Climate Impacts on Energy Systems. Key Issues for Energy Sector Adaptation

This report was produced by the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP) and the World Bank Group’s Global Expert Team for Adaptation. It was conceived following a brainstorming discussion on the subject “Sustainable Energy Supply, Energy Access and Climate Change” hosted by ESMAP on October 26 and 27, 2009, and ended by 17 external specialists renowned for their work on development, energy, and climate change. This meeting challenged ESMAP to go beyond its work on climate mitigation in energy systems, and build upon and expand its pilot program on energy sector vulnerability to climate change to understand and help inform operational teams on potential climate impacts and options for their management. This report is intended as an up-to-date compendium of what is known about weather variability and projected climate trends and their impacts on energy service provision and demand. It discusses emerging practices and tools for managing these impacts and integrating climate considerations into planning processes and operational practices in an environment of uncertainty. It draws on published, peer-reviewed literature.

This report has been compiled to raise awareness of potential climate impacts and stress points on the energy sector. The target audiences are policy makers and energy planners and practitioners in developing countries.

Energy production will be impacted by climate change in multiple ways. In Europe, in particular the large observed variability causes vulnerability towards energy services. Adaptation in the energy sector may include following strategies:

• preventing effects or reducing risks
• sharing responsibilities for losses and risks
• exploiting opportunities, for example, win-win solution for mitigation and adaptation concerns.

The report is an interesting source of information to assist the energy sector to adapt to climate change.