Experiences and Lessons Learned from Stakeholder Engagement in Transitioning to Use of Community Energy Business Entity - In the Case of Remote Islands, Nagasaki

Abstract

Abstract Five years have passed since the liberalization of retail electricity sales in Japan. Consumers are now free to choose their own power company and can make a contract with power companies that better suit their lifestyles. As a result of this liberalization, many electric power companies have come up with their own plans. In this trend, emerging community energy business entities that aim for "local production for local consumption" have recently begun to increase. This paper attempts to identify the strategies and challenges from the experience of stakeholder engagement in community energy initiatives. Stakeholder engagement in this context is a form of community engagement used to develop a viable agenda and implementation plan in line with the interests and needs of key stakeholders and constituencies. It is important to seek strategies to involve more stakeholders in decision-making when building new energy systems within a community, especially for in the development of remote island areas with rapidly declining populations. This paper focuses the case study of Nagasaki Prefecture, which has the largest number of remote island municipalities in Japan. Based on semi-structured interviews and document analysis, this research identifies the scope and engagement strategy of the community energy initiatives, and discuss lessons learned and challenges from the experience of energy stakeholder engagement. In the context of remote islands, a geographically isolated and resource-constrained area, both theoretical and practical issues are presented. This paper also presents options and outreach issues to encourage the broader range of stakeholder participation than just energy projects. Keywords: Community Energy Business Entities, Stakeholder Engagement, Community Engagement, Community Energy, Remote Islands, Nagasaki