IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v14y2021i17p5438-d626953.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Renewable Energy Plants and Business Models: A New Rural Development Perspective

Author

Listed:
  • María-José Prados

    (Department of Human Geography, Faculty of Geography and History, University of Seville, 41012 Seville, Spain)

  • Marta Pallarès-Blanch

    (Local Rural Development and Strategic Planning, La Seu d’Urgell, 25710 Lleida, Spain)

  • Ramón García-Marín

    (Department of Geography, Letters Faculty, University of Murcia, 30001 Murcia, Spain)

  • Carolina del Valle

    (Department of Human Geography, Faculty of Geography and History, University of Seville, 41012 Seville, Spain)

Abstract

The paper evaluates the rural development (RD) contribution of local economic activities (LEAs), whether generated or affected by the proximity of renewable energy plants (REPs). The study also informs about LEAs’ role as co-players in the fight against climate change. Semi-structured research interviews have been applied to identify LEAs’ BM (business model) in Andalusia, Murcia, and Catalonia, autonomous communities of Spain. Most LEAs present a BM based on the RE plant, and others do not, but they still contribute to RD, rural communities’ well-being and global sustainability. Results show, first, that certain LEAs, due to their inter-connection with large REPs, can innovate and create a significant number of stable jobs. Second, land leasing to REPs allows for temporary farms’ diversification, which is conditioned to its bargaining power. Third, advice on integration RE projects in RD strategies should be provided. Conclusions suggest the need for new governance to favor energy transition coherent with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Suggested Citation

  • María-José Prados & Marta Pallarès-Blanch & Ramón García-Marín & Carolina del Valle, 2021. "Renewable Energy Plants and Business Models: A New Rural Development Perspective," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-19, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:14:y:2021:i:17:p:5438-:d:626953
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/17/5438/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/17/5438/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Copena, Damián & Simón, Xavier, 2018. "Wind farms and payments to landowners: Opportunities for rural development for the case of Galicia," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 38-47.
    2. Enevoldsen, Peter & Sovacool, Benjamin K., 2016. "Examining the social acceptance of wind energy: Practical guidelines for onshore wind project development in France," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 178-184.
    3. Capellán-Pérez, Iñigo & Campos-Celador, Álvaro & Terés-Zubiaga, Jon, 2018. "Renewable Energy Cooperatives as an instrument towards the energy transition in Spain," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 215-229.
    4. Stamatios Ntanos & Michalis Skordoulis & Grigorios Kyriakopoulos & Garyfallos Arabatzis & Miltiadis Chalikias & Spyros Galatsidas & Athanasios Batzios & Apostolia Katsarou, 2018. "Renewable Energy and Economic Growth: Evidence from European Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-13, July.
    5. Behrangrad, Mahdi, 2015. "A review of demand side management business models in the electricity market," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 270-283.
    6. United Nations, 2016. "The Sustainable Development Goals 2016," Working Papers id:11456, eSocialSciences.
    7. Steve Evans & Doroteya Vladimirova & Maria Holgado & Kirsten Van Fossen & Miying Yang & Elisabete A. Silva & Claire Y. Barlow, 2017. "Business Model Innovation for Sustainability: Towards a Unified Perspective for Creation of Sustainable Business Models," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(5), pages 597-608, July.
    8. Suškevičs, M. & Eiter, S. & Martinat, S. & Stober, D. & Vollmer, E. & de Boer, C.L. & Buchecker, M., 2019. "Regional variation in public acceptance of wind energy development in Europe: What are the roles of planning procedures and participation?," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 311-323.
    9. Magdalena Marczewska & Mariusz Kostrzewski, 2020. "Sustainable Business Models: A Bibliometric Performance Analysis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-30, November.
    10. Ajaz, Warda & Bernell, David, 2021. "Microgrids and the transition toward decentralized energy systems in the United States: A Multi-Level Perspective," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    11. Teodoro Semeraro & Roberta Aretano & Amilcare Barca & Alessandro Pomes & Cecilia Del Giudice & Elisa Gatto & Marcello Lenucci & Riccardo Buccolieri & Rohinton Emmanuel & Zhi Gao & Alessandra Scognamig, 2020. "A Conceptual Framework to Design Green Infrastructure: Ecosystem Services as an Opportunity for Creating Shared Value in Ground Photovoltaic Systems," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(8), pages 1-28, July.
    12. Ribeiro, Fernando & Ferreira, Paula & Araújo, Madalena & Braga, Ana Cristina, 2014. "Public opinion on renewable energy technologies in Portugal," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 39-50.
    13. Alessandro Vasta & Elisabete Figueiredo & Sandra Valente & Hilkka Vihinen & Marta Nieto-Romero, 2019. "Place-Based Policies for Sustainability and Rural Development: The Case of a Portuguese Village “Spun” in Traditional Linen," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 8(10), pages 1-17, October.
    14. Ingrid Wakkee & Rahul Barua & Pieter Van Beukering, 2014. "What About The Entrepreneur? How Static Business Models Drive And Hinder The Development Of Self-Sustaining Local Energy Access Ventures," Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship (JDE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 19(03), pages 1-19.
    15. Ina Meyer & Mark W. Sommer, 2016. "Employment effects of renewable energy deployment - a review," International Journal of Sustainable Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 19(3), pages 217-245.
    16. Clausen, Laura Tolnov & Rudolph, David, 2020. "Renewable energy for sustainable rural development: Synergies and mismatches," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    17. Poggi, Francesca & Firmino, Ana & Amado, Miguel, 2018. "Planning renewable energy in rural areas: Impacts on occupation and land use," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 630-640.
    18. David Bidwell, 2016. "Thinking through participation in renewable energy decisions," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 1(5), pages 1-4, May.
    19. del Río, Pablo & Burguillo, Mercedes, 2009. "An empirical analysis of the impact of renewable energy deployment on local sustainability," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(6-7), pages 1314-1325, August.
    20. Benjamin K. Sovacool, 2014. "Diversity: Energy studies need social science," Nature, Nature, vol. 511(7511), pages 529-530, July.
    21. Jakub Jasiński & Mariusz Kozakiewicz & Maciej Sołtysik, 2021. "Determinants of Energy Cooperatives’ Development in Rural Areas—Evidence from Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-19, January.
    22. Engelken, Maximilian & Römer, Benedikt & Drescher, Marcus & Welpe, Isabell M. & Picot, Arnold, 2016. "Comparing drivers, barriers, and opportunities of business models for renewable energies: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 795-809.
    23. Louise Krog & Karl Sperling & Henrik Lund, 2018. "Barriers and Recommendations to Innovative Ownership Models for Wind Power," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-16, September.
    24. Bridge, Gavin & Bouzarovski, Stefan & Bradshaw, Michael & Eyre, Nick, 2013. "Geographies of energy transition: Space, place and the low-carbon economy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 331-340.
    25. Raven, R.P.J.M. & Mourik, R.M. & Feenstra, C.F.J. & Heiskanen, E., 2009. "Modulating societal acceptance in new energy projects: Towards a toolkit methodology for project managers," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 34(5), pages 564-574.
    26. Gómez-López, M. Dolores & García-Cascales, M. Socorro & Ruiz-Delgado, Eduardo, 2010. "Situations and problems of renewable energy in the Region of Murcia, Spain," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 14(4), pages 1253-1262, May.
    27. Sergio Belda-Miquel & Victoria Pellicer-Sifres & Alejandra Boni, 2020. "Exploring the Contribution of Grassroots Innovations to Justice: Using the Capability Approach to Normatively Address Bottom-Up Sustainable Transitions Practices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-20, April.
    28. Brown, Donal & Hall, Stephen & Davis, Mark E., 2019. "Prosumers in the post subsidy era: an exploration of new prosumer business models in the UK," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    29. Christoph Mazur & Stephen Hall & Jeffrey Hardy & Mark Workman, 2019. "Technology is not a Barrier: A Survey of Energy System Technologies Required for Innovative Electricity Business Models Driving the Low Carbon Energy Revolution," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-13, January.
    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. Danial Esfandiary Abdolmaleki & Shoeib Faraji Abdolmaleki & Pastora M. Bello Bugallo, 2023. "Evaluating Renewable Energy and Ranking 17 Autonomous Communities in Spain: A TOPSIS Method," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-12, August.
    2. Jinxing Wang & Wanming Li & Shamsheer ul Haq & Pomi Shahbaz, 2023. "Adoption of Renewable Energy Technology on Farms for Sustainable and Efficient Production: Exploring the Role of Entrepreneurial Orientation, Farmer Perception and Government Policies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-20, March.

    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. Damián Copena & David Pérez-Neira & Xavier Simón, 2019. "Local Economic Impact of Wind Energy Development: Analysis of the Regulatory Framework, Taxation, and Income for Galician Municipalities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-18, April.
    2. Sophie Adams & Donal Brown & Juan Pablo Cárdenas Álvarez & Ruzanna Chitchyan & Michael J. Fell & Ulf J. J. Hahnel & Kristina Hojckova & Charlotte Johnson & Lurian Klein & Mehdi Montakhabi & Kelvin Say, 2021. "Social and Economic Value in Emerging Decentralized Energy Business Models: A Critical Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-29, November.
    3. Joanna Rakowska & Mariusz Maciejczak & Iwona M. Batyk & Eliza Farelnik, 2022. "Rural–Urban Differences in Solar Renewable Energy Investments Supported by Public Finance in Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-19, November.
    4. Joanna Rakowska & Irena Ozimek, 2021. "Renewable Energy Attitudes and Behaviour of Local Governments in Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-17, May.
    5. Kamali Saraji, Mahyar & Aliasgari, Elahe & Streimikiene, Dalia, 2023. "Assessment of the challenges to renewable energy technologies adoption in rural areas: A Fermatean CRITIC-VIKOR approach," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    6. Hugo Lucas & Ruth Carbajo & Tomoo Machiba & Evgeny Zhukov & Luisa F. Cabeza, 2021. "Improving Public Attitude towards Renewable Energy," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-16, July.
    7. Estitxu Villamor & Ortzi Akizu-Gardoki & Olatz Azurza & Leire Urkidi & Alvaro Campos-Celador & Izaro Basurko & Iñaki Barcena Hinojal, 2020. "European Cities in the Energy Transition: A Preliminary Analysis of 27 Cities," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-25, March.
    8. Cousse, Julia, 2021. "Still in love with solar energy? Installation size, affect, and the social acceptance of renewable energy technologies," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    9. Joalland, Olivier & Mahieu, Pierre-Alexandre, 2023. "Developing large-scale offshore wind power programs: A choice experiment analysis in France," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 204(PA).
    10. Botelho, D.F. & de Oliveira, L.W. & Dias, B.H. & Soares, T.A. & Moraes, C.A., 2022. "Prosumer integration into the Brazilian energy sector: An overview of innovative business models and regulatory challenges," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    11. Inês, Campos & Guilherme, Pontes Luz & Esther, Marín-González & Swantje, Gährs & Stephen, Hall & Lars, Holstenkamp, 2020. "Regulatory challenges and opportunities for collective renewable energy prosumers in the EU," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    12. Mihaela Simionescu & Yuriy Bilan & Emília Krajňáková & Dalia Streimikiene & Stanisław Gędek, 2019. "Renewable Energy in the Electricity Sector and GDP per Capita in the European Union," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-15, June.
    13. Carbajo, Ruth & Cabeza, Luisa F., 2018. "Renewable energy research and technologies through responsible research and innovation looking glass: Reflexions, theoretical approaches and contemporary discourses," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 211(C), pages 792-808.
    14. Moritz Ehrtmann & Lars Holstenkamp & Timon Becker, 2021. "Regional Electricity Models for Community Energy in Germany: The Role of Governance Structures," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-24, February.
    15. Bouchra El Houda Lamhamedi & Walter Timo de Vries, 2022. "An Exploration of the Land–(Renewable) Energy Nexus," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-17, May.
    16. Natanael Bolson & Maxim Yutkin & Tadeusz Patzek, 2023. "Primary Power Analysis of a Global Electrification Scenario," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-20, October.
    17. Ellabban, Omar & Abu-Rub, Haitham, 2016. "Smart grid customers' acceptance and engagement: An overview," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 1285-1298.
    18. Jan Macháč & Lenka Zaňková, 2020. "Renewables—To Build or Not? Czech Approach to Impact Assessment of Renewable Energy Sources with an Emphasis on Municipality Perspective," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-15, December.
    19. Marco Segreto & Lucas Principe & Alexandra Desormeaux & Marco Torre & Laura Tomassetti & Patrizio Tratzi & Valerio Paolini & Francesco Petracchini, 2020. "Trends in Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy Across Europe—A Literature Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-19, December.
    20. Cartelle Barros, Juan José & Lara Coira, Manuel & de la Cruz López, María Pilar & del Caño Gochi, Alfredo, 2015. "Assessing the global sustainability of different electricity generation systems," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 473-489.

    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:gam:jeners:v:14:y:2021:i:17:p:5438-:d:626953. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    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.