Energy consumption in service industries: Challenging the myth of non-materiality

This paper addresses the issue of energy consumption in service industries. Official energy statistics show that the amount of energy consumed in service industries is quite small, and this is explained in the theoretical literature by the presumed intangibility of services. Our hypothesis, however, is that the energy consumed by services has been underestimated. After identifying and analyzing the full range of sources of energy consumption in service industries, we show that official energy statistics account for only a part of this consumption. Our work is based on a thorough rereading of the economics literature on services (especially concerning the definition of services and the specificities of the service provision process), done in light of our knowledge about energy consumption. Eventually, using the 2007 French national transportation and travel survey, we estimate one of the overlooked sources of energy consumption, the one pertaining to mobility.

► We want to demonstrate that services consume more energy than previously assumed. ► We present what could be called the myth of the non-materiality of services. ► We identify the main sources of energy consumption by services. ► The energy statistics do not acknowledge all sources of energy consumption. ► We estimate the magnitude of energy consumption for travel related to services.