How does income level impact residential-building heating energy consumption? Micro-level evidence from household surveys.

Soaring building heating energy consumption (BHEC), along with rising income, is threatening carbon abatement efforts. However, the influencing mechanism of income on BHEC remains unclear. This study establishes a theoretical model of the impact of income on BHEC from three perspectives: building physical characteristics, building use characteristics and energy-consuming equipment characteristics. Then, we adopt a stepwise hierarchical regression method to examine the direct and intermediary effects between income and BHEC using microdata from 662 households in Chongqing, China. The results show that household income, residential building floor space, the amount of heating equipment, building energy efficiency standards, and the heating method significantly impact BHEC. Moreover, the direct effect of income on BHEC is up to 84%. The amount of heating equipment and residential building floor space are both strong intermediaries between income and BHEC, contributing 18.8% and 15.8%, respectively. The heating method is a weak intermediary, only contributing approximately 1% of the impact. Overall, this study can promote the development of the related theory of BHEC and provide a reference for the government to implement more effective energy-efficient policies on the local scale and even on the national and global scales. • A splitting model-based calculation method is developed to estimate heating energy consumption • A theoretical model is established to examine the impact of income on heating energy use • The impact of income on heating energy consumption is examined with micro-evidence • Income affects heating energy use through two paths of direct and indirect effects • The number of heating equipment and floor space are both strong mediating variables [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]