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Energy poverty is a complex, multifaceted problem which negatively affects many households around the world. Therefore, its mitigation is one of the most relevant policy goals for governments nowdays. The events of COVID-19, and the surge in energy prices due to the postpandemic recovery, the war in Ukraine and the energy crisis worsened an already difficult situation for many citizens, increasing energy poverty. However, these detrimental effects on energy poverty are unlikely to have been homogenous across different household types, impacting some more than others. Although energy poverty in general and the determinants of energy poverty in particular are topics which have received attention from academics in the past, the analysis of the impact of those events on specific types of households has not. The aim of this paper is to assess the impact of COVID, the post-pandemic recovery and the war in Ukraine on energy poverty through an analysis of their effects on different types of households and dwellings. Using a database of Spanish households in 2019 and 2022, and binary probit estimations, the results show that those household heads who are foreign nationals, females, older than 67 years, without education and with lower income levels and households with dependent children, whose members do not have a job and live in a detached dwelling, in a rented house, in a dwelling located in a cold region, in a rural area and in an old dwelling are more likely to be energy poor. Both events had a negative effect on energy poverty in very specific types of households: those in which the household head is a male, households whose members do not have a job, are older than 67 years, have children, are less educated, have lower income levels and live in detached dwellings. Analysing the most affected household types and most influential determinants of energy poverty is key to propose effective and efficient policy interventions which mitigate it. These findings call for the adoption of effective targeted policy interventions which focus on the factors that are more likely to reduce EP. They suggest that additional policy efforts to mitigate energy poverty should be put on specific households. • The aim of this paper is to assess the impact of COVID recovery and Ukraine war on energy poverty. • An analysis of their effects on different types of households and dwellings is performed. • A database of Spanish households in 2019 and 2022, and probit estimations are used. • Both events had a negative effect on energy poverty in very specific types of households. • Additional policy efforts to mitigate energy poverty are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eco-innovations, or innovations that reduce the environmental impacts of production and consumption activities, are considered crucial for sustainability transitions and a key element of a Circular Economy. Although previous contributions have acknowledged the existence of different types of eco-innovations (e.g., product vs. service or incremental vs. radical), a precise conceptualization of eco-innovation types, which takes into account its multifaceted character, is missing. Yet such a conceptualization is crucial in order to understand how eco-innovations contribute to a sustainable transition, how policy makers can promote different eco-innovation types, and how business practitioners can develop eco-innovations. This article covers this gap in the literature. Its aim is twofold: 1) to develop a quantitative method to categorise different eco-innovation types in a particular setting, taking into account their distinct features and dimensions; 2) to apply this method in a given sector and country, building a taxonomy of eco-innovation types. It draws on a survey of 197 Spanish industrial small and medium size enterprises (SMEs) which developed or adopted an eco-innovation between 2012 and 2013. The statistical analyses reveal the existence of a taxonomy of five eco-innovation types: systemic, externally driven, continuous improvement, radical (technology-push initiated) and eco-efficient. They differ in their techno-economic configurations, contribution to environmental sustainability and corporate goals and required changes in the firms. Specific policy and managerial implications are deducted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The third renewable electricity auction in Spain awarded 5037 MW in July 2017. This makes it the largest by awarded volume in Europe. The aim of this article is to describe this auction, analyse the choice of its design elements and provide a preliminary assessment of its outcome. It draws on several information sources, including relevant legislation, reports from the energy regulator, expert interviews and articles in the mass media. The results show some pros and cons in the choice of design elements. Whereas support costs have been minimized, its effectiveness in deploying renewable electricity in the country still has to be proven. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper provides an overview of the trends of the Spanish solar PV feed-in tariff (FIT) and its design elements, identifies some implications for the effective and cost-efficient deployment of solar PV in Spain and infers some lessons which might be useful for the implementation of support for solar PV elsewhere. Our analysis is based on a throughout revision of the relevant legislation, official data on deployment and related expenditure, informal discussions with key stakeholders and written documents. Several key design elements within FITs that should be implemented and other elements that should be avoided in order to have an effective and cost-efficient promotion of solar PV are identified. All in all, the specific design elements to be included are clearly contingent upon the preferences and priorities of policymakers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The aim of this paper is to develop a methodology based on the input–output approach which allows us to identify the structural and technological responsibility of manufacturing sectors in electricity consumption. Sectors with a high structural responsibility are those whose products are strongly demanded by other sectors and this leads to a high electricity consumption/production. Sectors with a high technological responsibility are those whose technologies use inputs which directly or indirectly require much electricity independently of the composition of final demand in the economy. This methodology is applied to the manufacturing sectors in Spain. It is found out that the chemical sector and industries manufacturing metal products have a large structural responsibility, but their technological responsibility is low. In contrast, the mineral (non-metallic) sectors form a cluster of industries with a high technological responsibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The aim of this paper is to identify those sectors that contribute most to electricity consumption in Spain, using a methodology based on input–output tables, and to derive some recommendations aimed at increasing energy efficiency in those sectors. This input–output approach is complemented with a sector-focused study in which the availability of electricity-efficient technologies per sector and the barriers to their uptake are identified. This hybrid approach is deemed useful to derive policy implications. We thus propose several instruments to remove those barriers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Emissions trading schemes (ETS) coexist with other environmental and energy policies, such as renewable energy promotion schemes. The potential synergies and conflicts between these policies are worth analysing. Spain is used as a case study to illustrate the theoretical, practical and quantitative interactions. The existence of national policies which affect CO2 emissions and interact with the EU ETS may lead to conflicts, which could make it more difficult to reach the objectives of emissions reductions, local sustainability benefits, dynamic efficiency and moderate consumer costs. The coordination of efforts to mitigate these conflicts is difficult and may have limited effectiveness, since the instruments employed have multiple objectives and different territorial scopes. However, the coexistence of the EU ETS with other instruments can be justified if the latter can provide social benefits or tackle problems that the former cannot provide or solve (such as 'local' and 'dynamic efficiency' benefits). The results of an interaction between an ETS and renewable electricity promotion schemes depend on the type of RES-E (electricity from renewable energy sources) support scheme being used and on the specific design features of the instrument implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electricity provides a crucial service in our daily lives. However, in electricity systems mostly based on conventional, fossil-fuel fired technologies, an increase in electricity demand also leads to higher greenhouse gas emissions and, in countries without fossil-fuel resources, also increases their dependence on foreign energy sources. In more decarbonised electricity systems, with a high penetration of variable renewable energy sources, strong increases in electricity demand lead to higher system costs, given the need for back-up. Therefore, identifying the drivers of electricity demand is an academically-relevant, but also a policy-relevant exercise, since specific policy measures can be linked to those drivers. The aim of this paper is to assess the drivers of electricity demand in Spain in the period immediately after the economic crisis (2013–2017), with the help of a unique database of Spanish households and econometric modeling. Our results show that electricity demand in this period has mostly been driven by price changes. Demand has been highly price-elastic, with price elasticities being much higher (in absolute values) than in previous studies and periods. It is also negatively driven by the features of the household and its breadwinners (whether they are single-parent households or its members are foreign residents) and positively driven by income, the hours of sun and temperature changes, although the influence of these variables is much lower. In contrast, other variables do not seem to have an influence on demand, including the age of the breadwinners and their working situation (whether they are unemployed or not). These results suggest that price-based instruments, i.e., measures with an impact on electricity prices, would be the most effective to curb electricity demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite a high academic interest in eco-innovation, a clearly defined common understanding of the characteristics of eco-innovations is largely missing. Existing research on this topic is still mostly qualitative, fragmented, difficult to compare or aggregate and generally specialised on certain aspects. Quantitative research is deemed necessary to improve the knowledge base and measurement of essential aspects regarding the characteristics of eco-innovation. The aim of this study is to quantitatively explore the underlying structure of the eco-innovation concept based on the current knowledge of those characteristics and to advance on the quantification of a four-dimensional framework proposed in the past ( Carrillo-Hermosilla et al., 2010 ). Industrial small and medium-size enterprises in Spain were asked to quantify a set of variables according to the perceived relevance for the firm of a realized eco-innovation. Factor Analyses were conducted on 197 collected data sets. Our statistical results reveal how the identified characteristics shape an underlying structure of eco-innovations along the four dimensions (design, user, product-service and governance) proposed in that article. The analysis identifies the factors which make up these dimensions, allowing a characterization of eco-innovations with considerably less complexity. The final impact of eco-innovation on the environment goes in tandem with and is usually mediated by considerable impacts at the company level (including internal management and organizational practices) which lead to changes in products and processes. Furthermore, our results stress the critical role played by users and clients' engagement and acceptance and cooperation with other stakeholders in the eco-innovation process. The eco-innovation may entail radical, path-breaking changes in existing relations between the firm and its production network. This article contributes to advance the understanding of the phenomenon by providing a comprehensive view and a common perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]