Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report 2016

The Global Energy Architecture Performance Index (EAPI) 2016 benchmarks 126 countries across three dimensions: economic growth, environmental sustainability, and energy access and security. Switzerland ranks first overall, though the report notes that no country achieves perfect performance across all metrics. The analysis highlights a trend toward renewable energy and distributed generation, which enhances diversification but introduces new infrastructure challenges like intermittency and 'islanding'. Digital transformation is identified as a dual-edged sword, offering operational efficiencies through big data while increasing vulnerability to cyberattacks. Geopolitically, the report observes a rebalancing of power driven by unconventional oil production in North America and rising demand in Asia, shifting the global energy security order.

• No single country achieves a perfect energy architecture; top performers show balance across the 'energy triangle' but still have room for improvement. Switzerland ranks 1st overall but only leads in one of 18 metrics (quality of electricity supply), while Norway (2nd) scores highly in energy security but lags in environmental sustainability and economic growth.
• The 12 largest economies by 2014 GDP generally lag in the EAPI rankings due to the scale and complexity of their energy sectors. Only France (4th) is in the top 10; others include the United Kingdom (16th), Germany (24th), Brazil (25th), Canada (30th), Japan (50th), the Russian Federation (52nd), Australia (53rd), the United States (48th), India (90th), and China (94th).
• Renewable energy is becoming the dominant technology for expanding electricity capacity, accounting for an estimated 59% of net electric capacity additions in 2014. Global renewable electric power capacity grew by approximately 650% between 2004 and 2014, reaching 560 GW (excluding hydropower).
• The transition to decentralized and renewable energy introduces technical risks, specifically intermittency and 'islanding'. Intermittency requires reserve power or demand-response mechanisms to balance the grid, while unintentional 'islanding'—where a grid portion remains powered during an outage—poses risks to utility workers.
• Digital transformation is reshaping the sector through the convergence of digital and physical infrastructure, with over 7 billion devices expected across the energy value chain by 2020. While big data helps mitigate risks and utilities expect to spend $37 billion on consumer data tools by 2023, it also creates new cybersecurity vulnerabilities.
• A new global energy security order is emerging due to a rebalancing of supply and demand. Asia's share of world fuel trades rose from less than 20% in 2004 to 35% in 2014, and unconventional oil production in the US added nearly 8.71 million barrels per day to the market.
• Low oil prices are accelerating subsidy reforms in oil-reliant countries to restore fiscal balance. Examples include Mexico, which is phasing out gasoline subsidies, and Indonesia, which abolished them in 2014.

APA

World Economic Forum (2016). Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report 2016. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Energy_Architecture_Performance_Index_2016.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report 2016. 2016. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Energy_Architecture_Performance_Index_2016.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report 2016 |date=2016 |url=http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Energy_Architecture_Performance_Index_2016.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2016global, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report 2016}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2016}, url = {http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Energy_Architecture_Performance_Index_2016.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }