Measuring energy poverty in Argentina: The relevance of regional disparities and policies

This paper provides new evidence on Energy Poverty (EP) in Argentina, a middle-income country with regional disparities and a complex history of energy subsidies. Using microdata from the three most recent waves of the National Household Expenditure Survey, EP is measured through the Ten Percent Rule Index (TPRI) and the Multidimensional Energy Poverty Index (MEPI). Results show a U-shaped trend in EP linked to shifts in energy subsidies, and highlight relevant regional heterogeneity driven by income, energy use, and price regulation. The study also examines links with monetary poverty, offering insights for equitable energy policy design. • First MEPI estimation for Argentina using household survey microdata. • Energy poverty in Argentina shows a U-shaped trend from 2005 to 2018. • Regional disparities are key drivers of both unidimensional and multidimensional EP. • New adjustment improves accuracy of TPRI in urban Argentina. • EP strongly correlates with monetary poverty and household characteristics.