IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/enepol/v106y2017icp547-559.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Motives to adopt renewable electricity technologies: Evidence from Sweden

Author

Listed:
  • Bergek, Anna
  • Mignon, Ingrid

Abstract

The diffusion of renewable electricity technologies (RETs) has to speed up for countries to reach their, often ambitious, targets for renewable energy generation. This requires a large number of actors – including individuals, companies and other organizations – to adopt RETs. Policies will most likely be needed to induce adoption, but there is limited knowledge about what motivates RET adoption. The purpose of this paper is to complement and expand the available empirical evidence regarding motives to adopt RETs through a survey to over 600 RET adopters in Sweden. The main finding of the study is that there are many different motives to adopt RETs and that RET adopters are a heterogeneous group with regard to motives. Although environmental concerns, interest in the technology, access to an RE resource and prospects to generate economic revenues are important motives in general, adopters differ with regard to how large importance they attach to the same motive and each adopter can also have several different motives to adopt. There are also differences in motives between adopter categories (especially independent power producers vs. individuals and diversified companies) and between RETs (especially wind power vs. solar power). This implies that a variety of policy instruments might be needed to induce further adoption of a variety of RETs by a variety of adopter categories.

Suggested Citation

  • Bergek, Anna & Mignon, Ingrid, 2017. "Motives to adopt renewable electricity technologies: Evidence from Sweden," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 547-559.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:106:y:2017:i:c:p:547-559
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2017.04.016
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301421517302409
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.enpol.2017.04.016?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 search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Walekhwa, Peter N. & Mugisha, Johnny & Drake, Lars, 2009. "Biogas energy from family-sized digesters in Uganda: Critical factors and policy implications," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(7), pages 2754-2762, July.
    2. Dinica, Valentina, 2006. "Support systems for the diffusion of renewable energy technologies--an investor perspective," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 461-480, March.
    3. Michelsen, Carl Christian & Madlener, Reinhard, 2013. "Motivational factors influencing the homeowners’ decisions between residential heating systems: An empirical analysis for Germany," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 221-233.
    4. Bhattacharya, Anindya & Kojima, Satoshi, 2012. "Power sector investment risk and renewable energy: A Japanese case study using portfolio risk optimization method," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 69-80.
    5. Bauwens, Thomas, 2016. "Explaining the diversity of motivations behind community renewable energy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 278-290.
    6. Nygrén, Nina A. & Kontio, Panu & Lyytimäki, Jari & Varho, Vilja & Tapio, Petri, 2015. "Early adopters boosting the diffusion of sustainable small-scale energy solutions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 79-87.
    7. Jensen, Richard, 1982. "Adoption and diffusion of an innovation of uncertain profitability," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 182-193, June.
    8. Mignon, Ingrid & Bergek, Anna, 2016. "Investments in renewable electricity production: The importance of policy revisited," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 307-316.
    9. Korcaj, Liridon & Hahnel, Ulf J.J. & Spada, Hans, 2015. "Intentions to adopt photovoltaic systems depend on homeowners' expected personal gains and behavior of peers," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 407-415.
    10. Karakaya, Emrah & Hidalgo, Antonio & Nuur, Cali, 2015. "Motivators for adoption of photovoltaic systems at grid parity: A case study from Southern Germany," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 1090-1098.
    11. Arkesteijn, Karlijn & Oerlemans, Leon, 2005. "The early adoption of green power by Dutch households: An empirical exploration of factors influencing the early adoption of green electricity for domestic purposes," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 183-196, January.
    12. Corinna Fischer, 2008. "Who uses innovative energy technologies, when and why? The case of fuel cell MicroCHP in households," International Journal of Environmental Technology and Management, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 9(2/3), pages 236-258.
    13. Elisabeth Deutskens & Ad Jong & Ko Ruyter & Martin Wetzels, 2006. "Comparing the generalizability of online and mail surveys in cross-national service quality research," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 119-136, April.
    14. Vasseur, Véronique & Kemp, René, 2015. "The adoption of PV in the Netherlands: A statistical analysis of adoption factors," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 483-494.
    15. Tate, Graham & Mbzibain, Aurelian & Ali, Shaukat, 2012. "A comparison of the drivers influencing farmers' adoption of enterprises associated with renewable energy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 400-409.
    16. Awerbuch, Shimon, 2000. "Investing in photovoltaics: risk, accounting and the value of new technology," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(14), pages 1023-1035, November.
    17. Bergek, Anna & Mignon, Ingrid & Sundberg, Gunnel, 2013. "Who invests in renewable electricity production? Empirical evidence and suggestions for further research," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 568-581.
    18. Balcombe, Paul & Rigby, Dan & Azapagic, Adisa, 2013. "Motivations and barriers associated with adopting microgeneration energy technologies in the UK," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 22(C), pages 655-666.
    19. Sidiras, Dimitrios K. & Koukios, Emmanuel G., 2004. "Solar systems diffusion in local markets," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 32(18), pages 2007-2018, December.
    20. Balcombe, Paul & Rigby, Dan & Azapagic, Adisa, 2014. "Investigating the importance of motivations and barriers related to microgeneration uptake in the UK," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 403-418.
    21. Barradale, Merrill Jones, 2010. "Impact of public policy uncertainty on renewable energy investment: Wind power and the production tax credit," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(12), pages 7698-7709, December.
    22. Wüstenhagen, Rolf & Menichetti, Emanuela, 2012. "Strategic choices for renewable energy investment: Conceptual framework and opportunities for further research," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 1-10.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Gkargkavouzi, Anastasia & Halkos, George & Matsiori, Steriani, 2019. "How do motives and knowledge relate to intention to perform environmental behavior? Assessing the mediating role of constraints," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 165(C), pages 1-1.
    2. Palm, A., 2020. "Early adopters and their motives: Differences between earlier and later adopters of residential solar photovoltaics," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    3. Alipour, M. & Irannezhad, Elnaz & Stewart, Rodney A. & Sahin, Oz, 2022. "Exploring residential solar PV and battery energy storage adoption motivations and barriers in a mature PV market," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 190(C), pages 684-698.
    4. Fabian Scheller & Karyn Morrissey & Karsten Neuhoff & Dogan Keles, 2023. "Green or greedy: the relationship between perceived benefits and homeowners' intention to adopt residential low-carbon technologies," Papers 2308.10104, arXiv.org.
    5. Saeid Karimi & Genovaitė Liobikienė & Heshmatollah Saadi & Fatemeh Sepahvand, 2021. "The Influence of Media Usage on Iranian Students’ Pro-Environmental Behaviors: An Application of the Extended Theory of Planned Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-19, July.
    6. Canepa, Alessandra & Chersoni, Giulia & Fontana, Magda, 2023. "The role of environmental and financial motivations in the adoption of energy-saving technologies: Evidence from European Union data," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 1-14.
    7. Swain, Ranjula Bali & Karimu, Amin, 2020. "Renewable electricity and sustainable development goals in the EU," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    8. Emily Schulte & Fabian Scheller & Daniel Sloot & Thomas Bruckner, 2021. "A meta-analysis of residential PV adoption: the important role of perceived benefits, intentions and antecedents in solar energy acceptance," Papers 2112.12464, arXiv.org.
    9. Bashiri, Ali & Alizadeh, Sasan H., 2018. "The analysis of demographics, environmental and knowledge factors affecting prospective residential PV system adoption: A study in Tehran," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P2), pages 3131-3139.
    10. Chersoni, Giulia & DellaValle, Nives & Fontana, Magda, 2022. "Modelling thermal insulation investment choice in the EU via a behaviourally informed agent-based model," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    11. Carina Anderson & Robert Passey & Jeremy De Valck & Rakibuzzaman Shah, 2019. "Towards Zero Emissions Noosa," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(17), pages 1-17, August.
    12. Andersson, Johnn & Hellsmark, Hans & Sandén, Björn, 2021. "Photovoltaics in Sweden – Success or failure?," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    13. Neofytou, H. & Nikas, A. & Doukas, H., 2020. "Sustainable energy transition readiness: A multicriteria assessment index," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    14. Mäkitie, Tuukka & Steen, Markus & Saether, Erik Andreas & Bjørgum, Øyvind & Poulsen, René T., 2022. "Norwegian ship-owners' adoption of alternative fuels," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    15. Yongchao Zeng & Peiwu Dong & Yingying Shi & Yang Li, 2018. "On the Disruptive Innovation Strategy of Renewable Energy Technology Diffusion: An Agent-Based Model," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-21, November.
    16. Plum, Christiane & Olschewski, Roland & Jobin, Marilou & van Vliet, Oscar, 2019. "Public preferences for the Swiss electricity system after the nuclear phase-out: A choice experiment," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 181-196.
    17. Taryn De Mendonca & Yan Zhou, 2019. "What does targeting ecological sustainability mean for company financial performance?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(8), pages 1583-1593, December.
    18. Melliger, Marc & Lilliestam, Johan, 2021. "Effects of coordinating support policy changes on renewable power investor choices in Europe," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 148(PB).
    19. Kanda, Wisdom & Hjelm, Olof, 2021. "Drivers for and barriers to the diffusion of biogas technologies through export," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    20. Hackbarth, André & Löbbe, Sabine, 2020. "Attitudes, preferences, and intentions of German households concerning participation in peer-to-peer electricity trading," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    21. Hamed, Mohammad M. & Mohammed, Ali & Olabi, Abdul Ghani, 2023. "Renewable energy adoption decisions in Jordan's industrial sector: Statistical analysis with unobserved heterogeneity," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    22. Waqas Riaz & Sehrish Gul & Yoonseock Lee, 2023. "The Influence of Individual Cultural Value Differences on Pro-Environmental Behavior among International Students at Korean Universities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-15, March.
    23. Hackbarth, André, 2018. "Attitudes, preferences, and intentions of German households concerning participation in peer-to-peer electricity trading," Reutlingen Working Papers on Marketing & Management 2019-2, Reutlingen University, ESB Business School.

    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. Hackbarth, André & Löbbe, Sabine, 2020. "Attitudes, preferences, and intentions of German households concerning participation in peer-to-peer electricity trading," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    2. Hackbarth, André, 2018. "Attitudes, preferences, and intentions of German households concerning participation in peer-to-peer electricity trading," Reutlingen Working Papers on Marketing & Management 2019-2, Reutlingen University, ESB Business School.
    3. Polzin, Friedemann & Egli, Florian & Steffen, Bjarne & Schmidt, Tobias S., 2019. "How do policies mobilize private finance for renewable energy?—A systematic review with an investor perspective," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 236(C), pages 1249-1268.
    4. Sommerfeldt, Nelson & Madani, Hatef, 2017. "Revisiting the techno-economic analysis process for building-mounted, grid-connected solar photovoltaic systems: Part one – Review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 1379-1393.
    5. Bergek, Anna & Mignon, Ingrid & Sundberg, Gunnel, 2013. "Who invests in renewable electricity production? Empirical evidence and suggestions for further research," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 568-581.
    6. Salm, Sarah & Hille, Stefanie Lena & Wüstenhagen, Rolf, 2016. "What are retail investors' risk-return preferences towards renewable energy projects? A choice experiment in Germany," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 310-320.
    7. Shrimali, Gireesh & Nelson, David & Goel, Shobhit & Konda, Charith & Kumar, Raj, 2013. "Renewable deployment in India: Financing costs and implications for policy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 28-43.
    8. Collier, Samuel H.C. & House, Jo I. & Connor, Peter M. & Harris, Richard, 2023. "Distributed local energy: Assessing the determinants of domestic-scale solar photovoltaic uptake at the local level across England and Wales," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    9. Selvakkumaran, Sujeetha & Ahlgren, Erik O., 2019. "Determining the factors of household energy transitions: A multi-domain study," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 54-75.
    10. Georgarakis, Elena & Bauwens, Thomas & Pronk, Anne-Marie & AlSkaif, Tarek, 2021. "Keep it green, simple and socially fair: A choice experiment on prosumers’ preferences for peer-to-peer electricity trading in the Netherlands," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    11. Heiskanen, Eva & Matschoss, Kaisa, 2017. "Understanding the uneven diffusion of building-scale renewable energy systems: A review of household, local and country level factors in diverse European countries," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 580-591.
    12. Palm, A., 2020. "Early adopters and their motives: Differences between earlier and later adopters of residential solar photovoltaics," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    13. Heiskanen, Eva & Jalas, Mikko & Juntunen, Jouni K. & Nissilä, Heli, 2017. "Small streams, diverse sources: Who invests in renewable energy in Finland during the financial downturn?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 191-200.
    14. Menyeh, Bridget Okyerebea, 2021. "Financing electricity access in Africa: A choice experiment study of household investor preferences for renewable energy investments in Ghana," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    15. Polzin, Friedemann & Migendt, Michael & Täube, Florian A. & von Flotow, Paschen, 2015. "Public policy influence on renewable energy investments—A panel data study across OECD countries," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 98-111.
    16. Esplin, Ryan & Nelson, Tim, 2022. "Redirecting solar feed in tariffs to residential battery storage: Would it be worth it?," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 373-389.
    17. Polzin, Friedemann, 2017. "Mobilizing private finance for low-carbon innovation – A systematic review of barriers and solutions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 525-535.
    18. Alipour, M. & Salim, H. & Stewart, Rodney A. & Sahin, Oz, 2020. "Predictors, taxonomy of predictors, and correlations of predictors with the decision behaviour of residential solar photovoltaics adoption: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    19. Bauwens, Thomas, 2019. "Analyzing the determinants of the size of investments by community renewable energy members: Findings and policy implications from Flanders," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 841-852.
    20. Sara Ghaboulian Zare & Reza Hafezi & Mohammad Alipour & Reza Parsaei Tabar & Rodney A. Stewart, 2021. "Residential Solar Water Heater Adoption Behaviour: A Review of Economic and Technical Predictors and Their Correlation with the Adoption Decision," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-26, October.

    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:enepol:v:106:y:2017:i:c:p:547-559. 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/enpol .

    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.