Energy intensity in the service sector

Electricity intensity and electricity consumption per employee in services

Note: Unit consumption per employee is the ratio between the energy consumption (total or electricity) and the number of employees (salaries employed in full time). The energy (or electricity) intensity is the ratio between the energy (electricity) consumption and the value added expressed in constant Euros (M€2000)

Data source:

Eurostat for value added; Odyssee for employment and energy consumption at normal climate

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Electricity intensity in the service sector

Note: Unit consumption per employee is the ratio between the energy consumption (total or electricity) and the number of employees (salaries employed in full time). The energy (or electricity) intensity is the ratio between the energy (electricity) consumption and the value added expressed in constant Euros (M€2000)

Data source:

ODYSSEE database. Electricity intensity of tertiary (MWh/M€2005ppp). The Odyssee database is available at  http://www.odyssee-indicators.org/   The access is restricted to project partners or subscribers

 

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Energy consumption per employee and energy intensity in services

Note: Unit consumption per employee is the ratio between the energy consumption (total or electricity) and the number of employees (salaries employed in full time). The energy (or electricity) intensity is the ratio between the energy (electricity) consumption and the value added expressed in constant Euros (M€2000)

Data source:

Eurostat for value added; Odyssee for employment and energy consumption at normal climate

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• Over the period 2000-2009, the final energy intensity of the service sector has decreased in the EU-27, at an annual average rate of 1%. Such a trend shows a relative decoupling between energy consumption and economic growth: the value added of the service sector increased by 1.9%/year while its energy consumption only increased by 0.9%/year between 2000 and 2009. In the recent years, the intensity decreased more rapidly by 1.8%/year (average over 2005-2009). In the same time energy consumption decreased by 0.3%/year reaching 143 Mtoe in 2009 (117 Mtoe in 1990, 145 Mtoe in 2005). In 2009, however, the past trends have been reversed and the energy intensity increased by 0.3%, as the decrease of the energy consumption (-1.9%) did not follow by the strong decrease of the value added (- 2.2%) (Figure 1).

• From 2005 to 2009 the electricity consumption increased faster than the value added at EU level (2.3%/year versus 1.5%/year); as a result, the electricity intensity (i.e. the electricity consumption per unit of value added), increased by 0.8%/year on average. In 2009 the electricity intensity increased by 4.4%, as the electricity consumption continued to increase (by 2.1%) despite the strong decrease of the value added (- 2.2%): in a period of recession, such as in 2009, the electricity consumption in the service does not follow the reduction in activity as most of the electricity consumption is independent on the level of activity, especially in offices (e.g. lighting, office equipment).

• In about 40% of the countries (11 out of 30 countries[1]), the electricity intensity is following a different trend as observed at EU level: the electricity consumption is increasing slower than the activity since 2005 which means that there is a relative decoupling between electricity consumption and economic activity. This lower growth of electricity use may be due to energy efficiency improvements, structural changes or saturation in electricity uses in the sector but it is difficult to assess the relative importance of these different factors due to data limitations in this sector. In the other countries such as Southern countries, the electricity intensity tends to increase rapidly due to a diffusion of air conditioning. (Figure 3).

[1] 27 EU countries plus Norway and Croatia

• Energy consumption in the services sector is strongly linked to the number of employees, especially in office buildings as energy is mainly consumed for lighting, office and IT equipment, and air conditioning. Therefore it is also relevant to look at the relation between the amount of energy used and the number of employees.

•  Over the period 2005–2009, the energy consumption per employee decreased by around 1.5% on average ( 0.9% in 2009). (Figure 1).

• The electricity consumption per employee increased by around 1.1%/year from 2005 to 2009, due to increased use of air conditioning in southern countries and IT and other electric equipment. In 2009, the unit consumption per employee increased by 3.2%, as the electricity consumption did not follow the reduction in the number of employees (-1%) and continue to increase (by 2.1%).

• The different trends in electricity intensity in the service sector, one measured per employee and one per value added, reflects the fact that the variation of the value added is always more rapid than the variation in the number of employees: this is due to labor productivity gains and to the relative inelasticity of employment to the value added in a period of recession, such as in 2009. Value added increased by almost 1.9% from 2000 to 2009 and employment by 1.4 %/year. The value added created per employee (labor productivity) thus increased by 0.5 %/year on average (Figure 2). Over the period 2005-2009 labor productivity increased only by 0.3%/year.