Modeling Electricity Expenditures using BSOM based on Techno-Socio Economic: A Case Study of Urban Households of Iran’s Provinces

Abstract

Electricity has particular importance in the national economy and providing socio-economic welfare. It is considered as an essential infrastructure of countries development. This is why the management of electricity consumption and formulation of proper policies for it is very important for policy-makers. To do this successfully, it is necessary to identify energy consumption patterns and relevant influential factors. This study aims to identify the qualitative and quantitative effective factors of energy consumption using batch self-organizing maps (BSOM). Electricity consumption in residential sector accounts for one-third of total electricity consumption. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the consumption of urban households in Iran’s provinces. According to the results, electricity price, household income and NG gas piping costs, as quantitative factors, and number of adolescents, number of rooms, employment status of the household responsible person (HRP) , number of children, education level of HRP, house area, house material and use of stationary gas cooler, as qualitative factors, are the most important factors affecting electricity consumption. Electricity price, the number of teenager, rooms and status of household head activity are identified as the most important quantitative and qualitative factors in all provinces of the country.