Who is “energy poor" in the EU?
Sofía Maier, Ilda Dreoni
Abstract
The 2022–2023 surge in global energy prices and the fairness challenges of the green transition have revived debates on energy poverty in Europe. However, the lack of consensus on measuring energy poverty hinders effective policy formulation and evaluation. This paper analyzes the EU-wide distribution and profiles of the “energy poor" using four established indicators, two subjective and two expenditure-based, derived from statistically matched HBS and SILC household surveys. Our results suggest significant disparities: expenditure-based measures capture broader populations, particularly in middle- and high-income EU countries, with minimal overlap between indicators. Notably, only 0.3 % of the population is simultaneously classified as energy poor by the four indicators, while 40 % enter this group by at least one measure. By examining who is included or excluded under each indicator and their links to income and expenditure, we provide new insights into the potential heterogeneous distributional impacts of policies aimed at tackling energy poverty in Europe. • About 17 % of the EU population is “energy poor” according to expenditure-based indicators, doubling the rate from subjective-based indicators. • Overlap is very small: using four well-known indicators available for all EU-27 countries, only 0.3 % of the population is poor by all, while about 40 % are poor by at least one. • Energy poverty rates are particularly high among income-poor groups, but there are also non-negligible shares of energy poor among middle-income groups. • The socio-economic profiles of the energy poor substantially vary across indicators. • Reliance on a single indicator may overlook important portions of the population experiencing energy-related deprivations.