Global energy security index and its application on national level

Abstract

Energy security is an international concern for all countries in the world, particularly, for the policymakers looking for the wellbeing of citizens. While proper methods to measure energy security without ignoring the different aspects and multidimensional interplay is necessary, the need for an objective evaluation with numerical indicators is of utmost importance. This research covers these gaps by providing a detailed numerical method to formulate an energy security index that is globally comprehensive, but also nationally applicable to all countries in the world. This implies to include all needed aspects and dimensions of energy security. Results of this research show the global performance of all countries in the world in energy security and the performance of these countries in each of the 15 dimensions that articulate energy security. Germany and the United States performed best in the world, when it comes to overall energy security levels, whereas the Central African Republic and Turkmenistan are on the lowest end of performance. Conclusions show that there is not a single way for development and enhancing energy security but rather different alternatives and options. Countries need to learn from each other to identify what works best for their context and implement these strategies in order to enhance energy security.