Energy poverty definition and measurement in the Iberian peninsula: can interchange lead to improved diagnosis

Abstract

Energy Poverty affects millions of people in Europe, with higher incidence and intensity in southern European countries like Portugal and Spain. Both nations have developed national strategies, proposing an official definition and indicators for diagnosis and monitoring. This paper aims to critically analyse and compare the energy poverty diagnosis advanced by both countries, supported by a review of state-of-art scientific literature and approaches implemented in existing policies. Despite the specific configurations of energy poverty across populations, results show several similarities in the diagnosis approaches, uncovering considerable potential for improvement that could be explored with cross-exchange of learnings and good practices.