Cuentas de energía como instrumento para evaluar eficiencias sectoriales en la región centroamericana

En la región centroamericana, Guatemala ha sido pionero en la elaboración y utilización proactiva de “Cuentas de Energía”, las cuales se definen como un marco contable que proporciona una descripción detallada del uso de energía por las distintas actividades económicas y brindan un registro de la producción de emisiones asociado a las distintas fuentes energéticas utilizadas. La estructura contable para desarrollar dichas cuentas se basa en las clasificaciones y definiciones del “Sistema de Contabilidad Nacional”, principal instrumento de medición del desempeño económico en los países de la región centroamericana y del mundo. Uno de los objetivos de las cuentas es la estimación del desempeño energético de las distintas actividades económicas, lo cual se logra mediante una serie de indicadores. La experiencia tanto en la construcción, como en el uso de las “Cuentas de Energía”, ha sido muy aleccionadora para el país y hace pensar del gran potencial que éstas tienen como un instrumento para el seguimiento del uso eficiente de energía a nivel macro y sectorial, tanto en el ámbito nacional como regional. Es por ello que se desarrolla este ensayo, que incluye una discusión sobre las posibilidades reales de implementar y utilizar las “Cuentas de Energía” en países en vías de desarrollo como complemento a los ya conocidos balances energéticos y estadísticas energéticas tradicionales, en particular en su aplicabilidad en países centroamericanos. Para el desarrollo del ensayo, se utilizan, como estudio de caso, el ejercicio de las “Cuentas de Energía” de Guatemala para el período 2001-2006, describiendo las lecciones aprendidas del proceso de implementación, desde los arreglos institucionales hasta el uso de la información por los actores clave.

Informe nacional de monitoreo de la eficiencia energética de la República Argentina, 2014

Para los países de América Latina y el Caribe, el desarrollo económico con mayores niveles de eficiencia energética resulta ser un importante paso hacia el sendero de la sostenibilidad. Asumiendo una perspectiva de mediano plazo, entre los principales factores que movilizan la promoción de la eficiencia energética cabe considerar a la seguridad en el suministro de la energía, la mayor eficiencia en el gasto y el alto potencial de producir ahorros energéticos, las preocupaciones por mitigar los impactos ambientales fruto de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI), lo que obviamente incluye al fenómeno del cambio climático y, en los países en desarrollo, las limitaciones que pudieran generarse en relación a la inversión orientada expandir la oferta energética de los mismos. En los países de América Latina y el Caribe, la calidad de las estadísticas e indicadores de desempeño que permiten cuantificar los resultados de los programas nacionales de eficiencia energética ha sido insuficiente. Para superar esta carencia, la CEPAL ha articulado el Programa Regional BIEE (Base de Indicadores de Eficiencia Energética para América Latina y el Caribe). Siguiendo el proceso técnico-político y la lógica de funcionamiento del programa de análisis y medición de la eficiencia energética más exitoso del mundo, el Programa ODYSSEE desarrollado por la Comisión Europea y gestionado por la agencia Francesa: ADEME (Agence de l'Environnement et de la Maîtrise de l'Energie), y con la expectativa de producir un conjunto de indicadores específicos metodológicamente consistentes, que permitan medir la evolución de los programas nacionales de eficiencia energética, analizar los resultados en el tiempo y - como consecuencia - tomar las decisiones de políticas que correspondan, desde la CEPAL se ha encarado la labor de capacitar y coordinar la acción de los países de la región con miras a desarrollar una herramienta común que facilite esta labor.

Informe nacional de monitoreo de la eficiencia energética de la República de Chile, 2014

En los países de América Latina y el Caribe, la calidad de las estadísticas e indicadores de desempeño que permiten cuantificar los resultados de los programas nacionales de eficiencia energética ha sido insuficiente. Para superar esta carencia, la CEPAL ha articulado el Programa Regional BIEE (Base de Indicadores de Eficiencia Energética para América Latina y el Caribe). Siguiendo el proceso técnico-político y la lógica de funcionamiento del programa de análisis y medición de la eficiencia energética más exitoso del mundo, el Programa ODYSSEE desarrollado por la Comisión Europea y gestionado por la agencia Francesa: ADEME (Agence de l'Environnement et de la Maîtrise de l'Energie), y con la expectativa de producir un conjunto de indicadores específicos metodológicamente consistentes, que permitan medir la evolución de los programas nacionales de eficiencia energética, analizar los resultados en el tiempo y - como consecuencia - tomar las decisiones de políticas que correspondan, desde la CEPAL se ha encarado la labor de capacitar y coordinar la acción de los países de la región con miras a desarrollar una herramienta común que facilite esta labor.

Are we building competitive and liveable cities?: Guidelines for developing eco-efficient and socially inclusive infrastructure

This guideline jointly published by The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), and the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), in partnership with the Urban Design Lab of the Earth Institute, Columbia University, provides practical tools for city planners and decision makers to reform urban planning and infrastructure design according to the principles of eco-efficiency and social inclusiveness. It includes case studies from the Republic of Korea, the Philippines, Japan and Sri Lanka.

Training Report #1- Report on Training Programme Conducted October 2013 in Guyana

This project, "Sustainable Energy in the Caribbean", implemented by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (UN-ECLAC) will support the following: - Technical assistance to three countries of the Caribbean in the evaluation of existing fiscal systems and regulations as they relate to energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies so as to identify gaps and barriers to implement these technologies and to provide options for their removal  Development of national documents on strengthening fiscal and regulatory systems for at six countries – Guyana, Curacao, Belize, Grenada, Saint Lucia and Antigua & Barbuda. - Provision of technical assistance in proposing innovative fiscal and regulatory incentives to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives in three countries - Development of a training manual on innovative fiscal and regulatory incentives for energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives - Implementation of capacity building workshops on best practices to improve the fiscal and management environment with a view to support the employment of EE and RE initiatives - Development of three national (Aruba, The Bahamas and Suriname) energy policies that incorporate strategies for energy efficiency and the employment of renewable energy technologies. These may be used as examples for other Caribbean countries

Training report #2- report on training programme conducted November 2013 in Jamaica

This project, "Sustainable Energy in the Caribbean", implemented by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (UN-ECLAC) will support the following: - Technical assistance to three countries of the Caribbean in the evaluation of existing fiscal systems and regulations as they relate to energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies so as to identify gaps and barriers to implement these technologies and to provide options for their removal  Development of national documents on strengthening fiscal and regulatory systems for at six countries – Guyana, Curacao, Belize, Grenada, Saint Lucia and Antigua & Barbuda - Provision of technical assistance in proposing innovative fiscal and regulatory incentives to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives in three countries - Development of a training manual on innovative fiscal and regulatory incentives for energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives - Implementation of capacity building workshops on best practices to improve the fiscal and management environment with a view to support the employment of EE and RE initiatives - Development of three national (Aruba, The Bahamas and Suriname) energy policies that incorporate strategies for energy efficiency and the employment of renewable energy technologies. These may be used as examples for other Caribbean countries.

An assessment of the economic impact of climate change on the water sector in the Turks and Caicos Islands

The best description of water resources for Grand Turk was offered by Pérez Monteagudo (2000) who suggested that rain water was insufficient to ensure a regular water supply although water catchment was being practised and water catchment possibilities had been analysed. Limestone islands, mostly flat and low lying, have few possibilities for large scale surface storage, and groundwater lenses exist in very delicate equilibrium with saline seawater, and are highly likely to collapse due to sea level rise, improper extraction, drought, tidal waves or other extreme event. A study on the impact of climate change on water resources in the Turks and Caicos Islands is a challenging task, due to the fact that the territory of the Islands covers different environmental resources and conditions, and accurate data are lacking. The present report is based on collected data wherever possible, including grey data from several sources such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and Cuban meteorological service data sets. Other data were also used, including the author’s own estimates and modelling results. Although challenging, this was perhaps the best approach towards analysing the situation. Furthermore, IPCC A2 and B2 scenarios were used in the present study in an effort to reduce uncertainty. The main conclusion from the scenario approach is that the trend observed in precipitation during the period 1961 - 1990 is decreasing. Similar behaviour was observed in the Caribbean region. This trend is associated with meteorological causes, particularly with the influence of the North Atlantic Anticyclone. The annual decrease in precipitation is estimated to be between 30-40% with uncertain impacts on marine resources. After an assessment of fresh water resources in Turks and Caicos Islands, the next step was to estimate residential water demand based on a high fertility rate scenario for the Islands (one selected from four scenarios and compared to countries having similar characteristics). The selected scenario presents higher projections on consumption growth, enabling better preparation for growing water demand. Water demand by tourists (stopover and excursionists, mainly cruise passengers) was also obtained, based on international daily consumption estimates. Tourism demand forecasts for Turks and Caicos Islands encompass the forty years between 2011 and 2050 and were obtained by means of an Artificial Neural Networks approach. for the A2 and B2 scenarios, resulting in the relation BAU>B2>A2 in terms of tourist arrivals and water demand levels from tourism. Adaptation options and policies were analysed. Resolving the issue of the best technology to be used for Turks and Caicos Islands is not directly related to climate change. Total estimated water storage capacity is about 1, 270, 800 m3/ year with 80% capacity load for three plants. However, almost 11 desalination plants have been detected on Turks and Caicos Islands. Without more data, it is not possible to estimate long term investment to match possible water demand and more complex adaptation options. One climate change adaptation option would be the construction of elevated (30 metres or higher) storm resistant water reservoirs. The unit cost of the storage capacity is the sum of capital costs and operational and maintenance costs. Electricity costs to pump water are optional as water should, and could, be stored for several months. The costs arising for water storage are in the range of US$ 0.22 cents/m3 without electricity costs. Pérez Monteagudo (2000) estimated water prices at around US$ 2.64/m3 in stand points, US$ 7.92 /m3 for government offices, and US$ 13.2 /m3for cistern truck vehicles. These data need to be updated. As Turks and Caicos Islands continues to depend on tourism and Reverse Osmosis (RO) for obtaining fresh water, an unavoidable condition to maintaining and increasing gross domestic product(GDP) and population welfare, dependence on fossil fuels and vulnerability to increasingly volatile prices will constitute an important restriction. In this sense, mitigation supposes a synergy with adaptation. Energy demand and emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) were also estimated using an emissions factor of 2. 6 tCO2/ tonne of oil equivalent (toe). Assuming a population of 33,000 inhabitants, primary energy demand was estimated for Turks and Caicos Islands at 110,000 toe with electricity demand of around 110 GWh. The business as usual (BAU), as well as the mitigation scenarios were estimated. The BAU scenario suggests that energy use should be supported by imported fossil fuels with important improvements in energy efficiency. The mitigation scenario explores the use of photovoltaic and concentrating solar power, and wind energy. As this is a preliminary study, the local potential and locations need to be identified to provide more relevant estimates. Macroeconomic assumptions are the same for both scenarios. By 2050, Turks and Caicos Islands could demand 60 m toe less than for the BAU scenario.

The economics of climate change

This paper focuses on several key economic issues relevant to climate change. Given the fact that changes in climate are projections using the best available data, it examines the economic principles of uncertainty and the precautionary approach, and then continues to address the key drivers of climate change. Climate change is expected to result in negative impacts and, in this regard, the consequences of anticipated rising temperatures and sea levels as well as changes in precipitation that may result in flooding and/or drought are addressed. However, the situation is not all negative and, as such, the opportunities that are likely to arise through adaptation and mitigation are discussed especially with respect to the Caribbean. In this regard and recognizing that it would be useful to Caribbean policymakers to utilize these opportunities and to address the negative impacts, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), through its subregional headquarters for the Caribbean, is spearheading a review of the economics of climate change in the Caribbean with a view to providing quantitative information to stakeholders in dealing with climate change. The paper makes recommendations for the Caribbean to address climate change at the national level. These include macroplanning; promotion of energy efficiency; creation of incentives to obtain support for implementation of alternative energy technologies; maintaining the will among stakeholders on a sustained basis for addressing climate change; and the conduct of relevant research into varieties of plants and animals that could adapt to changing climatic conditions. Finally, it must be recognized that to successfully combat climate change, the threats and opportunities must be properly assessed as part of an ongoing region-wide system of risk management, which should not be incidental, but integral, to national and regional planning and forecasting for the future.

Informe nacional de monitoreo de la eficiencia energética del Brasil

Este documento reúne las conclusiones de un extenso trabajo emprendido por la EPE hace tres años y cuyos fines principales son la concepción y realización de una base de indicadores de eficiencia energética, gracias a los cuales se podrán observar y medir la evolución y el resultado de las políticas y programas nacionales de eficiencia energética emprendidos por Brasil.

Relatório nacional de monitorização da eficiência energética do Brasil

Este documento consolida os resultados de um extenso trabalho que vem sendo realizado pela EPE há três anos e que tem por objetivos principais o desenvolvimento e o preenchimento de um banco de indicadores de eficiência energética, para fins de monitoramento do desempenho de eficiência energética no Brasil.

Informe nacional de monitoreo de la eficiencia energética de Nicaragua

La evolución del consumo de energía tiene una estrecha relación con los cambios ocurridos en la actividad económica con la estructura económica como indicadores referentes a condiciones propicias para la implementación de estándares de eficiencia energética. A partir del análisis realizado por el equipo de trabajo en Nicaragua en el marco del programa BIEE (Base de Indicadores de Eficiencia Energética), se realizó un exhaustivo rastreo de indicadores existentes en materia de consumo energético por sectores económicos, así como una depuración de los posibles vacíos que podrían convertirse en futuras oportunidades de inversión en investigación y desarrollo referente al tema de la eficiencia energética. Los resultados que se muestran en el presente informe corresponden a los indicadores que poseen relevancia a escala nacional. Con estos resultados se establece un punto de partida para una actualización constante de indicadores de monitoreo de la eficiencia energética.

Informe nacional de monitoreo de la eficiencia energética de la República Oriental del Uruguay

En el presente informe se resume y se analiza la información obtenida en el Programa Base de Indicadores de Eficiencia Energética (BIEE) en la República Oriental del Uruguay, tanto a nivel agregado como por sectores. Asimismo, se presentan las políticas de eficiencia energética que está llevando adelante el país, los resultados obtenidos a la fecha y las perspectivas a futuro.

Network for Cooperation in Integrated Water Resource Management for Sustainable Development in Latin America and the Caribbean No. 43

Editorial remarks.-- Open discussion: Energy efficiency and economic regulation in water supply and sewerage services ; Policies and institutional frameworks for drinking water supply and sanitation.-- News of the network: The goal of food self-sufficiency of the countries of the cooperation council for de Arab States of the Gulf ; Narrowing the gaps in drinking water and sanitation: an opportunity for users ; Water Users'Organizations Act of Peru ; Commission for the Integrated management of the Tárcoles River Basin, Costa Rica ; Water and sanitation Management Unit in Panama.-- Courses: Course "Strategic aspects of irrigation".-- Internet and WWW news

O emprego na transição para uma economia verde: cenários para o Brasil com base no consumo de energia pela indústria

Pós-graduação em Economia - FCLAR