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The impact of the Bono Social de Electricidad on energy poverty in Spain

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  • García Alvarez, Guillermo
  • Tol, Richard S.J.

Abstract

The Bono Social de Electricidad (BSE) is a government programme, introduced in 2009, to reduce energy poverty in Spain. The BSE is a discount on the price of electricity, available to vulnerable households who applied. Applying differences-in-differences and propensity score matching to household data between 2008 and 2011, we find no statistically significant impact of the intention to treat on two indicators of energy poverty, viz. the ability to keep the house adequately warm, and the presence of damp walls, rotting windows and leaking roofs. This may be because eligible households did not apply. A third indicator, delays in paying electricity bills, showed a statistically significant deterioration. That is, the BSE has not reduced energy poverty, if anything it has made it worse. This is not because eligible households transferred income to relatives hit harder by the financial crises, but it may be because the BSE discount did not fully compensate for the cold of 2010.

Suggested Citation

  • García Alvarez, Guillermo & Tol, Richard S.J., 2021. "The impact of the Bono Social de Electricidad on energy poverty in Spain," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:103:y:2021:i:c:s0140988321004291
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2021.105554
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    Cited by:

    1. Pillai, Arya & Tovar Reaños, Miguel & Curtis, John, 2022. "Fuel poverty in Ireland: an analysis of trends and profiles," Papers WP729, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    2. González, F. Javier Palencia & Tovar Reaños, Miguel & Labeaga Azcona, Jose Maria, 2023. "Hidden fuel poverty in Spain and Ireland. A comparative study of measuring and targeting," Papers WP765, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    3. Rodriguez-Alvarez, Ana & Llorca, Manuel & Jamasb, Tooraj, 2021. "Alleviating energy poverty in Europe: Front-runners and laggards," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    4. Min Zhao & Weijian Guo, 2022. "Does Land Certification Stimulate Farmers’ Entrepreneurial Enthusiasm? Evidence from Rural China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-23, September.
    5. Zhang, Pengfeng & Gu, Haiying, 2023. "Potential policy coordination: Can energy intensity targets affect energy poverty?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    6. Bagnoli, Lisa & Bertoméu-Sánchez, Salvador, 2022. "How effective has the electricity social rate been in reducing energy poverty in Spain?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    7. Ren, Yi-Shuai & Jiang, Yong & Narayan, Seema & Ma, Chao-Qun & Yang, Xiao-Guang, 2022. "Marketisation and rural energy poverty: Evidence from provincial panel data in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    8. Adam X. Hearn & Raul Castaño-Rosa, 2021. "Towards a Just Energy Transition, Barriers and Opportunities for Positive Energy District Creation in Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-18, August.
    9. Syed Hasan & Odmaa Narantungalag, & Martin Berka, 2022. "The intended and unintended consequences of large electricity subsidies: evidence from Mongolia," Discussion Papers 2202, School of Economics and Finance, Massey University, New Zealand.
    10. Núñez-Sánchez, Ramón & Otoya-Chavarría, Marco & Soberón, Alexandra, 2024. "Price and budget elasticities under utility poverty policies in Spain," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    11. George E. Halkos & Apostolos S. Tsirivis, 2023. "Electricity Prices in the European Union Region: The Role of Renewable Energy Sources, Key Economic Factors and Market Liberalization," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-20, March.
    12. Nguyen, Canh Phuc & Nasir, Muhammad Ali, 2021. "An inquiry into the nexus between energy poverty and income inequality in the light of global evidence," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    13. Nguyen, Canh Phuc & Su, Thanh Dinh, 2022. "The influences of government spending on energy poverty: Evidence from developing countries," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 238(PA).
    14. Pourkhanali, Armin & Kholghi, Donya & Llorca, Manuel & Jamasb, Tooraj, 2023. "Persistent and Transient Energy Poverty: A Multi-Level Analysis in Spain," Working Papers 9-2023, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Economics.
    15. Prakash, Kushneel & Awaworyi Churchill, Sefa & Smyth, Russell, 2022. "Are you puffing your Children's future away? Energy poverty and childhood exposure to passive smoking," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    16. Bienvenido-Huertas, David & Sánchez-García, Daniel & Rubio-Bellido, Carlos & Marín-García, David, 2024. "Holistic analysis to reduce energy poverty in social dwellings in southern Spain considering envelope, systems, operational pattern, and income levels," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 288(C).
    17. Richard S. J. Tol, 2023. "Navigating the energy trilemma during geopolitical and environmental crises," Papers 2301.07671, arXiv.org.
    18. Cadaval, María & Regueiro-Ferreira, Rosa Ma & Calvo, Santiago, 2022. "The role of the public sector in the mitigation of fuel poverty in Spain (2008–2019): Modeling the contribution of the BonoSocial deElectricidad," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Energy poverty; Spain; Household data; Policy evaluation; Bono Social de Electricidad;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy

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