Privation of energy services in Mexican households: An alternative measure of energy poverty

Abstract

Energy poverty, understood as deprivation of energy services linked to satisfy human basic needs, is a strengthened research topic which is gaining relevance in Social Sciences. We point out that energy poverty affects millions of families in Mexico, so there is a need for overcoming this social justice problem. Hence, this paper presents a methodological framework to characterize families according to their levels of deprivation of energy services and, furthermore, identify the determining factors of these different levels of deprivation. Our results indicate that five groups of homes exist: one which does not lack any energy service; two which lack only one energy service; and two which lack the majority of energy services. Those variables which most precisely explain the probability that a home be found in each of these groups are per-capita income, size of settlement (urban or rural), and type of climate. We conclude our findings have public policy implications in that, upon characterizing households based on their level of deprivation of energy services, sound strategies may be designed and implemented to attend to the specific needs of each household group.