IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/eneeco/v153y2026ics0140988325009090.html

Solar electricity without solar panels: Changes in consumption behavior due to community solar programs

Author

Listed:
  • Cha, Min-kyeong (Min)
  • Matisoff, Daniel

Abstract

How does electricity consumption behavior change with different energy sources? We seek to understand how consumers change their consumption behaviors when they begin to use renewable electricity via a community solar program.

Suggested Citation

  • Cha, Min-kyeong (Min) & Matisoff, Daniel, 2026. "Solar electricity without solar panels: Changes in consumption behavior due to community solar programs," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:153:y:2026:i:c:s0140988325009090
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2025.109079
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140988325009090
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.eneco.2025.109079?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Palm, Jenny, 2018. "Household installation of solar panels – Motives and barriers in a 10-year perspective," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 1-8.
    2. Aydin, Erdal & Brounen, Dirk & Kok, Nils, 2018. "Information provision and energy consumption: Evidence from a field experiment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 403-410.
    3. Matthew E. Oliver & Juan Moreno-Cruz & Ross C. Beppler, 2019. "Microeconomics of the rebound effect for residential solar photovoltaic systems," CESifo Working Paper Series 7635, CESifo.
    4. Matthew Kotchen & Michael Moore, 2008. "Conservation: From Voluntary Restraint to a Voluntary Price Premium," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 40(2), pages 195-215, June.
    5. Manuel Frondel & Kathrin Kaestner & Stephan Sommer & Colin Vance, 2023. "Photovoltaics and the Solar Rebound: Evidence from Germany," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 99(2), pages 265-282.
    6. Deng, Gary & Newton, Peter, 2017. "Assessing the impact of solar PV on domestic electricity consumption: Exploring the prospect of rebound effects," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 313-324.
    7. Stefano Iacus & Gary King & Giuseppe Porro, 2008. "Matching for Causal Inference Without Balance Checking," UNIMI - Research Papers in Economics, Business, and Statistics unimi-1073, Universitá degli Studi di Milano.
    8. Iacus, Stefano & King, Gary & Porro, Giuseppe, 2009. "cem: Software for Coarsened Exact Matching," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 30(i09).
    9. Eric O’Shaughnessy & Galen Barbose & Sudha Kannan & Jenny Sumner, 2024. "Evaluating community solar as a measure to promote equitable clean energy access," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 9(8), pages 955-963, August.
    10. Matthew Blackwell & Stefano Iacus & Gary King & Giuseppe Porro, 2009. "cem: Coarsened exact matching in Stata," Stata Journal, StataCorp LLC, vol. 9(4), pages 524-546, December.
    11. Ross C. Beppler & Daniel C. Matisoff & Matthew E. Oliver, 2023. "Electricity consumption changes following solar adoption: Testing for a solar rebound," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 61(1), pages 58-81, January.
    12. Byun, Hyunsuk & Lee, Chul-Yong, 2017. "Analyzing Korean consumers’ latent preferences for electricity generation sources with a hierarchical Bayesian logit model in a discrete choice experiment," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 294-302.
    13. Bryan Bollinger & Kenneth Gillingham, 2012. "Peer Effects in the Diffusion of Solar Photovoltaic Panels," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 31(6), pages 900-912, November.
    14. Wichman, Casey J., 2014. "Perceived price in residential water demand: Evidence from a natural experiment," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 107(PA), pages 308-323.
    15. Jacobsen, Grant D. & Kotchen, Matthew J. & Vandenbergh, Michael P., 2012. "The behavioral response to voluntary provision of an environmental public good: Evidence from residential electricity demand," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(5), pages 946-960.
    16. Steve Martin & Nicholas Rivers, 2018. "Information Provision, Market Incentives, and Household Electricity Consumption: Evidence from a Large-Scale Field Deployment," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 5(1), pages 207-231.
    17. Eric O’Shaughnessy & Galen Barbose & Sudha Kannan & Jenny Sumner, 2024. "Author Correction: Evaluating community solar as a measure to promote equitable clean energy access," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 9(8), pages 1041-1042, August.
    18. Nguyen-Van, Phu, 2010. "Energy consumption and income: A semiparametric panel data analysis," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 557-563, May.
    19. Kosenius, Anna-Kaisa & Ollikainen, Markku, 2013. "Valuation of environmental and societal trade-offs of renewable energy sources," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1148-1156.
    20. Hondo, Hiroki & Baba, Kenshi, 2010. "Socio-psychological impacts of the introduction of energy technologies: Change in environmental behavior of households with photovoltaic systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 229-235, January.
    21. Magali Delmas & Michael V. Russo & Maria J. Montes‐Sancho, 2007. "Deregulation and environmental differentiation in the electric utility industry," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(2), pages 189-209, February.
    22. Goodman-Bacon, Andrew, 2021. "Difference-in-differences with variation in treatment timing," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 254-277.
    23. Aydın, Erdal & Brounen, Dirk & Ergün, Ahmet, 2023. "The rebound effect of solar panel adoption: Evidence from Dutch households," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    24. Andrea La Nauze, 2019. "Power from the People: Rooftop Solar and a Downward-Sloping Supply of Electricity," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 6(6), pages 1135-1168.
    25. Kotchen, Matthew J. & Moore, Michael R., 2007. "Private provision of environmental public goods: Household participation in green-electricity programs," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 1-16, January.
    26. Nick Nash & Lorraine Whitmarsh & Stuart Capstick & Tom Hargreaves & Wouter Poortinga & Gregory Thomas & Elena Sautkina & Dimitrios Xenias, 2017. "Climate‐relevant behavioral spillover and the potential contribution of social practice theory," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 8(6), November.
    27. Coady Wing & Seth M. Freedman & Alex Hollingsworth, 2024. "Stacked Difference-in-Differences," NBER Working Papers 32054, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    28. Bartusch, Cajsa & Odlare, Monica & Wallin, Fredrik & Wester, Lars, 2012. "Exploring variance in residential electricity consumption: Household features and building properties," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 637-643.
    29. Dütschke, Elisabeth & Frondel, Manuel & Schleich, Joachim & Vance, Colin, 2018. "Moral licensing: Another source of rebound?," Ruhr Economic Papers 747, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    30. Lukanov, Boris R. & Krieger, Elena M., 2019. "Distributed solar and environmental justice: Exploring the demographic and socio-economic trends of residential PV adoption in California," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    31. Bryan K. Bollinger & Wesley R. Hartmann, 2020. "Information vs. Automation and Implications for Dynamic Pricing," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 66(1), pages 290-314, January.
    32. Marcello Graziano & Kenneth Gillingham, 2015. "Spatial patterns of solar photovoltaic system adoption: The influence of neighbors and the built environment," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 15(4), pages 815-839.
    33. Qiu, Yueming & Kahn, Matthew E. & Xing, Bo, 2019. "Quantifying the rebound effects of residential solar panel adoption," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 310-341.
    34. Bengart, Paul & Vogt, Bodo, 2021. "Fuel mix disclosure in Germany—The effect of more transparent information on consumer preferences for renewable energy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    35. Kim, Jae D. & Trevena, William, 2021. "Measuring the rebound effect: A case study of residential photovoltaic systems in San Diego," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    36. Callaway, Brantly & Sant’Anna, Pedro H.C., 2021. "Difference-in-Differences with multiple time periods," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 200-230.
    37. Boccard, Nicolas & Gautier, Axel, 2021. "Solar rebound: The unintended consequences of subsidies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    38. Toroghi, Shahaboddin H. & Oliver, Matthew E., 2019. "Framework for estimation of the direct rebound effect for residential photovoltaic systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 251(C), pages 1-1.
    39. Hirsh Bar Gai, Dor & Shittu, Ekundayo & Attanasio, Donna & Weigelt, Carmen & LeBlanc, Saniya & Dehghanian, Payman & Sklar, Scott, 2021. "Examining community solar programs to understand accessibility and investment: Evidence from the U.S," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    40. Borchers, Allison M. & Duke, Joshua M. & Parsons, George R., 2007. "Does willingness to pay for green energy differ by source?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(6), pages 3327-3334, June.
    41. Koichiro Ito, 2014. "Do Consumers Respond to Marginal or Average Price? Evidence from Nonlinear Electricity Pricing," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(2), pages 537-563, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Bigler, Patrick, 2025. "Magnitude and decomposition of the solar rebound: Evidence from Swiss households," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    2. Ross C. Beppler & Daniel C. Matisoff & Matthew E. Oliver, 2023. "Electricity consumption changes following solar adoption: Testing for a solar rebound," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 61(1), pages 58-81, January.
    3. Frondel, Manuel & Kaestner, Kathrin & Sommer, Stephan & Vance, Colin, 2022. "Photovoltaics and the solar rebound: Evidence for Germany," Ruhr Economic Papers 954, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    4. Frondel, Manuel & Kaestner, Kathrin & Sommer, Stephan & Vance, Colin, 2021. "Photovoltaics and the Solar Rebound: Evidence for Germany," VfS Annual Conference 2021 (Virtual Conference): Climate Economics 242356, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    5. Piazza, Lucia & Pietro Colelli, Francesco & Pasut, Wilmer & De Cian, Enrica, 2025. "How do domestic solar PV users respond to price and temperature shocks? Evidence from Italy between 2021–2022," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    6. Oliver, Matthew E. & Chapman, Oliver & Grijalva, Santiago & Matisoff, Daniel C. & Ramadhani, Maghfira & West, Amanda, 2026. "Managing zero-marginal-cost, intermittent renewable energy: A survey of the engineering, economic, and policy challenges," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 226(PC).
    7. John List & Ioannis Pragidis & Michael Price, 2024. "Toward an Understanding of the Economics of Prosumers: Evidence from a Natural Field Experiment in Energy," Natural Field Experiments 00791, The Field Experiments Website.
    8. Qiu, Yueming & Kahn, Matthew E. & Xing, Bo, 2019. "Quantifying the rebound effects of residential solar panel adoption," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 310-341.
    9. Liu, Diyi & Zou, Hongyang & Qiu, Yueming & Du, Huibin, 2024. "Consumer reaction to green subsidy phase-out in China: Evidence from the household photovoltaic industry," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    10. Matthew E. Oliver & Juan Moreno-Cruz & Kenneth T. Gillingham, 2025. "Microeconomics of the Solar Rebound Under Net Metering," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 12(5), pages 1317-1353.
    11. Qiu, Yueming (Lucy) & Wang, Yi David & Xing, Bo, 2021. "Grid impact of non-residential distributed solar energy and reduced air emissions: Empirical evidence from individual-consumer-level smart meter data," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 290(C).
    12. Fikru, Mahelet G. & Gautier, Luis, 2023. "Consumption and production of cleaner energy by prosumers," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    13. Jiang, Hou & Yao, Ling & Lu, Ning & Qin, Jun & Zhang, Xiaotong & Liu, Tang & Zhang, Xingxing & Zhou, Chenghu, 2024. "Exploring the optimization of rooftop photovoltaic scale and spatial layout under curtailment constraints," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 293(C).
    14. repec:aen:journl:ej44-1-schwarz is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Galvin, Ray & Dütschke, Elisabeth & Weiß, Julika, 2021. "A conceptual framework for understanding rebound effects with renewable electricity: A new challenge for decarbonizing the electricity sector," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 176(C), pages 423-432.
    16. Matthew E. Oliver & Juan Moreno-Cruz & Ross C. Beppler, 2019. "Microeconomics of the rebound effect for residential solar photovoltaic systems," CESifo Working Paper Series 7635, CESifo.
    17. Tomoaki NAKAISHI & Sunbin YOO & Junya KUMAGAI & Shunsuke MANAGI, 2025. "Residential Solar PV and Electricity Consumption: Pro-environmental behaviors, technology adoption, and pathways to a low-carbon society," Discussion papers 25011, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    18. Marten Ovaere & Mark Vergouwen, 2025. "Capacity Constraints and Electrification: Evidence from Residential Electricity Demand and Pricing," Working Papers of Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent University, Belgium 25/1115, Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, revised Jun 2026.
    19. Kenta Tanaka & Clevo Wilson & Shunsuke Managi, 2022. "Impact of feed-in tariffs on electricity consumption," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 24(1), pages 49-72, January.
    20. Gavin Wang & Lynn Wu, 2025. "Artificial Intelligence, Lean Startup Method, and Product Innovations," Papers 2506.16334, arXiv.org, revised Aug 2025.
    21. Ayse Tugba Atasoy & Hendrik Schmitz & Reinhard Madlener, 2021. "Mechanisms for Rebound Effects of Solar Electricity Prosuming in Germany," FCN Working Papers 10/2021, E.ON Energy Research Center, Future Energy Consumer Needs and Behavior (FCN).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:153:y:2026:i:c:s0140988325009090. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/eneco .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.