Working Paper
The political economy of energy transitions and thermal energy poverty

Comparing the residential LPG sectors in Indonesia and South Africa

Indonesia and South Africa are both trying address energy poverty through subsidized energy provision. South Africa has implemented one of the largest electrification programmes in the world, and 80 per cent of the population now have access to the national grid. But this alone is unlikely to achieve universal energy access goals.

Indonesia recently implemented one of the largest household energy transition projects to date: the kerosene-to-LPG (liquid petroleum gas) conversion programme. Exploring these projects makes more visible the political economic factors that have affected the adoption of certain energy carriers.