Challenges in Assessing Useful Exergy and Its Significance for Economic Development Studies: An Examination of Mozambique’s Economics Sectors, 1971–2014

Abstract

This chapter presents and analyses the outcomes derived from estimating useful exergy data associated with the final electricity usage in Mozambique’s productive sectors—encompassing industry, commerce, and services—covering Mozambique, from 1971 to 2014. At the time of carrying out the research, the availability of International Energy Agency (IEA) data relating to Mozambique was only from 1971 to 2014. The societal exergy analysis methodology used to estimate useful exergy involved first converting the final electricity use into its exergetic equivalent. Then, this exergy was categorized according to its specific end uses. Finally, the useful exergy was calculated by applying the appropriate efficiency rates for each usage category. The electricity consumption data, measured in GWh, was sourced from the IEA database. The findings indicate a significant increase in final electricity consumption starting in 2000. While there was a noticeable rise in useful exergy in the trade and services sector, the industry sector’s contribution remained dominant. The most significant contributions to total useful exergy were mechanical work in the industry sector, followed by high-temperature heat production. As useful exergy represents the effective portion of exergy reflecting energy usage outcomes, it emerges as a crucial concept for analyzing the link between energy consumption and economic growth.