Social acceptance of solar energy in Malaysia: users’ perspective

Abstract

The increase in energy demand has caused considerable attention to be directed toward sustainable energy resources. The importance of electricity generation through solar energy has been intensively highlighted globally, but Malaysia has yet to exert efforts to develop this energy resource. This study explores the social acceptance and level of human interest in solar energy. In addition, this work identifies the difficulties in the consumption of solar energy and the expectations for solar energy development in Malaysia. Survey results show that 80 % of the respondents are highly interested in solar energy. However, the majority of the respondents have reported that some hindrances, such as expensive solar panels and lack of correct information about solar energy utilization, make fuel-generated electricity a preferable choice. Meanwhile, almost 80 % of the respondents believe that government incentives could best enhance solar energy usage nationwide. To implement new solar energy policies successfully in Malaysia, the government should support the establishment of solar power plants, as well as provide complete information and funding for independent research. Furthermore, more than 70 % of respondents perceive the government to be the main organization that should lead the development of this energy sector. Therefore, this research provides some useful references for policy makers to continue promoting the use of solar energy in Malaysia.

Public acceptance of residential solar photovoltaic technology in Malaysia

“…Table I summarises the estimated renewable potential in Malaysia. Since December 2011, the financial support mechanism of feed-in tariff has also been in place (Ahmad and Tahar, 2014b;Muhammad-Sukki et al, 2014). Though various studies have discovered that the general public in Malaysia is in favour of renewable technologies (Ahmad, et al 2015;Ahmad and Tahar, 2014c;Alam et al, 2014;Lim and Lam, 2014), there is a lack of understanding on the public attitudes and motivation to use renewable technologies, particularly solar PV technology (Solangi et al, 2015;Muhammad-Sukki et al, 2011). There are numerous studies available from developed counties evaluating the prospects of solar PV technology from the public's perspective (Musall and Kuik, 2011;Park and Oh, 2014;Schelly, 2014), but for developing countries, such as Malaysia, these studies are limited in number and are more focused on technical and policy considerations (Chua and Oh, 2012;Lau et al, 2009;Maulud and Saidi, 2012;Mekhilef et al, 2012;Murni et al, 2013;Nor et al, 2014).…”

Factors Influencing Social Perception of Residential Solar Photovoltaic Systems in Saudi Arabia

“…Similarly, two separate studies in the northern part of Pakistan and southern Punjab revealed that 81% and 82% of the respondents, respectively, were interested in RSPSs [65,66]. A study in Malaysia contended that 80% of the participants in the survey were highly interested in RSPSs [67].…”

Economic Feasibility Analysis for Renewable Energy Project Using an Integrated TFN–AHP–DEA Approach on the Basis of Consumer Utility

“…Park et al [10] analyzed the feasibility of RE implementation by considering Korean customers' willingness to pay. Further, Solangi et al [11] studied the social acceptance of solar energy in Malaysia from the users' perspective. Particularly, Xu [12] researched the willingness to invest in a building that uses integrated photovoltaics and is grid-connected.…”

“…According to Equation (11) in Section 3, only one of the parameters θ, s − or s + can be chosen at this step. For example, after selecting the parameter, we need select θ, s − or s + in the drop-down list, and then click "Adjust"; then the adjusted I and O are received.…”