Governing renewables: Policy feedback in a global energy transition

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonas Meckling
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
International Cooperation ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Policy Feedback ◽  
Energy Agency ◽  
Global Energy ◽  
Energy Governance ◽  
Market Opportunities

Complex global problems such as climate change have not been met with deep international cooperation but with complex systems of governance across multiple scales. This includes the global governance of renewable energy, the fastest growing source of electric power globally. How did the complex system of governance for renewable energy emerge, evolve, and institutionalize? This article posits that policy feedback on market actors helps to explain the evolution of renewable energy governance. The extent to which policy expands or limits market opportunities for firms shapes significantly the coalitions that emerge in support of new institutions, such as policies and organizations, in global renewable energy governance. This article examines the role of policy feedback for three major periods of renewable energy governance, focusing on a case for each period: (1) the emergence and expansion of domestic policy in Germany’s feed-in tariff, (2) international cooperation in the creation of the International Renewable Energy Agency, and (3) international competition in the European Union-China solar trade dispute. The findings contribute to our understanding of complex interdependence in a policy-driven global energy transition, complementing analyses of domestic energy transitions. They also suggest that policymakers can—to some extent—strategically leverage feedback dynamics to promote market transformations in the absence of comprehensive international cooperation.

Are We on the Cusp of a Global Renewable Energy Transition?

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sybille Roehrkasten
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Supply ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Accelerated Expansion ◽  
Energy Agency ◽  
Global Energy ◽  
Intergovernmental Organization ◽  
Energy Governance ◽  
Global Energy Supply

This chapter examines global energy trends, whether a global renewable energy transition is already taking place, and what steps are needed to further accelerate the global deployment of renewables. It first considers the expansion of renewable energy in light of global energy trends, noting that a global energy transition is not yet a reality but is urgently needed. It then looks at drivers and barriers for an accelerated expansion of renewable energy and proceeds by discussing how renewables are moving from the sidelines to the center stage of global energy governance. In particular, it describes the politics behind the creation of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), an intergovernmental organization on renewable energy, as well as current challenges for global governance on renewable energy. The chapter shows that global renewable energy capacities have grown significantly but that global energy supply is still dominated by fossil fuels.

scholarly journals Da li nam treba više ambicije za tranziciju na obnovlјive izvore u Srbiji? Temelјi upravlјanja i planiranja energije

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Varvara Aleksić ◽  
◽  
Ilija Batas Bjelić ◽  
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Economic Market ◽  
Energy Governance ◽  
Balkan Countries ◽  
Energy Community

Renewable energy has been suggested as the primary approach for decarbonizing the energy system and decoupling energy consumption from greenhouse gas emissions, both in the energy literature and in practice. The European Union has acknowledged the challenge and put renewable energy transition high on the policy agenda with the latest ambition of being a carbon-neutral economy by 2050. On the other hand, Western Balkan countries are still dependent on fossil fuels as one of their primary energy mix sources. The pledge about the European future has mostly driven the renewable energy transition ambition in the Western Balkan countries, including Serbia. Moreover, signing the Energy Community Treaty provided institutional and legal tools to both Contracting Parties and the European Union to build the common energy market. These processes inspired many authors in the last two decades to analyse technical, economic, market and environmental aspects of renewables. However, the governance and planning, even though identified as challenging, have been side-lined from the analysis. This paper aims to overview the selected renewable energy transition literature and legislation to analyse the main legal and policy milestones reached so far, as well as ambition in Serbia. It also discusses the lessons learned from the related literature from energy governance and planning prism. To do so, it firstly provides a literature review of the main concepts of the renewable energy transition. Moreover, the historical analysis of renewable energy policy and legal developments in the European Union, the Energy Community and Serbia are in the second part's focus. Finally, the discussion part summarizes lessons learned from the literature for future energy governance and planning with the perspective of the energy planning process, policy evaluation, and education and administrative capacity. The article concludes by emphasizing the importance of taking the current literature findings as prospective steps to follow towards accelerated energy governance and planning.

Competition, cooperation, and adaptation: The organizational ecology of international organizations in global energy governance

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Christian Downie
Keyword(s):  
Global Governance ◽  
International Organizations ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Shared Governance ◽  
International Energy Agency ◽  
Organizational Ecology ◽  
Energy Agency ◽  
Global Energy ◽  
Material Resources ◽  
Energy Governance

Abstract In policy domains characterised by complexity, international organizations (IOs) with overlapping mandates and governance functions regularly interact in ways that have important implications for global governance. Yet the dynamics of IO interactions remain understudied. This article breaks new ground by building on the theoretical insights of organizational ecology to examine IO competition, cooperation, and adaptation in the domain of energy. Drawing on original empirical data, I consider three related hypotheses: (1) competition between IOs in the same population is likely to centre on material resources; (2) IOs are more likely to cooperate when they have a shared governance goal; and (3) individual IOs can adapt by changing their goals and boundaries. In considering these hypotheses, this article highlights the limits of the organizational ecology approach and the need to broaden it to account for the possibility that IOs do cooperate, and that individual IOs, such as the International Energy Agency, have the capacity to adapt to changes in their environment.

Global energy institutions. Russia at the IEA can tip the scale, assuring enhanced governance

2012 ◽  
pp. 972-996
Author(s):  
Alberto Tita
Keyword(s):  
International Cooperation ◽  
Global Governance ◽  
International Energy Agency ◽  
Energy Regulation ◽  
Economic Governance ◽  
Energy Agency ◽  
Global Energy ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
The Core ◽  
Global Economic Governance

International cooperation on energy had momentum in 2012. So far fragmented in multiple initiatives and agencies, the global dialogue about energy can now undergo some rationalization. Such innovation takes move from Russia action, as one of the key energy exporters, in multilateral venues. Last summer Moscow either entered the WTO, either got the pro-tempore Presidency of the G8/G20. Moreover, Russia is at the OECD doorstep for joining it as a full-fledged member, with a view to entering the OECD affiliate, the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA). All these hubs of international cooperation are the core of global economic governance and hugely involved in energy regulation. For their strict interrelation, the role that Moscow can simultaneously play at the junction of such institutions will result essential to favour the centrality of the IEA. With beneficial effects over international energy regulation and, in the end, on global governance as well. … From Russia with … law?

scholarly journals Can the 1.5 ℃ warming target be met in a global transition to 100% renewable energy?

AIMS Energy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1170-1191
Author(s):  
Peter Schwartzman ◽  
◽  
David Schwartzman ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Emissions ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Climate Mitigation ◽  
Energy Poverty ◽  
Global Energy ◽  
Mitigation And Adaptation

<abstract> <p>First, we recognize the valuable previous studies which model renewable energy growth with complete termination of fossil fuels along with assumptions of the remaining carbon budgets to reach IPCC warming targets. However, these studies use very complex combined economic/physical modeling and commonly lack transparency regarding the sensitivity to assumed inputs. Moreover, it is not clear that energy poverty with its big present impact in the global South has been eliminated in their scenarios. Further, their CO<sub>2</sub>-equivalent natural gas emission factors are underestimated, which will have significant impact on the computed greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, we address this question in a transparent modeling study: can the 1.5 ℃ warming target still be met with an aggressive phaseout of fossil fuels coupled with a 100% replacement by renewable energy? We compute the continuous generation of global wind/solar energy power along with the cumulative carbon dioxide equivalent emissions in a complete phaseout of fossil fuels over a 20 year period. We compare these computed emissions with the state-of-the-science estimates for the remaining carbon budget of carbon dioxide emissions consistent with the 1.5 ℃ warming target, concluding that it is still possible to meet this warming target if the creation of a global 100% renewable energy transition of sufficient capacity begins very soon which will likely be needed to power aggressive negative carbon emission technology. The latter is focused on direct air capture for crustal storage. More efficient renewable technologies in the near future will make this transition easier and promote the implementation of a global circular economy. Taking into account technological improvements in 2<sup>nd</sup> law (exergy) efficiencies reducing the necessary global energy demand, the renewable supply should likely be no more than 1.5 times the present level, with the capacity to eliminate global energy poverty, for climate mitigation and adaptation.</p> </abstract>

scholarly journals Legal Provisions and Market Conditions for Energy Communities in Austria, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Turkey: A Comparative Assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 11212
Author(s):  
Mehmet Efe Biresselioglu ◽  
Siyami Alp Limoncuoglu ◽  
Muhittin Hakan Demir ◽  
Johannes Reichl ◽  
Katrin Burgstaller ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Social Acceptance ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Energy System ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Horizon 2020 ◽  
Legal Provisions ◽  
The Eu

The Climate Pact and the European Green Deal constitute the main components of the European Union (EU)’s climate change policy. Energy transition, that is, transformation to a zero-carbon global energy system, is one of the main pillars of climate change mitigation policies. This transformation, coupled with the empowerment of individuals within the energy system, shifts citizens from their roles as customers towards a more active role. Within this framework, energy communities stand out as significant facilitators for the participation of individuals and communities in the energy system, promoting self-consumption and contributing to the social acceptance of renewable energy initiatives, among other direct and indirect benefits. The main directives introducing energy communities into the EU legal system are RED II and ED 2019. This study, conducted as a part of a Horizon 2020-funded eCREW project, assessed the adaptability and implementability of these two directives within national legislation, along with the associated legal and administrative frameworks, utilizing evidence from Austria, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Turkey. The comparative analysis also enhances the understanding of the concept of renewable energy communities and citizen energy communities, both in the EU and in nonmember countries. The results of the analysis revealed that none of the countries studied had yet completed the process of harmonizing their legislation concerning energy communities.

scholarly journals Are We on the Right Track? Collective Self-Consumption and Energy Communities in the European Union

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 12494
Author(s):  
Dorian Frieden ◽  
Andreas Tuerk ◽  
Ana Rita Antunes ◽  
Vasilakis Athanasios ◽  
Alexandros-Georgios Chronis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Electricity Market ◽  
National Level ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Energy System ◽  
The European Union ◽  
High Expectations ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Eu

To accelerate the energy transition, the EU “Clean Energy for all Europeans” package aims to strengthen the involvement of end consumers in the energy market. To this end, together with so-called “active consumers” and provisions for individual and collective renewable energy self-consumption, two types of energy communities were introduced. The EU framework, however, leaves many details of the transposition process to the national level. The corresponding directives were supposed to be transposed by the end of December 2020 (recast Electricity Market Directive, defining active consumers and citizen energy communities) and by the end of June 2021 (Renewable Energy Directive, defining renewables self-consumption and renewable energy communities). In this paper, we critically discuss major developments of the transposition, including questions of the general distinction of the different concepts, governance and ownership, physical expansion, administrative barriers and the overall integration of energy communities into the energy system. The analysis builds on country case studies as well as on previous work by the authors on the status of the transposition process throughout the EU. The paper shows that the national approaches differ greatly and are at very different stages. While basic provisions are in place in most Member States to meet the fundamental EU requirements, the overall integration into the energy system and market is only partly addressed. This concerns, for instance, the analysis of system impacts of energy communities and measures that would allow and support energy system-friendly behaviour. In addition, several practical hurdles need to be overcome. These often relate to administrative requirements such as complex registration and licensing procedures, the need for the involvement of several institutions, or difficult procedures for access to relevant data. The paper concludes that discussed barriers will need to be carefully addressed if the high expectations for the role of energy communities are to be met.

The Fourth Energy Transition and Development of Energy Sector in Kazakhstan

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 735
Author(s):  
Assem S. BAKTYMBET ◽  
Saule S. BAKTYMBET ◽  
Rakymzhan K. YELSHIBAYEV ◽  
Galiya S. UKUBASSOVA ◽  
Aisara S. BAKTYMBET
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Energy Sector ◽  
Energy Industry ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Global Energy ◽  
The World

The relevance of the subject matter is conditioned upon the fact that currently the main direction of global energy development is already clearly visible: under the influence of changes in energy policy and the development of new technologies, the world is entering the stage of the fourth energy transition to the widespread use of renewable energy sources and displacement of fossil fuels. The development of Kazakhstan's economy requires the transition of energy towards clean and safe renewable sources, which will let the country build a new strong economy and break out of the long-running socio-economic decline, help the international community solve the problem of climate change and improve the safety and welfare of its citizens. The purpose of the study: The purpose of the paper is to develop recommendations for the development of Kazakhstan's energy industry at a new stage in the fundamental transformation of the global energy system. Leading approach to researching the problem. The leading methods of researching the problems of the paper include the analysis of theoretical sources, analysis of statistics, and comparison. Analysis of statistical indicators plays a crucial role in the study, since data on the development of Kazakhstan's energy industry can be directly obtained from statistical databases. The results of the study. The paper discusses the essence of the fourth energy transition, its main aspects, explores renewable energy sources, identifies the features and problems of Kazakhstan's energy industry, and develops ways to solve them. Prospects for further research. To implement the modern provisions of the fourth energy transition in Kazakhstan, it is necessary to use a systematic approach. The basic elements of such a transition are the introduction of renewable energy and energy efficiency (the intensification of reducing the energy intensity of goods and services). The materials of the paper are of practical value for the development of Kazakhstan’s energy during the period of fundamental structural transformations of the world energy sector.  

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