The average hourly impact of price changes on household electricity consumption

Steven F. Koch () and Yuxiang Ye ()
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Alain Kabundi ()

No 250, ERSA Working Paper Series from Economic Research Southern Africa

Abstract: This study evaluates the effect of marginal price changes on residential electricity consumption. The study is underpinned by hourly meter data that is matched to household level survey data in South Africa. It provides the first estimate of residential responses to price changes at the hourly level in a developing country. The price structure follows an incline block tariff allowing us to apply difference-in-differences. Our results uncover the expected negative relationship between price and electricity consumption, once we condition on both observed and unobserved confounding factors, especially temperature. We also find that relatively energy dependent households are less responsive to price changes than those less dependent.

Keywords: electricity demand; incline block tariff; difference in differences (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D12 Q41 Q48 Q54 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-09
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Published in ERSA Working Paper Series, September 2026

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