Analyzing Potentials for Reducing the Energy Requirement of Households in The Netherlands

The energy requirement of households represents a useful concept in studying energy use in relation to production structures and consumption patterns. Reduction potentials of the energy requirement for households provide insight on the possibilities for reducing energy use in the whole economy. We determine reduction potentials by means of implementing energy conservation options in an input–output model for calculating the household energy requirement. The implementation of a set of technical energy conservation options results in a reduction in the energy requirement of Dutch households by 55%. The reduction potential based on a set of demand-side options is 9%. The combination of both sets of conservation options results in a reduction potential of 59%. Therefore, by combining (sets of) options, some effects are cancelled out.