The European Commission has published a new study on the state of
energy poverty across Europe and ways to combat it. The study found that
while many EU countries do have measures in place to protect vulnerable
people, nearly 11% of the EU’s population is in a situation where their
households are not able to adequately heat their homes at an affordable
cost.
This situation is estimated to affect around 54 million people in
Europe (2012 figures). The scale of the problem is due to rising energy
prices, low income and poor energy efficient homes, and it is
particularly prevalent in Central Eastern and Southern Europe, the study
says.
Under the EU’s so-called Third Energy Market Package,
the responsibility for addressing energy poverty, identifying
vulnerable consumers and putting measures in place lies with national
governments. However, a number of EU countries do not currently identify
or quantify vulnerable consumers, and therefore cannot adequately
target energy poverty measures. Less than a third of EU countries
officially recognise energy poverty, and only a few have an official
definition in their national legislation.
The study found that financial interventions are a crucial means for
the short-term protection for vulnerable consumers. In the longer-term,
energy efficiency measures focussing on retrofitting buildings are a key
part of addressing energy poverty. Strong incentives to encourage low
income households to put energy efficiency measures in place, as well as
raising awareness, are needed, it says. Moreover, consumers need
transparent billing and information on price comparisons in order to
make better energy choices, the study says.
Ways forward
According to the study, EU countries need to properly assess energy
poverty and identify vulnerable consumers in order to be able to draw up
appropriate measures. The European Commission already helps EU
countries to do so. The Commission also facilitates the exchange of best
practices via the Citizen’s Energy Forum
and the Vulnerable Consumer Working Group. Moreover, the Commission is
set to issue recommendations to national goverments on how to help
vulnerable consumers through energy efficiency and other measures.
The study also recommends that the Commission should allocate a
higher share of EU funds to renovation programmes for the energy-poor,
low-income and vulnerable categories of people, while another
recommendation calls for improved monitoring of energy poverty, leading
to a better understanding of the situation.