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Energy security analysis and future recommendations to enhance energy security based on expenditures for R&D and education and levels of rule of law and democracy
Abstract
This paper sheds the light on an important aspect of the energy system: Energy Security. Energy security is a global issue that directs policy makers to vote decisions in. The promise for a more secure energy system is meant to provide societies with a better life. As energy security is a multidimensional concept, this paper investigates the relationship between four different parameters with energy security in a global holistic view. All countries with reliable data are compared in regards to their energy security based on these four parameters (R&D, education, rule of law and democracy). The results show clearly that there is a substantial difference between countries in their energy security level. It also, provides conclusions to policy makers of how energy security can be enhanced.
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The paper presents the investigation of the impact of Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) shutdown on Lithuanian energy security. The system of energy security indicators, covering technical, economic and socio-political aspects is presented. The integral characteristic of these indicators shows the level of energy security. The paper analyses the Lithuanian energy security level in 2007. To make a comparison, the energy security level in 2010, after the shutdown of Ignalina NPP, when Lithuanian Power Plant in Elektrėnai becomes the main electricity producer, is forecasted. Two alternatives are analysed: Lithuanian Power Plant uses either gas or heavy fuel oil for electricity production. The security level of each indicator, each indicator block and the total security level are presented as the result. Energy security indicators, which increased or decreased after the shutdown of Ignalina NPP, are analysed, including the indicators which have had the greatest impact on the change in energy security level. The influence of Ignalina NPP shutdown on CO2 emissions is presented. Also, electricity generating costs for different types of electricity production at a different discount rate are presented.
This paper establishes an ‘energy security assessment instrument’ based on a new and expanded conceptualisation of energy security. The instrument is a systematic interrogative tool for evaluating energy security of individual states or regions. It consists of eleven broad energy security dimensions associated with the current global energy system. These energy security dimensions take into account numerous quantitative and qualitative attributes of each country’s energy security and policy, and include both traditional energy security concerns and many new factors, such as environmental, socio-cultural and technological. Another dimension, largely absent from previous analyses, is the existence of, and the issues addressed in, energy security policy in each country. This instrument serves as an assessment system with which to evaluate energy security in the Asia-Pacific region. The existing studies on energy security in the Asia-Pacific region suffer from serious limitations. No study to date examines regional energy security policies by adopting a more comprehensive energy security definition as a starting point. Most studies also focus on a single country or issue. Even if they examine energy security in major regional economies, they lack critical comparative analysis. The instrument is valuable as it may be utilised to draw a comprehensive map of regional energy security situation, which can also include comparative analysis of energy security characteristics across the Asia-Pacific region. Ultimately, it may be utilised to set up a framework for improved regional energy cooperation with the aim of providing regional leaders with a blueprint for improving regional energy security and policy.
This Handbook brings together energy security experts to explore the implications of framing the energy debate in security terms, both in respect of the governance of energy systems and the practices associated with energy security. © Hugh Dyer and Maria Julia Trombetta 2013. All rights reserved.
This paper sheds light on an integral aspect of the global energy system: energy security. Energy security is a universal topic that shapes policies and regulations in order to achieve higher levels of energy security and thus provides societies with a better life. Understanding the concept and its implications requires a holistic definition, but current research literature lacks a commonly accepted, precisely defined definition. Therefore, the research gap is the absence of a comprehensive definition that takes into account all energy security dimensions, and the absence of well-studied relationships between energy security and its dimensions. Taking that in mind, the gap is addressed by a systematic review of energy security definitions and by building a structural dimensionalization of energy security. Thus, this review aims to track changing definitions of energy security in modern times and formulate a concise and comprehensive definition. Furthermore, using a structural approach, 15 dimensions, and related parameters of energy security are determined and categorized to illustrate the range of issues covered by the term and to enable precise evaluation of the energy security of energy systems. The results of this review show clearly how energy security could be defined generically to account all dimensions, and show the relationships between these 15 dimensions and energy security. Understanding all dimensions of energy security provides insights for policymakers to formulate policies that account for all of these dimensions.
The Paris Agreement duly reflects the latest scientific understanding of systemic global warming risks. Limiting the anthropogenic temperature anomaly to 1.5–2 °C is possible, yet requires transformational change across the board of modernity.
In this paper we discuss the historical dimensions of energy in rural Alaska to argue that energy securityi n rural locations involves different considerations than in urban areas, and as such a definition of energy security needs to be downscaled to a place-based perspective, addressing individual and household needs as opposed to national issues of supply, consumption, and distribution. The definition of energy security for local communities that we propose is adapted from the food security literature: having sufficientaccess to energy generation or provisioning services to conduct a sustainable life. Also similar to the food security literature, the framework we propose includes four dimensions to energy security: availability,access, quality, and stability. This paper applies the proposed definition and framework to the example of rural Alaska. Alaska has an abundance of energy sources, from oil and gas to a host of renewables, however due to colonial legacies, lack of infrastructure, policies and social structure a number of communities in rural Alaska struggle with energy insecurity.
During the last decade a number of long-held tenets of the energy sector have been rewritten. With the rise of new technologies and the help of policies favouring RES (renewable energy sources) a transformation of our understanding of the energy system and its possibilities has encouraged dramatic changes in the World's energy landscape. As some importers became exporters, countries long-defined as significant energy exporters became centres of demand growth. In these turbulent times, it is the awareness of the dynamics underpinning energy markets that is crucial for both decision-makers and investors to form informed opinions on how to reconcile a string of technical, environmental, economic and social factors in order to provide for best solutions regarding country specifics and demands. The right combination of policies and technologies could fuel economic growth, whilst still providing secure and affordable energy in line with low-carbon goals. Those that might successfully anticipate energy developments can derive a significant advantage on the market, while those that fail to recognise the importance of new movements risk making poor policy and investment decisions. In this light and following the accession of Croatia in the European Union, a number of questions are raised regarding the country's energy sector legal framework and development policy and their ability to cope with the demands faced. Taking Croatia as a practical example, the impact of different development strategies is considered through the application of a novel approach suggested by the paper. This study presents an overview aimed to help clarify some of the aspects behind forming a successful framework capable of making the right decisions for the future, today.
This article correlates energy policy and practice with the multidimensional concept of energy security and empirical performance over forty years. Based on an analysis of 22 countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development between 1970 and 2010, it concludes that many industrialized countries have made limited progress toward the goal of achieving secure, reliable and affordable supplies of energy while also transitioning to a low-carbon energy system. However, some national best practices exist, which are identified by examining the relative performance of four countries: the United Kingdom and Belgium (both with noteworthy improvements), and Sweden and France (both with limited improvements). The article concludes by offering implications for energy policy more broadly and by providing empirical evidence that our four dimensions (availability, affordability, energy efficiency, and environmental stewardship) envelop the key strategic components of energy security.
In this article, an integrated methodology is presented to assess an optimal mix and perspective development of energy generation technologies not only by technical, economic or other criteria, but also from an energy security perspective. The energy security is evaluated in terms of energy system resistance to disturbances. The methodology comprises several models, such as a stochastic model of energy systems disturbance parameters, economic-optimization model of energy systems functioning, metric and analysis techniques of energy security. The perspective development and functioning of the energy systems with stochastic disturbances is modelled using economic-optimization model with the development of different energy generation technologies. An open source energy modelling system is used as a tool for this model. The concept of energy security coefficient, which is calculated to assess energy security in terms of energy price increase and the amounts of unsupplied energy due to the disturbance consequences, is presented in the article as well. The developed methodology is applied to the case study of the reference energy system. Its various development scenarios with different energy generation technologies are analysed according to the share of technologies in the energy production. Scenarios are simulated in the stochastic environment of various disturbances and results are obtained in terms of variation of energy security coefficient over time by comparing scenarios from the energy security point of view. Finally, the results of the development scenarios are discussed, threshold shares in the energy production and optimal mix of energy generation technologies in terms of energy security are proposed, limitations of the case study are identified and some general conclusions are given.
Energy security has been an actively studied area in recent years. Various facets have been covered in the literature. Based on a survey of 104 studies from 2001 to June 2014, this paper reports the findings on the following: energy security definitions, changes in the themes of these definitions, energy security indexes, specific focused areas and methodological issues in the construction of these indexes, and energy security in the wider context of national energy policy. It is found that the definition of energy security is contextual and dynamic in nature. The scope of energy security has also expanded, with a growing emphasis on dimensions such as environmental sustainability and energy efficiency. Significant differences among studies are observed in the way in which energy security indexes are framed and constructed. These variations introduce challenges in comparing the findings among studies. Based on these findings, recommendations on studying energy security and the construction of energy security indexes are presented.
The institutions and policies that were set up after the 1973 Arab oil embargo can no longer meet the needs of energy consumers or producers. The definition of energy security needs to be expanded to cope with the challenges of a globalized world.
Energy is consumed in massive quantities by individuals, industries, and governments and forms the basis for modern life and lifestyles on both sides of the Atlantic. Energy security has been the trope that policy makers have adopted during the latter part of the 20th century to ensure that consumers can have access to sufficient supplies of energy to meet not only their daily needs, but also their daily wants, of energy. The politics of energy security have largely occurred at the scale of the nation-state. The growing role of the European Union (EU), on the one hand, the increasing globalization of energy provision and consumption on the other, against the backdrop of anthropogenic climate change, are posing fundamental challenges to the state-centric, consumption growth model of energy security. In the United States, the unconventional oil and gas revolution has profoundly altered the landscape of political discussions of energy security, but they have not fundamentally altered the underlying reality that there are ever more consumers outside of North America and Europe vying for those kilojoules of energy. In Europe, EU member states continue to be reluctant to give up their historical responsibilities on energy, even as it becomes clear that EU climate policies and an unrealized internal market on energy make energy security for individual nation-states increasingly antiquated ideas. The politics of energy security must take new global realities into account, and focus more on basic questions of consumption.Conflict of interest: The author has declared no conflicts of interest for this article.
This paper reviews the role envisaged for hydrogen energy within the context of global and national ‘sustainable’ energy strategies, that is, strategies seeking to address climate change imperatives and guarantee energy security. The focus is on studies conducted over the past 5 years. Reviews are provided in turn of the International Energy Agency's World Energy Outlook 2012; the 2012 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's special report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change Mitigation; one of the first spatially disaggregated energy-economic modeling studies of the role of hydrogen in a national economy using the MARKAL model; and a recent study into whether the world can rely just on energy efficiency and renewable energy alone. Some general guidelines for integrating hydrogen into sustainable energy futures are proposed. Key challenges facing hydrogen energy and technologies are identified and ways to overcome these barriers are suggested. Finally, some positive recent developments indicating that hydrogen energy might be on the verge of a comeback are described.
This paper seeks to explore basic concepts in energy strategy by outlining and contrasting two energy paths that the United States might follow over the next 50 years. The first path resembles present federal policy and is essentially an extrapolation of the recent past. It relies on rapid expansion of centralized high technologies to increase supplies of energy, especially in the form of electricity. The second path combines a prompt and serious committment to efficient use of energy, rapid development of renewable energy sources matched in scale and in energy quality to end-use needs, and special transitional fossil-fuel technologies. This path, a whole greater than the sum of its parts, diverges radically from incremental past particles to pursue long-term goals.
Abstract The first half of the Review focuses on the impacts and risks arising from uncontrolled climate change, and on the costs and opportunities associated with action to tackle it. A sound understanding of the economics of risk is critical here. The Review ...
Energy security(1) is one of the main targets of energy policy. However, the term has not been clearly defined, which makes it hard to measure and difficult to balance against other policy objectives. We review the multitude of definitions of energy security. They can be characterized according to the sources of risk, the scope of the impacts, and the severity filters in the form of the speed, size, sustention, spread singularity and sureness of impacts. Using a stylized case study for three European countries, we illustrate how the selection of conceptual boundaries along these dimensions determines the outcome. This can be avoided by more clearly separating between security of supply and other policy objectives. This leads us to the definition of energy security as the continuity of energy supplies relative to demand.
Through an application of Regional Security Complex Theory and empirical examination, this article explores the pros and cons of regional and inter-regional energy co-operation. In spite of present unilateral and bilateral manoeuvres on the part of EU Member States to the contrary, a common energy security policy appears feasible over the next five to ten years. However, EU-Russian co-operation in the energy sector is not likely to improve considerably over this period, and EU attempts to counterbalance the dominant and growing position that Russia has occupied in the supply of gas to EU countries by seeking alternative energy supply from central Asia are likely to be thwarted by countervailing Russian measures. Copyright (c) 2010 The Author(s). Journal compilation (c) 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Most modern energy policies seek to achieve systematic ongoing incremental increases in consumer energy efficiency, since this contributes to improved security of supply, favourable environmental outcomes and increased economic efficiency. Yet realised levels of efficiency are typically well below the most cost-effective equilibrium due to variety of behavioural and organisational barriers, which are often linked to information constraints. In addition efficient users are normally unrewarded for collective benefits to system security and to the environment, thus reducing the incentives for energy consumers to invest in efficiency improvements. This paper examines the dichotomies and symmetries between supply- and demand-side solutions to energy security concerns and reviews opportunities to overcome barriers to improved consumer efficiency. A security market is identified as a mechanism to promote both demand- and supply-side investments that support electricity system security. Such a market would assist in setting the optimal quantity of reserves while achieving an efficient balance between supply- and demand-side initiatives. It would also help to smooth overall investment throughout the energy system by encouraging incremental approaches, such as distributed generation and demand-side alternatives where they provide competitive value. Although the discussion is applicable to energy systems in general, it focuses primarily on electricity in New Zealand.
Energy can be a confusing issue to the general public, policymakers, and politicians. Adding energy security to the lexicon has not provided any clarification. To assist in explaining some of the concepts associated with energy security and to show how an individual or organization can improve energy security, this paper introduces the “four ‘R's of energy security”: review (understanding the problem), reduce (using less energy), replace (shifting to secure sources), and restrict (limiting new demand to secure sources).
Security of energy supply and climate change are central concerns for policy makers and important dimensions of the long-term quest for a sustainable global energy system. This paper examines the role of several policy instruments in managing energy security and climate risks and stimulating technological change towards a more secure and climate-benign global energy system in the long-term future. The analysis has been conducted with ERIS, a multi-regional energy-systems “bottom-up” optimization model with technology learning. Our analysis provides some policy insights and identifies synergies and trade-offs relating to the potential for security of supply policies to promote the uptake of new technologies, reduce the cost of pursuing climate change mitigation policies, and facilitate a possible transition to a hydrogen economy.
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