Fundamental transitions across global energy systems are underway, characterized by unprecedented complexity – technology advances and discoveries have opened the doors to a range of energy sources and are changing the way energy is consumed. Markets are increasingly affected by shifts in global demand and supply patterns; all the while energy decisions are being underlined by the urgency of addressing the climate debate. As demand for energy is surging worldwide, the requirement to adopt new approaches and strategies to fundamentally change the energy architecture is a top global priority. The importance of securing a sustainable future is clear, and this goal has to be set against the more than one billion people around the world who have no reliable access to power, and the continued growth and industrialization of economies transforming global energy markets and creating new challenges for supply and demand management.In this dynamic global context, the challenges of developing an energy architecture that delivers a secure, affordable and environmentally sustainable energy supply are many and complex. In assessing the performance of countries across a number of key indicators, this study confirms just how various and sizeable those challenges are: no country achieves the full score of 1/1 overall, and no country achieves top performance on each measure. While there is considerable variation in performance between different countries, all face obstacles on the way to achieving lasting balance in their management of the three sides of the energy triangle: economic growth and development; environmental sustainability; and energy access and security. Diverse Challenges, Unique ContextsThis study highlights the complex trade-offs and dependencies that beset attempts to secure an energy system that performs well across all key objectives. Different countries are of course variously endowed with natural resources and are pursuing economic development from very different starting places. Balance is hard to achieve in the face of directly competing claims and policies. For example, an emphasis on securing economic growth often means that environmental considerations receive less attention. The push to secure environmental sustainability in developed countries is now experiencing something of a backlash as consumers baulk at the additional costs and demand lower energy prices. Plentiful natural resources in net-exporting countries often mean that fossil fuel costs for domestic consumption are subsidized, thereby reducing incentives to pursue energy efficiency measures and invest in renewables.The top performers for the Energy Architecture Performance Index highlight that there is no single pathway to achieving a balanced energy system; the results do, however, underline the bearing economic development has over performance. Norway tops the rankings for the EAPI 2014, followed by France and Sweden. All of the top 10 performing countries are European Union (EU) and/or Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) economies, with the exception of Costa Rica and Colombia.
