When Climate Protection Prices out the Poor: The Resilience Paradox in Energy Access

ABSTRACT When governments invest millions in climate‐resilient power grids, an unexpected consequence emerges: Energy bills soar so high that vulnerable families can no longer afford basic electricity. This study investigates how extreme climate risks influence household energy poverty through multiple transmission channels using comprehensive panel data linking household energy consumption patterns with detailed climate indicators. We find that extreme climate risks significantly exacerbate household energy poverty, creating what we term “adaptive inequality” where climate protection becomes a luxury good. The analysis reveals distinct transmission pathways: Infrastructure disruption increases system failure rates, while temperature extremes drive energy price volatility that disproportionately burdens low‐income households. Heterogeneity analysis shows that families in regions with incomplete energy infrastructure, high natural disaster vulnerability, and limited economic resources face particularly severe impacts. Our findings demonstrate that climate adaptation creates “selective vulnerability” where identical policies simultaneously protect wealthy households while pushing poor ones into energy deprivation. These results challenge current policy frameworks that focus on building resilient systems while ignoring distributional consequences, suggesting the need for frameworks ensuring resilience does not become another form of social exclusion.