Possibilities of the Use of Electricity for the Substitution of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for Cooking Food in the Republic of Panama

This work presents an analysis of the use of energy for cooking food in Panama, with the objective of forecasting the consumption of electrical energy by the year 2050 when a plan to replace liquefied petroleum gas with electricity is implemented. Panama is highly dependent on oil derivatives, which makes it vulnerable to the volatility of fuel prices in the international market, so the state must subsidize the 25-pound LPG cylinder. It is considered that families that depend on solid fuels such as firewood will have access to electricity for cooking, thus reducing polluting gas emissions and making rational and efficient use of available resources. The analysis and projection of different data is shown both on the supply side and on the demand side. The results for the scenarios under study are presented: Business as Usual, where the trend of consumption to the year 2050 is studied; and the green scenario where the share of electricity for cooking food in the residential sector increases. In both scenarios, the estimation of the main global warming gases emitted by the use of fuels for cooking is projected. The results show the potential decrease in state spending on the LPG subsidy.