The impact of remote working on Türkiye’s energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions: Learning from the experiences of Covid-19 era

Abstract

Remote working emerged as an important alternative to office working. Türkiye put in force this practice in certain months of 2020 and 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic that led to serious decline in energy consumption in this period. The aim of this study is to find out the contribution of remote working on reducing fuel consumption in passenger car and electricity demand in case the country’s whole potential is used. This article also analyzes the effect of remote working practices on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Results show that the country can reduce 1.8 million tons of oil equivalent of its’ energy consumption which corresponds to 1.66% of the total energy consumption and USD 1.4 billion with 2019 prices. With a total of 7.73 million tons CO2 eq. emissions mitigation, Türkiye will be able to reduce its transport and electricity related emissions by 3.2% and 3.79%, respectively. Therefore, considering that Türkiye is a net fossil fuel importer country and a party to the Paris Agreement, it is necessary to promote remote working as a complementary energy efficiency and climate change policy. It is beneficial to consider the effect of remote working on energy consumption, including natural gas, during energy crises.

Keywords

• Remote Working
• Fuel and Electricity Consumption
• Emissions Mitigation

References

1. [1] Cumhurbaşkanı Erdoğan: Şehirlerarası Seyahat Sınırlaması 1 Haziran’dan Itibaren Tamamıyla Kaldırılmıştır (2020): In: aa.com.tr. URL: https://www.aa.com.tr/tr/turkiye/cumhurbaskani-erdogan-sehirlerarasi-seyahat-sinirlamasi-1-hazirandan-itibaren-tamamiyla-kaldirilmistir/1856552
2. [2] COVID‑19 Mobility Trends Reports (2022): In: covid19.apple.com. URL: https://covid19.apple.com/mobility.
3. [3] Aydın L, Ari I. The impact of Covid-19 on Turkey’s non-recoverable economic sectors compensating with falling crude oil prices: A computable general equilibrium analysis. Energy Exploration and Exploitation 2020; 38(5): 1810–1830.
4. [4] Bloom N, Liang J, Roberts J, Ying Z J. Does working from home work? Evidence from a chinese experiment. Quarterly Journal of Economics 2015; 130(1): 165–218.
5. [5] Spotify will let employees work from anywhere after the pandemic (2021): In: cnbc.com. URL: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/12/spotify-will-let-employees-work-from-anywhere-after-the-pandemic.html
6. [6] Camp K M, Mead D, Reed S B, Sitter C, Wasilewski D. From the Barrel to the Pump: The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Prices for Petroleum Products. Monthly Labor Review 2020; 1–14.
7. [7] Flexible Working Practices (2021): In: cipd.co.uk. URL: https://www.cipd.co.uk/knowledge/fundamentals/relations/flexible-working/factsheet
8. [8] Goldman Sachs’ return to work mandate took effect in February. Only half of employees showed up (2022): In: fortune.com. URL: https://fortune.com/2022/03/11/goldman-sachs-return-to-work-employees-david-solomon/

9. [9] Coutellier Q, Hardy J, Martin R, Muûls M. Homeworking can be Net Positive, Evidence from the UK Lockdown during COVID-19. SSRN Electronic Journal 2021, URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3927719
10. [10] Crow D, Millot A. Working from home can save energy and reduce emissions. But how much? IEA 2020, URL: https://www.iea.org/commentaries/working-from-home-can-save-energy-and-reduce-emissions-but-how-much
11. [11] Dale G. Flexible Working, Kogan Page, London, UK, 2020.
12. [12] Dingel J I, Neiman B. How many jobs can be done at home? Journal of Public Economics 2020; 189.
13. [13] Dunya Gazetesi. Şirketlerin yüzde 83’ünde çalışma düzeni değişti (2022): In: dunya.com. URL: https://www.dunya.com/gundem/sirketlerin-yuzde-83unde-calisma-duzeni-degisti-haberi-668539
14. [14] EBRD. Transition Report 2021-22 (2021): In: ebrd.com. URL: https://www.ebrd.com/transition-report
15. [15] Electricity Market Development Report 2019 (2020): In: epdk.gov.tr. URL: https://www.epdk.gov.tr/Detay/Icerik/3-0-24/elektrikyillik-sektor-raporu
16. [16] Turkish Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Report 2019 (2020): In: epdk.gov.tr. URL: https://www.epdk.gov.tr/Detay/Icerik/3-0-108/lpgyillik-sektor-raporlari
17. [17] Turkish Petroleum Market Report 2019 (2020): In: epdk.gov.tr. URL: https://www.epdk.gov.tr/Detay/Icerik/3-0-107/yillik-sektor-raporu
18. [18] Emission Factors for Greenhouse Gas Inventories (2021): In: epa.gov. URL: https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2021-04/documents/emission-factors_apr2021.pdf
19. [19] Real Time Consumption (2022): In: seffaflik.epias.com.tr. URL: https://seffaflik.epias.com.tr/transparency/tuketim/gerceklesen-tuketim/gercek-zamanli-tuketim.xhtml
20. [20] Gigawatt hours to Tonnes of Oil Equivalent Conversion Tool (2022): In: extraconversion.com. URL: http://extraconversion.com/energy/gigawatt-hours/gigawatt-hours-to-tonnes-of-oil-equivalent.html
21. [21] Felstead A, Henseke, G. Assessing the growth of remote working and its consequences for effort, well-being and work-life balance. New Technology, Work and Employment 2017; 32(3), 195–212. URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/ntwe.12097
22. [22] Fuhr J P, Pociask S. Broadband and Telecommuting: Helping the U.S. Environment and the Economy. Low Carbon Economy 2011; 02(01), 41–47.
23. [23] COVID-19 Community Mobility Report (2022): In: google.com. URL: https://www.google.com/covid19/mobility/
24. [24] Overview - Community Mobility Reports Help (2022): In: support.google.com. URL: https://support.google.com/covid19-mobility/answer/9824897?hl=en&ref_topic=9822927
25. [25] Gürbüz H, Şöhret Y, Ekici S. Evaluating effects of the Covid-19 pandemic period on energy consumption and enviro-economic indicators of Turkish road transportation. Energy Sources 2021, Part A: Recovery, Utilization, and Environmental Effects, 00(00), 1–13.
26. [26] İşte 5 yıllık benzin masrafınız! (2013): In: m.haberturk.com. URL: https://m.haberturk.com/ekonomi/enerji/haber/861345-iste-5-yillik-benzin-masrafiniz
27. [27] Tarih Aralığı, Takvim Günü, İş Günü Hesaplama (2022): In: hakedis.org. URL: https://www.hakedis.org/ihale-araclari/tarih-araligi-hesaplama
28. [28] Hardill I, Green A. Remote working - Altering the spatial contours of work and home in the new economy. New Technology, Work and Employment 2003; 18(3), 212–222. URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-005X.00122
29. [29] Global Energy and CO2 Emissions in 2020 (2020): In: iea.org. URL: https://www.iea.org/reports/global-energy-review-2020/global-energy-and-co2-emissions-in-2020
30. [30] IPCC. Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. In Cambridge University Press, New York, USA, 2007.
31. [31] Kylili A, Afxentiou N, Georgiou L, Panteli C, Morsink-Georgalli P. Z, Panayidou A, Papouis, C, Fokaides P A. The role of Remote Working in Smart Cities: Lessons Learnt from COVID-19 Pandemic. Energy Sources 2020, Part A: Recovery, Utilization and Environmental Effects, 00(00), 1–16.
32. [32] Lambrecht U, Kräck J, Dünnebeil F. Homeoffice und Ersatz von Dienst- und Geschäftsreisen durch Videokonferenzen. Ifeu Paper 2021. URL: https://www.ifeu.de/fileadmin/uploads/IFEU-Workingpaper_4-_21_-__Mobiles_Arbeiten_und_Videokonferenzen.pdf
33. [33] Denge Tabloları (2021): In: enerji.gov.tr. URL: https://enerji.gov.tr/enerji-isleri-genel-mudurlugu-denge-tablolari
34. [34] Exchange Rates (2022): In: data.oecd.org. URL: https://data.oecd.org/conversion/exchange-rates.htm
35. [35] Türkiye’nin günlük petrol tüketimi 2017 Arabam ne kadar yakıyor? (2017): In: otostil.com. URL: https://www.otostil.com/turkiyenin-gunluk-petrol-tuketimi-2017/
36. [36] Ott M, Slavin H, Ward D. Behavioral impacts of flexible working hours. Transportation Research Record 1980; 767, 1–6.
37. [37] 2020/11 Sayılı Cumhurbaşkanlığı Genelgesi (2020): In: resmigazete.gov.tr. URL: https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2020/08/20200826-5.pdf
38. [38] 2020/4 Sayılı Cumhurbaşkanlığı Genelgesi (2020): In: resmigazete.gov.tr. URL: https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2020/03/20200322M1-1.pdf
39. [39] 2021/13 Sayılı Cumhurbaşkanlığı Genelgesi (2021): In: resmigazete.gov.tr. URL: https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2021/06/20210630-14.pdf
40. [40] 2021/5 Sayılı Cumhurbaşkanlığı Genelgesi (2021): In: resmigazete.gov.tr. URL: https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2021/03/20210301M1-1.pdf
41. [41] 2021/8 Sayılı Cumhurbaşkanlığı Genelgesi (2021): In: resmigazete.gov.tr. URL: https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2021/04/20210414-5.pdf
42. [42] Uzaktan Çalışma Yönetmeliği (2021): In: resmigazete.gov.tr. URL: https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2021/03/20210310-2.htm
43. [43] Rifkin J. The zero marginal cost society: The internet of things, the collaborative commons, and the eclipse of capitalism. St. Martin’s Press, 2014.
44. [44] Energy Statistics Handbook (2012): URL: www.statcan.gc.ca
45. [45] Türkiye’de Ilk Koronavirüs Vakası Tespit Edildi (2020): In: trthaber.com. URL: https://www.trthaber.com/haber/gundem/turkiyede-ilk-koronavirus-vakasi-tespit-edildi-466216.html
46. [46] Electricity and Natural Gas Prices (2021): In: data.tuik.gov.tr. URL: https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=37458&dil=2
47. [47] Greenhouse Gas Emissions Statistics, 1990-2019 (2021): In: data.tuik.gov.tr. URL: https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=Greenhouse-Gas-Emissions-Statistics-1990-2019-37196
48. [48] Vehicle-kilometer Statistics, 2019 (2021): In: data.tuik.gov.tr. URL: https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=Vehicle-kilometer-Statistics-2019-37409&dil=2
49. [49] Turkey 2021 Common Reporting Format (CRF) Table (2021): In: unfccc.int. URL: https://unfccc.int/documents/271541