Energy Security in Ecuador: An Analysis Considering the Interrelationships of the WEF Nexus

The objective of this research was to analyze energy security in Ecuador, which is interconnected with water and food security. As a methodology, 21 indicators grouped into the following dimensions were analyzed: availability, infrastructure, energy prices, efficiency, social impact, environment and...

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Published inEnergies (Basel) Vol. 16; no. 20; p. 7166
Main Authors Terneus-Páez, Carlos Francisco, Viteri-Salazar, Oswaldo
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Basel MDPI AG 01.10.2023
Subjects
Alternative energy sources
Bolivia
Chile
Climate change
Colombia
Economic development
Ecuador
Electricity
Energy industry
energy matrix
Energy minerals
Energy policy
Energy resources
energy security
Environmental impact
Food security
Food supply
Fossil fuels
France
Global temperature changes
Hydrocarbons
Hypotheses
Latin America
Natural resources
Power
Prices
Royalties
Social aspects
South America
State budgets
Subsidies
Venezuela
WEF nexus
South America
Ecuador
Colombia
Venezuela
France
Bolivia
Chile
Latin America
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Summary:The objective of this research was to analyze energy security in Ecuador, which is interconnected with water and food security. As a methodology, 21 indicators grouped into the following dimensions were analyzed: availability, infrastructure, energy prices, efficiency, social impact, environment and governance. For each indicator, a cross-sectional analysis was carried out with the countries of Colombia, Peru and Bolivia, along with a longitudinal analysis from 2011 to 2021. The main contribution of this study is the characterization of the Ecuadorian energy system as available, accessible, affordable and renewable in an electrical matrix but inefficient and heavily dependent on fiscal resources. The factors that may affect Ecuador’s energy security were determined to be the risk of a reduction in income due to it becoming a net importer of energy, climate change, socio-environmental conflicts, poor diversification, energy subsidies and weak governance. A policy is proposed aimed at decoupling development from fossil fuels, with a systemic vision considering the complexity of interactions with other economic sectors, such as water and food, among others.
ISSN:1996-1073
1996-1073
DOI:10.3390/en16207166