in REVERTER’s field activities, e.g., via home visits;
- Facilitate the development of roadmaps;
- Identify best practices in terms of delivering energy advice during local engagement initiatives/campaigns for low-income households;
- Recognize key incentives for energy efficiency retrofitting for each category of property tenure type, which is necessary for the design of the one-stop shops.
- (a)
- Local context (national/regional/neighborhood)—this section was designed to identify the locally available support mechanisms, users’ awareness of their existence, and possible improvements to them. From this knowledge, using the strategies in the other pilot cities, existing mechanisms can be improved and inspire the development of new ones.
- (b)
- Information on building envelopes and comfort systems—the information collected in this section helps to discover more about the building and the way it is used, helping to design roadmaps.
- (c)
- Household-related questions, which aim to validate indicators used to quantify energy poverty and existing European statistics with evidence-based information.
- (d)
- Individual household demographics, including the postal code, are used in order to allow matching between the answers with local climate conditions.
- The impact of the building characteristics and mechanical systems on the comfort levels and energy bills;
- The reasons to not apply for support programs and the willingness to pay for efficiency improvements;
- The correlation between income, energy bills, and self-declared comfort;
- The levels of energy poverty when considering different options in terms of indicators.
- An inability to keep the home adequately warm;
- An inability to keep the home adequately cool;
- Cutbacks or restrictions in essential products and services;
- ‘Ten-Percent-Rule’—when the energy expenditure is more than 10% of income [36];
- Arrears in energy bills.
3. Survey Results
3.1. Socio-Economic and Demographic Characteristics
3.2. Income and Expenditure
3.3. Housing Characteristics
3.4. Mechanical Systems
3.5. Energy Costs and Habits
3.6. Energy Efficiency Interventions and Awareness
- Depends on the upfront costs;
- The house is rented and there is no keenness to spend money on retrofits;
- A retired person indicated that the amount received per month does not allow other expenses than the basics;
- Others indicated the amounts of EUR 500, 1000, and 5000 at once, but that it depended on the payback (5 years’ payback time was indicated by one respondent).
4. Diagnosis of Energy Poverty
4.1. Energy Bills, Income and Comfort
4.2. Energy Poverty Indicators
- Low efficiency—single-glass window and window condensation;
- Medium efficiency—double-glass windows and window condensation;
- High efficiency—double-glass windows, thermal cut, and no condensation in windows.
- Low income—≤1100 €/month;
- Medium income—>1100 €/month and ≤1700 €/month;
- High income—>1700 €/month.
5. Conclusions
- Analyzing existing energy rehabilitation techniques and adapting them to the region, in a process of multidisciplinary collaboration and the co-creation of innovative and effective solutions in conjunction with local players and stakeholders under a logic of non-invasive intervention and life cycle analysis, complying with the legal and normative framework defined by the regulation of the energy performance of buildings.
- Incentivizing the installation of heat pumps with a high coefficient of performance, particularly in existing buildings, to boost energy efficiency and enhance thermal comfort, as their use in new constructions is already widespread but not yet common in retrofits.
- Accelerate the implementation and promotion of passive houses and other building standards, installing solar thermal systems for heating sanitary water, and promoting services provided by renewable energy communities as the municipalities are keen on renewable energy communities and are open to innovative schemes.
- “One-stop shops” that provide information, guidance, and rehabilitation services to vulnerable households. These are emerging in the market in association with European projects, but more need to be established in association with municipalities to enroll vulnerable households in financing programs to improve energy efficiency, health, and comfort conditions in homes.
- Actions aimed at promoting awareness through less formal activities involving the population and the exchange of knowledge, training, and coaching in order to promote the development of skills and combat energy illiteracy, as these are crucial for the success of this concerted action.
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Category | Attributes | N | % |
---|---|---|---|
Gender | Female | 97 | 32.4% |
Male | 136 | 45.5% | |
Prefer not to answer | 66 | 22.1% | |
Household members | 1 | 35 | 11.7% |
2 | 96 | 32.1% | |
3 | 85 | 28.4% | |
4 | 47 | 15.7% | |
5 | 15 | 5.0% | |
6 | 4 | 1.3% | |
No response | 17 | 5.7% | |
Household with children | 1 | 38 | 12.7% |
2 or more | 47 | 15.7% | |
Household with students | 1 | 82 | 27.4% |
2 | 122 | 40.8% | |
3 | 26 | 8.7% | |
More than 3 | 38 | 12.7% | |
Household with pensioners | 1 | 40 | 13.4% |
2 | 17 | 5.7% | |
More than 2 | 1 | 0.3% | |
Full-time-employed household members | 1 | 87 | 29.1% |
2 | 139 | 46.5% | |
3 | 8 | 2.7% | |
More than 3 | 1 | 0.3% | |
Unemployed | 1 | 25 | 8.4% |
2 | 1 | 0.3% | |
3 | 0 | 0% | |
More than 3 | 0 | 0% | |
Education level | Graduated (technical area) | 270 | 35.9% |
Graduated (humanities) | 121 | 16.1% | |
Secondary school | 100 | 13.3% | |
Secondary vocational | 23 | 3.1% | |
Elementary school | 58 | 7.7% | |
Primary school | 84 | 11.2% | |
Kindergarten | 90 | 12.0% | |
Prefer not to answer | 7 | 0.9% |
Net Monthly Income | N | % |
---|---|---|
Up to 300 € | 11 | 3.7% |
301–600 € | 14 | 4.7% |
601–900 € | 41 | 13.7% |
901–1200 € | 22 | 7.4% |
1201–1500 € | 35 | 11.7% |
1501–2000 € | 35 | 11.7% |
2001–2500 € | 45 | 15.1% |
>2500 € | 59 | 19.7% |
Prefer not to answer | 37 | 12.4% |
Monthly Expenditure | N | % |
---|---|---|
up to 500 € | 37 | 12.4% |
500–1000 € | 89 | 29.8% |
1001–2000 € | 95 | 31.8% |
>2001 € | 47 | 15.7% |
Prefer not to answer | 31 | 10.4% |
Expenditure to Net Income | N | % |
---|---|---|
Less than 30% | 6 | 2.0% |
30–50% | 56 | 18.8% |
50–70% | 54 | 18.1% |
70–85% | 31 | 10.4% |
85–100% | 45 | 15.1% |
Over 100% | 40 | 13.4% |
No response | 66 | 22.1% |
Construction Year | Max | Min | Average |
---|---|---|---|
Built before 1960 (thick walls, high inertia) or of vernacular type | 300 | 51 | 135.9 |
Built between 1960–2010 (concrete structure and low insulation) | 600 | 30 | 135.5 |
Built after 2010, with newer regulations | 300 | 85 | 153.3 |
Home Energy Classe | Income Ranges | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
≤800 € | ≤1100 € | ≤1400 € | ≤1700 € | ≤2200 € | ≤3000 € | |
Low | 5.0% | 4.3% | 5.7% | 2.1% | 3.6% | 2.9% |
Medium | 5.0% | 2.9% | 1.4% | 5.0% | 3.6% | 7.1% |
High | 8.6% | 5.0% | 10.0% | 9.3% | 9.3% | 22.9% |
Energy Bill | Income Ranges | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
≤800 € | ≤1100 € | ≤1400 € | ≤1700 € | ≤2200 € | ≤3000 € | |
20–30 € | 2.3% | 1.4% | 1.8% | 1.8% | 0.0% | 0.5% |
40–50 € | 3.2% | 3.2% | 3.6% | 2.3% | 2.3% | 1.4% |
50–60 € | 2.7% | 1.4% | 3.2% | 2.3% | 2.7% | 3.6% |
60–80 € | 3.2% | 2.7% | 0.5% | 1.8% | 5.0% | 5.0% |
80–100 € | 1.4% | 1.8% | 2.3% | 2.7% | 3.2% | 5.0% |
100–150 € | 2.7% | 0.0% | 1.8% | 2.7% | 5.0% | 7.2% |
>150 € | 0.9% | 0.0% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.9% | 4.1% |
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Moura, P.; Fonseca, P.; Cunha, I.; Morais, N. Diagnosing Energy Poverty in Portugal through the Lens of a Social Survey. Energies 2024, 17, 4087. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17164087
Moura P, Fonseca P, Cunha I, Morais N. Diagnosing Energy Poverty in Portugal through the Lens of a Social Survey. Energies. 2024; 17(16):4087. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17164087
Chicago/Turabian StyleMoura, Pedro, Paula Fonseca, Inês Cunha, and Nuno Morais. 2024. "Diagnosing Energy Poverty in Portugal through the Lens of a Social Survey" Energies 17, no. 16: 4087. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17164087