Who is vulnerable to energy poverty in China?

Energy poverty has been identified as a problem in China, but research to date does not discuss who experiences it, unlike in other countries. Here, we compared sociodemographic character-istics known to be linked to energy vulnerability in other nations between energy poor (EP) households and non-EP households, using the 2018 survey data from China Family Panel Studies (CFPS). We found that a range of sociodemographic characteristics associated with transport, education and employment, health, household structure, and social security, are disproportion-ately distributed among five provinces (Gansu, Liaoning, Henan, Shanghai, Guangdong) in our study. EP households are more likely to have low housing quality, low education, old people, poor mental/physical health, be mainly female, be rural-Hukou, be without pension, and lack clean cooking fuels. In addition, the logistic regression results further evidenced the increased likeli-hood of experiencing energy poverty given vulnerability related socio-demographic predictors in the full sample, in rural-urban areas, and in each single province. These results suggest that vulnerable groups should be considered specifically when formulating targeted policies for energy poverty alleviation to avoid exacerbating existing energy injustice or creating new ones.

Automated summary

Based on the 2018 survey data from China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), this study compares sociodemographic characteristics between energy poor (EP) households and non-EP households in five provinces in China. The findings reveal that EP households are more likely to have low housing quality, low education, old people, poor mental/physical health, be mainly female, be rural-Hukou, be without pension, and lack clean cooking fuels. Logistic regression results further support the association between vulnerability related socio-demographic predictors and the likelihood of experiencing energy poverty. These results emphasize the importance of considering vulnerable groups in targeted policies for energy poverty alleviation.