The Benefits of Local Cross-Sector Consumer Ownership Models for the Transition to a Renewable Smart Energy System in Denmark. An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Smart energy systems (SESs), with integrated energy sectors, provide several advantages over single-sector approaches for the development of renewable energy systems. However, cross-sector integration is at an early stage even in areas challenged by the existing high shares of variable renewable energy (VRE). The promotion of cross-sector integration requires institutional incentives and new forms of actor participation and interaction that are suitable to address the organisational challenges of implementing and operating SESs. Taking as the point of departure an empirical case and its institutional context, this article presents an exploratory study of the ability of cross-sector consumer ownership at different locations in the power distribution system to address those challenges in Denmark. The methods comprise interviews of relevant stakeholders and a literature review. The results indicate that distant and local cross-sector integration will be necessary to reduce overinvestments in the grid and that consumer co-ownership of wind turbines and power-to-heat (P2H) units in district heating (DH) systems may provide advantages over common separate ownership with regard to local acceptance and attractiveness of investments. Several possibilities are identified to improve the current institutional incentive system in Denmark. Finally, the results suggest the relevance of analysing the possibility for single-sector energy companies to transition to smart energy companies.

Transition to a Sustainable Energy Production and Consumption Model – Mapping the Patterns of Success

“…According to various research papers, expanding sustainable energy networks to the citizens' involvement in their energy supply chains leads to the rise of whole new businesses and worldwide transition to greener sources. The transition can be subject of financial involvement from citizens to renewable energy projects (Holstenkamp & Kahla, 2016;Yildiz, 2014) or business models that actively promote co-ownership or local energy generation, granting a cooperative property right to all producers and consumers (Gorroño-Albizu, 2020;Torabi Moghadam et al, 2020;Lowitzsch, 2020Lowitzsch, , 2019Lowitzsch & Hanke, 2019). Examples of these business models include equitable distribution (Koirala, Chaves Ávila et al, 2016;Koirala, Koliou et al, 2016), personal capital-building (Szulecki, 2018;Fairchild & Weinrub, 2017;Becker & Naumann, 2017;Morris & Jungjohann, 2016), sustainability by the localised use of community power (Radtke et al, 2020;Radtke, 2014;Hoffman & High-Pippert, 2010) and societal decoupling (Alexander & Yacoumis, 2018;Ferrari & Chartier, 2018;Rommel et al, 2018;Kunze & Becker, 2015).…”

New Pathways for Community Energy and Storage

“…The authors claim that energy cooperatives may contribute to the current decentralization movement and to a "just energy transition." Based on their empirical work in the Dutch province of Limburg, the authors identify five key governance roles that cooperatives take up in the facilitation of the energy transition: (1) mobilizing the public, (2) brokering between government and citizens, (3) providing context specific knowledge and expertise, (4) initiating accepted change and (5) proffering the integration of sustainability.…”

“…Gorroño-Albizu (2020) explores the options for new types of consumer ownership at the national level and introduces new types of smart energy systems to integrate several energy sectors [5]. She studied the ability of cross-sector consumer ownership at different locations in the power distribution system in Denmark.…”

“…All contributions to this issue focus on the role of energy communities, energy storage, or both. Nine contributions investigate the potential and constraints of energy cooperatives, citizens energy and community energy [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. Three contributions discuss both community energy and local energy storage [10][11][12].…”

“…Three contributions discuss both community energy and local energy storage [10][11][12]. Some of them take individual households as the point of analysis [10], while others explicitly discuss national [2][3][4][5]11] or European Union (EU) governance [6][7][8][9], or the issues of energy justice and social-technological dynamics [2,3,12]. Approaches vary from modelling [13,14] to theory development [1] and empirical studies, including case studies and surveys.…”