Urban Household Energy Research Articles

Urban household energy use patterns in Nigeria

Urban household energy use accounts for a large proportion of commercial fuel consumption in Nigeria. As population and urbanization increase, consumption is expected to rise rapidly in the future. It is therefore important to have information on the utilization pattern and factors driving consumption of urban household energy. Such information will be useful within the national energy planning framework for deriving strategies for a more rational energy utilization and increased reliability of energy supply to the urban household. In this paper, the major results from an urban household survey are presented. In the survey, data on various factors including energy consumption by income group, fuel preferences, sources and reliability of energy supply, and expenditure on energy are collected and analysed. Major conclusions are drawn on the possibilities for fuel supply/demand balance, and strategies for efficient energy utilization in the urban household.

Urban household energy consumption in Thailand

This study was aimed at developing a better understanding of urban household energy consumption in Thailand through a series of in-depth household energy surveys. Households in urban areas used electricity, LPG, charcoal, and fuelwood. Traditional biomass fuels such as husk and dung, as well as kerosene, were essentially not used in urban households. Nearly all households used electricity and most households used LPG. Some households used more than one fuel for cooking, particularly LPG and charcoal. There was a great difference in electricity used between the households in Bangkok and other urban areas. Most households in the study areas used LPG stove or burners for cooking. But charcoal stoves were also used by many households for specific culinary purposes. Electric rice-cookers are widely used for convenience. The study suggests that the number of households using charcoal stoves will decrease gradually and fuelwood use will disappear. Saturation rates for refrigerators and colour television sets were very high and air conditioners were common in Bangkok. Some users may be unaware of the benefits of LPG as a cooking fuel. To improve indoor air quality and cooking safety and reduce pressures on forests from commercial fuelwood use, measures to promote LPG should be undertaken. The government should also provide information about efficient appliances and electricity conservation.

Urban household energy use in Tanzania: Prices, substitutes and poverty

This paper presents the findings of the Tanzanian Urban Household Energy Survey undertaken as part of the Tanzania Urban Energy Project. Household energy use varies by income group according to local fuel availability. Considerable differences between the marginal costs of supplying fuels and market prices paid by consumers have led to major misallocations of resources. When the results of this survey are compared to the results of the 1987 household energy survey, a significant shift by households toward kerosene and electricity away from fuelwood, charcoal and LPG is shown to have taken place. These shifts toward modern fuels are consistent with the claims of the households in the 1990 survey, and can largely be explained by fuel prices. Finally, an assessment of the lifeline tariff and the kerosene cross-subsidy demonstrate that the latter is a more effective method of ensuring the basic energy needs of the urban and rural poor.

Nairobi households and their energy use: An economic analysis of consumption patterns

This paper describes and analyses the results of an urban household energy survey conducted in Nairobi, Kenya, during 1981. Aggregate data on fuel and energy demand are examined in light of the problems facing urban areas in developing countries such as the increases in petroleum prices in the 1970s and the depletion of non-commercial energy resources such as wood. The paper provides a disaggregation of urban household fuel demand by income group. Using regression analysis, the results confirm that there is a high income elasticity for electricity (approximately 1.6), while charcoal exhibits a negative income elasticity of -0.23. Gas energy consumption is primarily explained by price movements.