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Since the last IEA review in 2009, Spain’s dependence on energy imports has decreased markedly, in part thanks to a rapid increase in renewable energy supply. Spain’s security of supply has further been improved with diversified import sources and enhanced storage capacity for both oil and gas.
In the electricity sector, Spain has built a large, diverse and reliable power generation fleet. After several years of efforts, the government has now also managed to solve the massive imbalance between the electricity system’s regulated costs and revenues. The broad and deep electricity market reform has fundamentally changed the remuneration scheme for renewable energy. Spain must now maintain its strong and long-term commitment to a financially sustainable electricity system. To improve investor confidence, it should also closely follow the principles of transparency, predictability and certainty when revising policies and regulations.
New momentum for establishing additional cross-border connections in electricity and gas will eventually enable Spain to use its large power and liquefied natural gas capacity to increase flexibility, diversity and security in the European Union internal market. The government should now focus on longer-term issues including energy demand and greenhouse gas emissions. A critical question is how to encourage the transition to a low-carbon energy system.
This review analyses the energy policy challenges Spain faces and provides sectoral recommendations for further policy improvements. It is intended to help guide the country towards a more secure and sustainable energy future.
This volume contains data for 2012 and 2013 on energy supply and consumption in original units for coal, oil, natural gas, electricity, heat, renewables and waste for over 100 non-OECD countries. Historical tables summarise data on production, trade, final consumption by sector and oil demand by product. These tables also include initial estimates for 2014 production (and trade when available) for natural gas, primary coal and oil. The book also includes definitions of products and flows and explanatory notes on the individual country data and sources.
In the 2015 edition of Energy Balances of Non-OECD Countries, the sister volume of this publication, data are presented as comprehensive energy balances expressed in thousand tonnes of oil equivalent.
This volume contains data on the supply and consumption of coal, oil, gas, electricity, heat, renewables and waste presented as comprehensive energy balances expressed in million tonnes of oil equivalent. Complete data are available for 2012 and 2013 and supply estimates are available for the most recent year (i.e. 2014). Historical tables summarise production, trade and final consumption data as well as key energy and economic indicators. The book also includes definitions of products and flows, explanatory notes on the individual country data and conversion factors from original units to energy units.
More detailed data in original units are published in the 2015 edition of Energy Statistics of OECD Countries, the sister volume of this publication.
As climate negotiators work towards a deal that would limit the increase in global temperatures, interest is growing in the essential role technology innovation can and must play in enabling the transition to a low-carbon energy system. Indeed, recent success stories clearly indicate that there is significant and untapped potential for accelerating innovation in clean technologies if proper policy frameworks are in place.
In an especially timely analysis, the 2015 edition of Energy Technology Perspectives (ETP 2015) examines innovation in the energy technology sector and seeks to increase confidence in the feasibility of achieving short- and long-term climate change mitigation targets through effective research, development, demonstration and deployment (RDD&D). ETP 2015 identifies regulatory strategies and co‑operative frameworks to advance innovation in areas like variable renewables, carbon capture and storage, and energy-intensive industrial sectors. The report also shows how emerging economies, and China in particular, can foster a low-carbon transition through innovation in energy technologies and policy. Finally, ETP 2015 features the IEA annual Tracking Clean Energy Progress report, which this year shows that efforts to decarbonise the global energy sector are lagging further behind.
By setting out pathways to a sustainable energy future and by incorporating detailed and transparent quantitative modelling analysis and well-rounded commentary, ETP 2015 and its series of related publications are required reading for experts in the energy field, policy makers and heads of governments, as well as business leaders and investors.
In the past decade, many countries have designed explicit internationalisation policies for their higher education systems, acknowledging the benefits of international exposure to prepare students for a globalising economy as well as the many opportunities of cross-border mobility for innovation, improvement and capacity development in higher education and in the economy.
Cases of fraud and opportunistic behaviour have shown that these promises come with risks for students and other tertiary education stakeholders though. It is precisely to help all stakeholders to minimise these risks and strengthen the dynamics of openness, collaboration and transparency across countries that UNESCO and OECD jointly developed the Guidelines for Quality Provision in Cross-Border Higher Education.
This book monitors the extent to which tertiary education stakeholders complied with the Guidelines in 2014. It will be of interest to policy makers, leaders of tertiary education institutions and quality assurance agencies, as well as to academics and other parties interested in higher education and its internationalisation.
Entrepreneurship at a Glance, a product of the OECD-Eurostat Entrepreneurship Indicators Programme, presents an original collection of indicators for measuring the state of entrepreneurship, along with key facts and explanations of the policy context. The 2015 edition features a special chapter on the international activities of SMEs.
Environment at a Glance 2015 updates key environmental indicators and relevant socio-economic and sectoral indicators to track OECD country progress on major environmental issues and inform policy development and evaluation. This year's edition includes increased coverage of environmentally related taxation, ODA and R&D expenditure.
The repercussions of the 2007–2008 financial crisis have acted as an impetus to improve the quality and availability of statistical information. One such initiative addresses the importance of compiling a complete accounting of a nation’s wealth, and especially the wealth of households. This is of particular importance in view of the housing market’s role in the financial crisis in several countries.
The most valuable item on the households’ balance sheet is usually housing wealth which is composed of the value of the dwelling and its underlying land. Many countries experience difficulties in valuing land and in particular separating the value of the land from the value of the structure. To assist countries, the Eurostat-OECD compilation guide on land estimation represents the first comprehensive overview of conceptual and practical issues related to the compilation of the balance sheet item land in the national accounts, in total and by institutional sector.
The Eurostat-OECD compilation guide on land estimation was prepared by the Task Force on Land and other non-financial assets under the joint leadership of Eurostat and the OECD. Representatives from various European Union (EU) and non-EU OECD countries were represented as well as the European Central Bank.
The results of the survey provide a useful overview of quality strategies and policies, and show increasing commitment to quality of care in the Asia/Pacific region. The outcome of this study confirms the importance of the WHO-OECD expert network to facilitate communication/dissemination of evidence on quality improvement programmes and policies among countries.
This fourth edition monitors SMEs’ and entrepreneurs’ access to finance in 34 countries over the period 2007-13, across an expanded array of indicators, including debt, equity, asset-based finance and framework conditions. These are complemented by an overview of recent developments in public and private initiatives to support SME finance, and a special focus on non-performing loans. The report aims to provide a comprehensive framework for policy makers and other stakeholders to evaluate the financing needs of SMEs.
The health systems we enjoy today, and expected medical advances in the future, will be difficult to finance from public resources without major reforms. Public health spending in OECD countries has grown rapidly over most of the last half century. These spending increases have contributed to important progress in population health: for example, life expectancy at birth has increased, rising on average by ten years since 1970. The challenge now is to sustain and enhance these achievements in a context of tight fiscal constraints in many countries combined with upward pressure on health spending from factors such as new technological advances and demographic changes. Finding policies that can make health spending more sustainable without compromising important achievements in access and quality requires effective co-operation between health and finance ministries. Sound governance and co-ordination mechanisms are therefore essential to ensure effective policy choices. Prepared by both public finance and health experts, this report provides a unique detailed overview of institutional frameworks for financing health care in OECD countries. One of the main features of this book is a comprehensive mapping of budgeting practices and governance structure in health across OECD countries.
This publication highlights the main conclusions of the Fishing for Development joint meeting, held in Paris in April 2014. The meeting was organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Bank (WB) to initiate a dialogue between the fisheries and development policy communities from member and partner countries and organizations of the OECD. It brought together delegates to the OECD Fisheries Committee and OECD Development Assistance Committee, representatives of partner developing countries invited by FAO, as well as experts and representatives from FAO, WB, non-governmental organizations and regional organizations. The meeting focused on issues central to promoting sustainable fisheries and aquaculture in developing, emerging and developed countries alike.
This publication also includes the background papers originally prepared to provide context for the issues addressed. It identifies questions for a future work agenda on policy coherence in fisheries and aquaculture, and makes evident the strong need for further dialogue between the fisheries and development communities at global and regional scales.
The costs of mental ill-health for individuals, employers and society at large are enormous. Mental illness is responsible for a very significant loss of potential labour supply, high rates of unemployment, and a high incidence of sickness absence and reduced productivity at work. Following an introductory report (Sick on the Job: Myths and Realities about Mental Health and Work) and nine country reports, this final synthesis report summarizes the findings from the participating countries and makes the case for a stronger policy response.
Knowledge investment supporting the adoption of environmentally friendly farm practices is a key driver behind innovation processes in agriculture, yet impact evaluations and financial assessments of existing initiatives remain scarce despite dramatic changes in orientation, organisation and intervention. This report examines the role, performance and impact of farm advisory services, training and extension initiatives in the OECD area to foster green growth in agriculture. Based on a series of case studies, the report discusses a range of methodological issues and the merits of the different types of providers, and identifies best practices in sustainable agricultural management.
In the field of long-term radioactive waste management, projects to construct repositories normally last from decades to centuries. Such projects will inevitably have an effect on the host community from the planning stage to the end of construction and beyond. The key to a long-lasting and positive relationship between a site and its host community is ensuring that solutions are reached together throughout the entire process. The sustainability of radioactive waste management solutions can potentially be achieved through design and implementation of a facility that provides added cultural and amenity value, as well as economic opportunities, to the local community.
This second edition of Fostering a Durable Relationship Between a Waste Management Facility and its Host Community: Adding Value Through Design and Process highlights new innovations in siting processes and in facility design – functional, cultural and physical – from different countries, which could be of added value to host communities and their sites in the short to long term. These new features are examined from the perspective of sustainability, with a focus on increasing the likelihood that people will both understand the facility and its functions, and remember what is located at the site.
This 2015 update by the NEA Forum on Stakeholder Confidence will be beneficial in designing paths forward for local or regional communities, as well as for national radioactive waste management programmes.
The internationally recognised methodology for collecting and using R&D statistics, the OECD's Frascati Manual is an essential tool for statisticians and science and innovation policy makers worldwide. It includes definitions of basic concepts, data collection guidelines, and classifications for compiling R&D statistics. This updated edition contains improved guidelines reflecting recent changes in the way R&D takes place and is funded and the wider use of R&D statistics and definitions. It provides new chapters dedicated to the pratical aspects of collecting R&D data in different sectors, as well as new guidance on capturing different aspects of public support for R&D such as tax incentives.
This brochure is published within the framework of the Scheme for the Application of International Standards for Fruit and Vegetables established by OECD in 1962. It comprises explanatory notes and illustrations to facilitate the uniform interpretation of the Fresh Figs Standard. This brochure illustrates the standard text and demonstrates the quality parameters on high quality photographs. Thus it is a valuable tool for the inspection authorities, professional bodies and traders interested in international trade in Fresh Figs. The electronic version of this brochure is available on the OECD website.
The G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance help policy makers evaluate and improve the legal, regulatory, and institutional framework for corporate governance. They also provide guidance for stock exchanges, investors, corporations, and others that have a role in the process of developing good corporate governance. First issued in 1999, the Principles have become the international benchmark in corporate governance. They have been adopted as one of the Financial Stability Board’s Key Standards for Sound Financial Systems and endorsed by the G20.
This 2015 edition takes into account developments in both the financial and corporate sectors that may influence the efficiency and relevance of corporate governance policies and practices.
China will play a positive role in the global development of gas, the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Executive Director, Maria Van der Hoeven has said in Beijing on 11 September, 2012 when launching a new IEA report: Gas Pricing and Regulation, China’s challenges and IEA experiences.
In line with its aim to meet growing energy demand while shifting away from coal, China has set an ambitious goal of doubling its use of natural gas from 2011 levels by 2015. Prospects are good for significant new supplies – both domestic and imported, conventional and unconventional – to come online in the medium-term, but notable challenges remain, particularly concerning gas pricing and the institutional and regulatory landscape.
While China’s circumstances are, in many respects unique, some current issues are similar to those a number of IEA countries have faced. This report highlights some key challenges China faces in its transition to greater reliance on natural gas, then explores in detail relevant experiences from IEA countries, particularly in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and the United States as well as the European Union (EU). Preliminary suggestions about how lessons learned in other countries could be applied to China’s situation are offered as well.
The aim of this report is to provide stakeholders in China with a useful reference as they consider decisions about the evolution of the gas sector in their country.
The report is funded by the UK Strategic Programme Fund programme , and the EU delegation in Beijing and the World Bank have provided in-kind contributions. The project is supported by the Chinese government and co-implemented by China 5E.
This publication provides comprehensive data on the volume, origin and types of aid and other resource flows to around 150 developing countries. The data show each country's intake of official development assistance and well as other official and private funds from members of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC), multilateral agencies and other key donors. Key development indicators are given for reference.