Methods to empirically estimate direct and indirect rebound effect of energy-saving technological changes in households

Energy efficiency policies have a special importance within carbon emission reduction policies to mitigate the climate change effects. However, potential reductions of energy consumption and, consequently, its resulting emissions, can be offset through the so called "rebound effect". The concept of "rebound effect" refers to a set of mechanisms whereby the improvement of efficiency reduces the cost of the energy service and this results in the household energy consumption rising and totally or partially negating the reduction achieved by the energy efficiency improvement. This paper provides a methodology to estimate the static direct plus indirect rebound effect of energy efficiency improvements in the use of energy in households. It is based on the combination of econometric estimations of energy demand functions, re-spending modelling and generalised intput-output of energy modelling. It also provides estimations for Catalonia. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.