Energy Data Reporter Groups

Good knowledge of the main groups of data reporters is required for efficient data collection, so that data collection methods can be customized as necessary. It is recommended, as applicable, that at least three reporter groups be distinguished: energy industries, other energy producers and energy consumers [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.18, PDF p. 103, 2018] — recommendations tracker row VII/7.18.

This page is about collecting from those three groups — the practical data-collection considerations for each. For the definitions of the groups themselves, see Energy Industries, Other Energy Producers and Energy Consumers.

Energy industries

Energy industries are represented by various entities whose principal activity is directly related to energy production and which often concentrate on one particular fuel or one part of the overall energy supply chain. Detailed information is compiled by the energy industry entities themselves on a regular basis for management purposes, as well as for reporting to government regulatory bodies. Statistical data can therefore often be obtained without much delay, either directly from those entities or from administrative records maintained by regulatory bodies, where proper data collection mechanisms exist [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.19, PDF p. 103, 2018].

Entities belonging to the energy industries can be differentiated by ownership status — private, public, or public-private industries. The degree of direct central-government involvement can significantly affect both the ease of data collection and the range of data considered reasonable to collect. Because such industries can provide data on most energy flows, they need to be treated with special attention and fully enumerated in statistical surveys, or covered using appropriate administrative sources. When the number of energy industry entities is large and the energy statistics compiler has no direct contact with the original sources, it is common for industrial associations, regional offices or civil organizations to act as intermediate data collectors and reporters, simplifying data collection — though efforts should still be undertaken to ensure data quality is not compromised [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.20, PDF p. 103, 2018].

Other energy producers

Other energy producers include economic units (including households) that produce energy for self-consumption; they may sometimes supply it to other consumers, but not as part of their principal activity. Since energy production is not their principal objective, and since they may be partially or fully exempt from energy legislation and regulations, it cannot be expected that they will readily have the same amount of detailed information as energy industries [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.21, PDF p. 103, 2018].

Even though other energy producers usually account for only a small part of national energy production, it is important that they be included in national energy statistics, to properly account for their energy needs and measure their energy efficiency. Where other energy producers play a significant role in the national aggregate of energy supply and consumption, appropriate procedures must be devised to obtain more adequate data from them. In some countries, auto-production of electricity and heat requires governmental authorization, which facilitates monitoring these companies and creates a means for obtaining the required data [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.22, PDF p. 103, 2018].

Energy consumers

Energy consumers can be grouped according to the energy needs of the economic activity under which they are classified — industry, households, etc. Data collection from energy consumers is complex, since it must take into account their diversity, mobility and multipurpose forms. To facilitate this task, specific methodologies and compilation strategies must be designed for the different consumer subgroups, given their particularities [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.23, PDF pp. 103–104, 2018].

Energy producers can usually provide data on how much energy in total is delivered to energy consumers, and often a breakdown of total deliveries by consumer group (reflecting differences in applicable tariffs and/or taxes). However, filling remaining data gaps and obtaining more detailed information (e.g., for energy balance compilation) may require direct consumer surveys. Coherence between data on energy deliveries to final consumers and data reported by consumers themselves must be ensured. For some products — solid biomass fuels, for example — information is more likely to come from surveys and consumer-derived measurements than from energy producers, avoiding a potential producer–consumer data mismatch [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.24, PDF p. 104, 2018].

The informal sector

Collection of energy data from the informal sector requires its own treatment. The informal sector has been defined by the Fifteenth International Conference of Labour Statisticians according to the types of production units it comprises. It consists of a subset of household unincorporated enterprises, with at least some production for sale or barter, operating within the production boundary of the System of National Accounts. As household production units, these enterprises do not constitute separate legal entities independent of the households or household members that own them, and no complete sets of accounts (including balance sheets of assets and liabilities) are available that would permit their production activities to be clearly distinguished from the other activities of their owners, nor any flows of income and capital between the enterprises and the owners to be identified [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.25, footnote 59, PDF p. 104, 2018].

An energy-producing unit in the informal sector may be defined as a household enterprise with at least some production of energy for sale or barter that meets one or more of the following criteria: limited size in terms of employment; non-registration of the enterprise; and non-registration of its employees. So defined, the informal sector excludes household enterprises producing energy exclusively for own final use. The area-based enterprise survey approach is commonly used to collect data from such enterprises, since a satisfactory list of such enterprises is not normally available [IRES, Ch. VII, para. 7.26, footnote 60, PDF p. 104, 2018].