Energy Efficiency Obligations

Description

Energy savings obligations (ESO) oblige energy suppliers to implement energy saving measures. Using Austrian energy and climate policy and EU legislation as a basis, the dissertation analyses whether ESO should complement the range of policy instruments in force. Methods applied are literature research and expert interviews: Literature research revealed that the quality of ESO schemes which have been implemented in EU Member states yet is incomparable due to varying initial country-specific situations. Moreover, Austrian conditions concerning legislative and economic aspects needed to be analysed. Thus expert interviews were chosen as the qualitative method most applicable. Austrian compliance with EU energy and climate legislation (20-20-20 targets) was the basis for the recommendations deduced: A national ESO scheme should focus on small customers and the residential building sector. Specified by the source of energy delivered, suppliers of electricity, gas, heating oil, and district heating are to be obliged. In order to reduce economic uncertainty, the scheme is recommended to run until 2030. As distributional effects are expected, governmental subsidies for the most typical savings measures should be provided to minder them.

Period	17 May 2013
Event title	Smart Grids Week 2013
Event type	Conference
Location	AustriaShow on map