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U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Country Review of Energy-Efficiency Financial Incentives in the Residential Sector

Conference ·
OSTI ID:1026816
A large variety of energy-efficiency policy measures exist. Some are mandatory, some are informative, and some use financial incentives to promote diffusion of efficient equipment. From country to country, financial incentives vary considerably in scope and form, the type of framework used to implement them, and the actors that administer them. They range from rebate programs administered by utilities under an Energy-Efficiency Resource Standards (EERS) regulatory framework (California, USA) to the distribution of Eco-points rewarding customers for buying highly efficient appliances (Japan). All have the primary objective of transforming the current market to accelerate the diffusion of efficient technologies by addressing up-front cost barriers faced by consumers; in most instances, efficient technologies require a greater initial investment than conventional technologies. In this paper, we review the different market transformation measures involving the use of financial incentives in the countries belonging to the Major Economies Forum. We characterize the main types of measures, discuss their mechanisms, and provide information on program impacts to the extent that ex-ante or ex-post evaluations have been conducted. Finally, we identify best practices in financial incentive programs and opportunities for coordination between Major Economies Forum countries as envisioned under the Super Efficient Appliance Deployment (SEAD) initiative.
Research Organization:
Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA (US)
Sponsoring Organization:
Environmental Energy Technologies Division
DOE Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
1026816
Report Number(s):
LBNL-5033E
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English