The income elasticity of energy use

Last registered on May 18, 2026
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
The income elasticity of energy use
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0018597
Initial registration date
May 13, 2026

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
May 18, 2026, 7:00 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated
May 18, 2026, 7:28 AM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Seema Jayachandran
Affiliation
Princeton University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
B. Kelsey Jack
PI Affiliation
UC Berkeley
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PI Name
Kaixin Wang
PI Affiliation
UC Berkeley
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Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2026-05-10
End date
2027-12-31
Keywords
Environment & Energy
Additional Keywords
electricity use
JEL code(s)
Q41, O13
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We provide cash transfers to select households in Cape Town to assess the income elasticity of electricity use, which we measure using administrative data. The RCT is embedded in a larger project to assess the impacts of subsidized electricity prices.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Jack, B. Kelsey, Seema Jayachandran and Kaixin Wang. 2026. "The income elasticity of energy use." AEA RCT Registry. May 18. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.18597-1.1
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Treated households receive two transfers of about $45 each, spaced one month apart
Intervention Start Date
2026-05-14
Intervention End Date
2026-08-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Electricity use
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Other energy use
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Treatment group: Receives cash transfers
Control group: Status quo
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
By computer
Randomization Unit
Household
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1500
Sample size: planned number of observations
1500
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
250 households in treatment group
1250 households in control group
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
UC Berkeley
IRB Approval Date
2026-05-04
IRB Approval Number
2025-05-18627
IRB Name
University of Cape Town
IRB Approval Date
2026-03-01
IRB Approval Number
COM/02443/2026
Analysis Plan