Chunekar, A and Sreenivas, A (2019) Towards an understanding of residential electricity consumption in India. Building Research & Information, 47(1), pp. 75-90. ISSN 0961-3218
Abstract
Residential electricity consumption in India has increased by a factor more than 50 since 1971. India’s electrified households on average still consume less than one-third of the world’s average for electricity. Rapid electrification, increasing incomes and technology development can result in increased appliance ownership and higher electricity use. A better understanding of this demand can help to develop effective energy-efficiency policies, optimize the addition of generation capacity, and tackle challenges of climate change and environmental pollution. However, research on residential electricity consumption has received limited attention in India until now. A systematic examination of determinants of residential electricity consumption will require an interdisciplinary approach involving the fields of engineering, economics (traditional and behavioural), anthropology, architecture and others. A two-step approach is presented to advance understanding. First, a critical literature review from different disciplines is presented that explores residential electricity consumption in India. Public data sets are also analyzed to gather insights and highlight inconsistencies. Second, an interdisciplinary approach is proposed and developed that can be adopted for research on residential electricity consumption in India. The data needs and systems to facilitate such an approach are provided.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | building stock; buildings; data collection; energy demand; energy efficiency; household consumption; India; public policy; trends |
| Index terms: | literature review, building stock, consumption, technology development, public policy, climate change, energy efficiency, efficiency, energy demand, pollution, household, income, ownership, India, determinant, electricity consumption |
| Subjects: | risk assessment, climate science, consumer economics, sustainability and energy, public policy, economic analysis, energy systems, data analysis and analytics, innovation and technology management, economics, performance management, Geography, asset management, demography, environmental health |
| Topics: | Sustainability, Governance, Risk Management, Stakeholder Management, Engineering Principles, Research Practice, Geographical Context, Business Strategy, Organizational Design, Quality Management, Urban Studies |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCA |
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