Abstract
Improving energy efficiency is considered to be important and cost-effective strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which is crucial in the face of global climate change. This study hypothesizes that there are significant differences in the impact of energy efficiency on economic and energy systems. Using quantile regression method, the impact of economic and energy characteristics on energy-related greenhouse gas emissions in 120 countries over the period 2010–2020 is investigated. Detailed analyses are conducted by dividing the countries into 12 groups based on gross national income per capita (Atlas method) and the share of resource rents in gross domestic product. A macro-level system of indicators for assessing energy efficiency is proposed, which can be linked to the economic and energy characteristics of the systems: National Energy Efficiency, Energy Intensity Ratio, Primary Energy Production Efficiency, Industrial Sector Energy Efficiency, Share of Low Carbon Energy, Population Energy Efficiency. The findings show that (1) global energy efficiency has remained largely unchanged over the decade; (2) there are differences in energy efficiency between fossil fuel producing and non-fossil fuel producing countries; (3) the factors that have an inverse effect on emissions in fossil fuels dependent countries include industrial energy efficiency and population energy efficiency, which are far from exhausting their potential; (4) despite the recognized importance of energy efficiency, its impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions globally has been unnoticeable. The study highlights that Sustainable Development Goals 7 and 13 on energy affordability and emission reductions are conflicting and require harmonization of mechanisms to achieve them, such as balancing climate change mitigation investments, identifying the potential for energy efficiency improvements across economy or improving energy saving practices. The overall conclusion suggests that there is an urgent need to review current decarbonization and energy efficiency initiatives, given the lack of significant global progress in reducing greenhouse gas emissions or improving energy efficiency between 2010 and 2020.
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