Household energy consumption tendencies: The Baltic States context
Abstract
As energy resource prices are on the rise and the stability of energy supplies is increasingly challenged by the current geopolitical climate, it is essential to scrutinize the capability of households to adapt to the resulting circumstances by assessing the current and potential household energy supply and adapting solutions to energy consumption habits. The aim of the research is to study of the energy consumption behaviour of households in the Baltic States amidst a significant increase in prices. The research methods encompass the examination of literary sources, categorization, amalgamation, abstraction, and juxtaposition in the theoretical segment, as well as a case study focusing on energy consumers in Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. Notably, the study presents a unique analysis of the unprecedented scenario of substantial price hikes across all energy usage categories in the region. An examination of individual responses concerning energy consumption illustrates a notable escalation in household expenditures on electricity and heating. Households are endeavouring to curtail energy expenses through various conservation techniques. A correlation between income levels and household energy consumption is evident.
Keyword : household, energy prices, energy resources, energy consumption, energy consumers behaviour, sustainable energy, Baltic States
How to Cite
Grigolienė, R., Kiyak, D., Šimanskienė, L., Labanauskaitė, D., Župerkienė, E., & Mishenina, H. (2024). Household energy consumption tendencies: The Baltic States context. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 25(6), 1202–1219. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2024.22792
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Abdeldayem, M. M., & Al Dulaimi, S. H. (2020). Trends of global fintech education practices and the GCC perspective. International Journal of Advanced Science and Technology, 29, 7150–7163. http://sersc.org/journals/index.php/IJAST/article/view/7577
Aldulaimi, S. H., Abdeldayem, M. M., Al-Sanjary, O. I., & Abdelhakim M. A. (2022). Paradigm of the Sustainability and energy saving strategies in GCC. In ASU International Conference in Emerging Technologies for Sustainability and Intelligent Systems (ICETSIS) (pp. 9–16). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICETSIS55481.2022.9888837
Anderson, K., Song, K., Lee, S.H., Park, M. (2015). Energy consumption in households while unoccupied: Evidence from dormitories. Energy and Buildings, 87(1), 335–341. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2014.11.062
Barnes, A. (2022). EU Commission proposal for joint gas purchasing, price caps and collective allocation of gas: an assessment. Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. https://www.oxfordenergy.org/wpcms/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/EU-Commission-proposal-for-joint-gas-purchasing-price-caps-and-collective-allocation-of-gas-an-assessment-NG-176.pdf
Bergquist, P., Konisky, D. M., & Kotcher, J. (2020). Energy policy and public opinion: Patterns, trends and future directions. Progress in Energy, 2, Article 032003. https://doi.org/10.1088/2516-1083/ab9592
Bibri, S. E., & Krogstie, J. (2020). Smart eco-city strategies and solutions for sustainability: The cases of Royal Seaport, Stockholm, and Western Harbor, Malmö, Sweden. Urban Science, 4, Article 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/urbansci4010011
Bompard, E., Carpaneto, E., Huang, T., Pi, R. J., Fulli, G., Purvins, A., & Mutule, A. (2017). Electricity independence of the Baltic States: Present and future perspectives. Sustainable Energy, Grids and Networks, 10, 55–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.segan.2017.03.003
Carfora, A., & Scandurra, G. (2024). Forecasting energy poverty in European Countries: The effect of increasing energy commodities prices. Energies, 17(5), Article 1224. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17051224
Chen, Y.-H., Li, Y.-Z., Jiang, H., & Huang, Z. (2023). Research on household energy demand patterns, data acquisition and influencing factors: A review. Sustainable Cities and Society, 99, Article 104916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2023.104916
Chu, W., Calise, F., Duić, N., Østergaard, P. A., Vicidomini, M., & Wang, Q. (2020). Recent advances in technology, strategy and application of sustainable energy systems. Energies, 13, Article 5229. https://doi.org/10.3390/en13195229
Chu, W., Vicidomini, M., Calise, F., Duić, N., Østergaard, P. A., Wang, Q., & da Graça Carvalho, M. (2023). Review of hot topics in the Sustainable Development of Energy, Water, and Environment Systems Conference in 2022. Energies, 16, Article 7897. https://doi.org/10.3390/en16237897
Cooremans, C., & Schönenberger, A. (2019). Energy management: A key driver of energy-efficiency investment? Journal of Cleaner Production, 203, 264–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.04.333
Enerdata. (2023). Global Energy Trends 2023. https://www.enerdata.net/publications/reports-presentations/world-energy-trends.html
European Commission. (2021). Tackling rising energy prices: A toolbox for action and support. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52021DC0660
European Commission. (2022). Report from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52022DC0547
European Commission. (2023). Actions and measures on energy prices. https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/markets-and-consumers/actions-and-measures-energy-prices_en#toolbox-of-measures
European Council. (2019). European Green Deal policy. https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/green-deal/
Eurostat. (2022a, September 9). Electricity prices for household consumers. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nrg_pc_204_c/default/table?lang=en
Eurostat. (2023). Population and population change statistics. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Population_and_population_change_statistics
Eurostat. (2022b). Energy consumption in households. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Energy_consumption_in_households
Eurostat. (2022c, September 8). Gas prices for Household Consumers. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/NRG_PC_202/default/table?lang=en&category=nrg.nrg_price.nrg_pc
Fuerst, F., Kavarnou, D., Singh, R., & Adan, H. (2020). Determinants of energy consumption and exposure to energy price risk: A UK study. Z Immobilienökonomie, 6, 65–80. https://doi.org/10.1365/s41056-019-00027-y
Gajdzik, B., Wolniak, R., Nagaj, R., Žuromskaitė-Nagaj, B., & Grebski, W. W. (2024). The influence of the global energy crisis on energy efficiency: A comprehensive analysis. Energies, 17, Article 947. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17040947
Griffiths, S. (2017). Renewable energy policy trends and recommendations for GCC countries. Energy Transitions, 1(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41825-017-0003-6
Hutter, C., & Weber, E. (2022). Russia-Ukraine war: Short-run production and labour market effects of the energy crisis (IAB Discussion Paper 10). Institute for Employment Research of the Federal Employment Agency, Nürnberg. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2023.113802
Kardelis, K. (2016). Mokslinių tyrimų metodologija ir metodai. MELC.
Lekavičius, V. (2019). Energijos nepriteklius (energetinis skurdas). Lietuvos energetikos institutas. https://lsta.lt/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Lekavicius_Energetinis_skurdas_20190130_papildytas.pdf
Lianwei, Z., & Wen, X. (2021). Urban household energy consumption forecasting based on energy price impact mechanism. Frontiers, 9, Article 802697. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenrg.2021.802697
Lin, C.-C., & Dong, C.-M. (2023). Exploring consumers’ purchase intention on energy-efficient home appliances: Integrating the theory of planned behavior, perceived value theory, and environmental awareness. Energies, 16, Article 2669. https://doi.org/10.3390/en16062669
Marti, L., & Puertas, R. (2022). Sustainable energy development analysis: Energy Trilemma. Sustainable Technology and Entrepreneurship, 1(1), Article 100007. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stae.2022.100007
Mastini, R., Kallis, G., & Hickel, J. (2021). A green new deal without growth? Ecological Economics, 179, Article 106832. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2020.106832
Matsumoto, S., Mizobuchi, K., & Manag, S. (2022). Household energy consumption. Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, 24, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10018-021-00331-9
Matuszewska-Janica, A., Żebrowska-Suchodolska, D., & Mazur-Dudzińska, A. (2021). The situation of households on the energy market in the European Union: Consumption, prices, and renewable energy. Energies, 14(19), Article 6364. https://doi.org/10.3390/en14196364
McWilliams, B., Sgaravatti, G., & Zachmann, G. (2022). Can Europe survive painlessly without Russian gas?. Bruegel Datasets. https://www.bruegel.org/blog-post/can-europe-survive-painlessly-without-russian-gas
Morgan, P. J., & Trinh, L. Q. (2021). Impacts of COVID-19 on households in ASEAN countries and their implications for human capital development (ADBI Working Paper 1226). Asian Development Bank Institute, Tokyo. https://www.adb.org/publications/impacts-covid-19-households-asean-countries
Nacionalinis skurdo mažinimo organizacijų tinklas. (2021). Skurdas ir socialinė atskirtis. NSMOT. https://www.eapn.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/eapn-Leidinys-PW-Lithuania-Final-5258.pdf
Naderifar, M., Goli, H., & Ghaljaei, F. (2017). Snowball sampling: A purposeful method of sampling in qualitative research. Strides in Development of Medical Education, 14(3), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.5812/sdme.67670
Petrichenko, L., Petrichenko, R., Sauhats, A., Baltputnis, K., & Broka, Z. (2021). Modelling the future of the Baltic energy systems: A Greena scenario. Latvian Journal of Physics and Technical Sciences, 3, 47–65. https://doi.org/10.2478/lpts-2021-0016
Poniatowska-Jaksch, M. (2021). Energy consumption in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) households in the platform economics. Energies, 14, Article 1002. https://doi.org/10.3390/en14041002
Rehman, H. u., & Hasan, A. (2023). Energy flexibility and towards resilience in new and old residential houses in cold climates: A techno-economic analysis. Energies, 16, Article 5506. https://doi.org/10.3390/en16145506
Ryan, Th. P. (2013). Sample size determination and power. John Wiley &Sons.
Samper, J. A., Schockling, A., & Islar, M. (2021). Climate politics in green deals: Exposing the political frontiers of the European Green Deal. Politics and Governance, 9(2), 8–16. https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v9i2.3853
Santamouris, M., Paravantis; J. A., Foundac; D., Kolokotsa; D., Michalakakoue, P., Papadopoulos, A. M., Kontoulis, N., Tzavali, A., Stigka, E. K., Ioannidis, Z., Mehilli, A., Matthiessen, A., & Servou, E. (2013). Financial crisis and energy consumption: A household survey in Greece. Energy and Buildings, 65, 477–487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2013.06.024
Söderholm, P. (2020). The green economy transition: the challenges of technological change for sustainability. Sustainable Earth, 3, Article 6. https://doi.org/10.1186/s42055-020-00029-y
Spash, C. (2020). A tale of three paradigms: Realising the revolutionary potential of ecological economics. Ecological Economics, 169, Article 106518. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2019.106518
Steckel, J. C., Missbach, L., Ohlendorf, N., Feindt, S., & Kalkuhl, M. (2022). Effects of the energy price crisis on European households. Socio-political challenges and policy options. Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) gGmbH, Berlin, Germany.
Tokarski, S., Magdziarczyk, M., & Smoliński, A. (2024). An analysis of risks and challenges to the Polish power industry in the year 2024. Energies, 17(5), Article 1044. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17051044
Zeng, S., Streimikiene, D., & Baležentis, T. (2017). Review of and comparative assessment of energy security in Baltic States. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 76, 185–192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2017.03.037
Aldulaimi, S. H., Abdeldayem, M. M., Al-Sanjary, O. I., & Abdelhakim M. A. (2022). Paradigm of the Sustainability and energy saving strategies in GCC. In ASU International Conference in Emerging Technologies for Sustainability and Intelligent Systems (ICETSIS) (pp. 9–16). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICETSIS55481.2022.9888837
Anderson, K., Song, K., Lee, S.H., Park, M. (2015). Energy consumption in households while unoccupied: Evidence from dormitories. Energy and Buildings, 87(1), 335–341. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2014.11.062
Barnes, A. (2022). EU Commission proposal for joint gas purchasing, price caps and collective allocation of gas: an assessment. Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. https://www.oxfordenergy.org/wpcms/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/EU-Commission-proposal-for-joint-gas-purchasing-price-caps-and-collective-allocation-of-gas-an-assessment-NG-176.pdf
Bergquist, P., Konisky, D. M., & Kotcher, J. (2020). Energy policy and public opinion: Patterns, trends and future directions. Progress in Energy, 2, Article 032003. https://doi.org/10.1088/2516-1083/ab9592
Bibri, S. E., & Krogstie, J. (2020). Smart eco-city strategies and solutions for sustainability: The cases of Royal Seaport, Stockholm, and Western Harbor, Malmö, Sweden. Urban Science, 4, Article 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/urbansci4010011
Bompard, E., Carpaneto, E., Huang, T., Pi, R. J., Fulli, G., Purvins, A., & Mutule, A. (2017). Electricity independence of the Baltic States: Present and future perspectives. Sustainable Energy, Grids and Networks, 10, 55–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.segan.2017.03.003
Carfora, A., & Scandurra, G. (2024). Forecasting energy poverty in European Countries: The effect of increasing energy commodities prices. Energies, 17(5), Article 1224. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17051224
Chen, Y.-H., Li, Y.-Z., Jiang, H., & Huang, Z. (2023). Research on household energy demand patterns, data acquisition and influencing factors: A review. Sustainable Cities and Society, 99, Article 104916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2023.104916
Chu, W., Calise, F., Duić, N., Østergaard, P. A., Vicidomini, M., & Wang, Q. (2020). Recent advances in technology, strategy and application of sustainable energy systems. Energies, 13, Article 5229. https://doi.org/10.3390/en13195229
Chu, W., Vicidomini, M., Calise, F., Duić, N., Østergaard, P. A., Wang, Q., & da Graça Carvalho, M. (2023). Review of hot topics in the Sustainable Development of Energy, Water, and Environment Systems Conference in 2022. Energies, 16, Article 7897. https://doi.org/10.3390/en16237897
Cooremans, C., & Schönenberger, A. (2019). Energy management: A key driver of energy-efficiency investment? Journal of Cleaner Production, 203, 264–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.04.333
Enerdata. (2023). Global Energy Trends 2023. https://www.enerdata.net/publications/reports-presentations/world-energy-trends.html
European Commission. (2021). Tackling rising energy prices: A toolbox for action and support. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52021DC0660
European Commission. (2022). Report from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52022DC0547
European Commission. (2023). Actions and measures on energy prices. https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/markets-and-consumers/actions-and-measures-energy-prices_en#toolbox-of-measures
European Council. (2019). European Green Deal policy. https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/green-deal/
Eurostat. (2022a, September 9). Electricity prices for household consumers. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nrg_pc_204_c/default/table?lang=en
Eurostat. (2023). Population and population change statistics. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Population_and_population_change_statistics
Eurostat. (2022b). Energy consumption in households. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Energy_consumption_in_households
Eurostat. (2022c, September 8). Gas prices for Household Consumers. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/NRG_PC_202/default/table?lang=en&category=nrg.nrg_price.nrg_pc
Fuerst, F., Kavarnou, D., Singh, R., & Adan, H. (2020). Determinants of energy consumption and exposure to energy price risk: A UK study. Z Immobilienökonomie, 6, 65–80. https://doi.org/10.1365/s41056-019-00027-y
Gajdzik, B., Wolniak, R., Nagaj, R., Žuromskaitė-Nagaj, B., & Grebski, W. W. (2024). The influence of the global energy crisis on energy efficiency: A comprehensive analysis. Energies, 17, Article 947. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17040947
Griffiths, S. (2017). Renewable energy policy trends and recommendations for GCC countries. Energy Transitions, 1(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41825-017-0003-6
Hutter, C., & Weber, E. (2022). Russia-Ukraine war: Short-run production and labour market effects of the energy crisis (IAB Discussion Paper 10). Institute for Employment Research of the Federal Employment Agency, Nürnberg. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2023.113802
Kardelis, K. (2016). Mokslinių tyrimų metodologija ir metodai. MELC.
Lekavičius, V. (2019). Energijos nepriteklius (energetinis skurdas). Lietuvos energetikos institutas. https://lsta.lt/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Lekavicius_Energetinis_skurdas_20190130_papildytas.pdf
Lianwei, Z., & Wen, X. (2021). Urban household energy consumption forecasting based on energy price impact mechanism. Frontiers, 9, Article 802697. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenrg.2021.802697
Lin, C.-C., & Dong, C.-M. (2023). Exploring consumers’ purchase intention on energy-efficient home appliances: Integrating the theory of planned behavior, perceived value theory, and environmental awareness. Energies, 16, Article 2669. https://doi.org/10.3390/en16062669
Marti, L., & Puertas, R. (2022). Sustainable energy development analysis: Energy Trilemma. Sustainable Technology and Entrepreneurship, 1(1), Article 100007. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stae.2022.100007
Mastini, R., Kallis, G., & Hickel, J. (2021). A green new deal without growth? Ecological Economics, 179, Article 106832. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2020.106832
Matsumoto, S., Mizobuchi, K., & Manag, S. (2022). Household energy consumption. Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, 24, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10018-021-00331-9
Matuszewska-Janica, A., Żebrowska-Suchodolska, D., & Mazur-Dudzińska, A. (2021). The situation of households on the energy market in the European Union: Consumption, prices, and renewable energy. Energies, 14(19), Article 6364. https://doi.org/10.3390/en14196364
McWilliams, B., Sgaravatti, G., & Zachmann, G. (2022). Can Europe survive painlessly without Russian gas?. Bruegel Datasets. https://www.bruegel.org/blog-post/can-europe-survive-painlessly-without-russian-gas
Morgan, P. J., & Trinh, L. Q. (2021). Impacts of COVID-19 on households in ASEAN countries and their implications for human capital development (ADBI Working Paper 1226). Asian Development Bank Institute, Tokyo. https://www.adb.org/publications/impacts-covid-19-households-asean-countries
Nacionalinis skurdo mažinimo organizacijų tinklas. (2021). Skurdas ir socialinė atskirtis. NSMOT. https://www.eapn.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/eapn-Leidinys-PW-Lithuania-Final-5258.pdf
Naderifar, M., Goli, H., & Ghaljaei, F. (2017). Snowball sampling: A purposeful method of sampling in qualitative research. Strides in Development of Medical Education, 14(3), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.5812/sdme.67670
Petrichenko, L., Petrichenko, R., Sauhats, A., Baltputnis, K., & Broka, Z. (2021). Modelling the future of the Baltic energy systems: A Greena scenario. Latvian Journal of Physics and Technical Sciences, 3, 47–65. https://doi.org/10.2478/lpts-2021-0016
Poniatowska-Jaksch, M. (2021). Energy consumption in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) households in the platform economics. Energies, 14, Article 1002. https://doi.org/10.3390/en14041002
Rehman, H. u., & Hasan, A. (2023). Energy flexibility and towards resilience in new and old residential houses in cold climates: A techno-economic analysis. Energies, 16, Article 5506. https://doi.org/10.3390/en16145506
Ryan, Th. P. (2013). Sample size determination and power. John Wiley &Sons.
Samper, J. A., Schockling, A., & Islar, M. (2021). Climate politics in green deals: Exposing the political frontiers of the European Green Deal. Politics and Governance, 9(2), 8–16. https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v9i2.3853
Santamouris, M., Paravantis; J. A., Foundac; D., Kolokotsa; D., Michalakakoue, P., Papadopoulos, A. M., Kontoulis, N., Tzavali, A., Stigka, E. K., Ioannidis, Z., Mehilli, A., Matthiessen, A., & Servou, E. (2013). Financial crisis and energy consumption: A household survey in Greece. Energy and Buildings, 65, 477–487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2013.06.024
Söderholm, P. (2020). The green economy transition: the challenges of technological change for sustainability. Sustainable Earth, 3, Article 6. https://doi.org/10.1186/s42055-020-00029-y
Spash, C. (2020). A tale of three paradigms: Realising the revolutionary potential of ecological economics. Ecological Economics, 169, Article 106518. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2019.106518
Steckel, J. C., Missbach, L., Ohlendorf, N., Feindt, S., & Kalkuhl, M. (2022). Effects of the energy price crisis on European households. Socio-political challenges and policy options. Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) gGmbH, Berlin, Germany.
Tokarski, S., Magdziarczyk, M., & Smoliński, A. (2024). An analysis of risks and challenges to the Polish power industry in the year 2024. Energies, 17(5), Article 1044. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17051044
Zeng, S., Streimikiene, D., & Baležentis, T. (2017). Review of and comparative assessment of energy security in Baltic States. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 76, 185–192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2017.03.037