BAKALOGLOU Salome

Reducing the energy consumption of the residential sector is a major stake in the context of the energy transition and the fight against climate change. However, despite the implementation of several dedicated public policies, the energy consumption of the sector has barely decreased in France. Through four empirical articles, this thesis aims to identify some of the barriers to the decrease of the French residential energy consumption with a focus on the role of individual determinants. In the first chapter, we wish to contribute to the literature on the barriers to energy efficiency investment (Sutherland, 1991) and the “energy efficiency gap” (Jaffe and Stavins, 1994). We use the methodology of the discrete choice experiment to assess the role of perceived risk and uncertainty on retrofit quality and energy price as barrier to the energy renovation decision. In the second chapter, we provide an empirical contribution on the role of individual preferences for comfort, other individual determinants and energy performance of dwellings in explaining energy consumption. In the third chapter, we study the energy performance gap (gap between theoretical and real energy consumption at dwelling level) and its drivers by using the quantile regression. Finally, in the fourth chapter, we test the assumption of the existence of a rebound effect for the heating energy consumption in France.

Reducing energy consumption in the residential sector is a major challenge in the context of energy transition and the fight against climate change. However, despite the public policies in place, French sectoral energy consumption is struggling to fall. Through four empirical tests, this thesis looks at the obstacles to the reduction of energy consumption in the French residential sector, focusing on the role of individual factors. In the first chapter, which is part of the literature on barriers to energy efficiency investment and the "energy paradox" (Jaffe and Stavins, 1994), we use the discrete choice method to highlight the role of uncertainty about the quality of renovation work and the price of energy as a barrier to energy efficiency investment. The second chapter provides empirical insight into the role of socio-economic factors, individual preferences for comfort and housing energy performance in explaining residential energy consumption. The third chapter examines the energy performance gap at the dwelling level (actual vs. theoretical energy consumption) and its individual and socio-economic determinants, via quantile regression. Finally, the fourth chapter focuses on the dynamic interactions between energy efficiency and energy consumption by addressing the issue of the direct rebound effect for residential heating use in France.

The aim of this research is to understand the impact of preference heterogeneity in explaining energy consumption in French homes. Using a discrete-continuous model and the conditional mixed-process estimator (CMP) enable us to address two potential endogeneities in residential energy consumption: energy prices and the choice of home energy characteristics. As a key contribution, we provide evidence that a preference for comfort over saving energy does have significant direct and indirect impacts on energy consumption (through the choice of dwelling), particularly for high-income households. Preferring comfort over economy or one additional degree of heating implies an average energy overconsumption of 10% and 7.8% respectively, up to 18% for high-income households. Our results strengthen the belief that household heterogeneity is an important factor in explaining energy consumption and could have meaningful implications for the design of public policy tools aimed at reducing energy consumption in the residential sector.

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