Towards Reducing Residential Electric Energy End-Use Wastage in Developing Countries: The Case of Ghana

Globally buildings consume about 40% of electric energy and the residential sector dominates tremendously. If climate change is not controlled urgently, global temperatures could rise up to 6 °C by the end of the century. Nonetheless, the Ghanaian residential sector is responsible for an end-use wastage of about 30%. Ensuring end-use efficiency in households is hence imperative considering the financial and environmental costs of generating electric energy. This study examined the state of end-use wastage in Ghanaian households with the objective to propose energy efficiency end-use and behavioral retrofits. Mixed methods approach was used through an extensive literature review, energy audit and interview of 430 residential households, selected through stratified sampling across the three climatic belts of Ghana. This was based on the Ghana Statistical Service housing statistics and categorization of residential housing. The means and frequencies of 8 household appliances and energy consumption levels were analyzed with SPSS to establish the probable energy savings that could be achieved through the proposed retrofits. The findings show an existing end-use wastage of 1922.41 kWh/24 h for the selected 430 households translating into approximately GHȻ 677,075.00 per year based on the 2019 Electricity Company of Ghana’s tariff reckoner. The implementation of the proposed energy efficiency retrofits could reduce the energy consumption levels by 45.75%. A comprehensive policy framework for financial incentives with awareness creation is recommended. The identified energy use profile of Ghana is critical for an urgent energy policy development, implementation and adoption towards reducing end-use electric energy wastage.