TeleSUR Reports – The New Energy Poverty

In global terms, energy poverty is the lack of access to modern energy services. But in recent years, and mainly in Western countries, a new definition has emerged. The new energy poverty is the inability to pay for sufficient energy services to satisfy domestic needs and to maintain a temperature of 21° Centigrade during the winter months. The quality of life is deteriorating in Spain, for example, where electricity bills have risen by more than 76% in the last six years and energy poverty has risen by 34% in two years. Protests are rife against frequent cutoffs and other abuses by water, electricity, and gas companies. These companies dictate government policies throughout the world, and their profits have skyrocketed in recent years. Activists point out that many of the problems could be avoided through widespread use of renewable energy sources and are pushing for the adoption of such sources despite the opposition of giant corporations whose profits depend on the use of fossil fuels. teleSUR