Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-22DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114528
Zbigniew Bohdanowicz , Beata Łopaciuk-Gonczaryk , Jarosław Kowalski
{"title":"Europe becomes pro-nuclear? Drivers of public support for nuclear energy in six EU countries after the energy crisis of 2022","authors":"Zbigniew Bohdanowicz , Beata Łopaciuk-Gonczaryk , Jarosław Kowalski","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114528","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114528","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This article examines public support for nuclear energy in six European Union member states (France, Spain, Italy, Denmark, Germany, and Poland) after the energy crisis of 2022. Based on a survey of 4800 respondents, our results indicate a marked increase in support for nuclear energy compared to previous years. Support is higher among men, people who consider themselves as right-wing (except in Poland), and people who have greater knowledge of nuclear energy.</div><div>Surprisingly, the negative relationship between ecological values and support for nuclear energy, observed in earlier studies, is no longer universal. In three of the six countries, ecological values were not a significant factor; in two countries, they were associated with lower support; in one country (Poland), the relationship was the opposite.</div><div>The belief that nuclear power plants contribute to climate change was found to reduce support for nuclear energy development significantly across all six countries. Our study highlights the importance of knowledge of nuclear energy and its roles in climate change mitigation and in shaping public attitudes. Our findings suggest a gradual change in perceptions of nuclear energy in the European Union, with potential implications for the energy transition and climate policy goals.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"200 ","pages":"Article 114528"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143464507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-21DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114555
C.L. Szostek , S.C.L. Watson , N. Trifonova , N.J. Beaumont , B.E. Scott
{"title":"Spatial conflict in offshore wind farms: Challenges and solutions for the commercial fishing industry","authors":"C.L. Szostek , S.C.L. Watson , N. Trifonova , N.J. Beaumont , B.E. Scott","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114555","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114555","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The offshore wind (OW) energy industry is growing exponentially. Coastal seas provide a wealth of ecosystem services and national regulators face the challenge of managing co-location and spatial conflict between multiple marine industries. Due to its prominent position in the global OW energy market, we use the UK as a case study through which to investigate interactions between the commercial fishing industry and OWFs. This study presents views from the fishing industry gathered through a structured survey and one-on-one interviews, and reveals the major issues and concerns facing fishermen in respect of current, and future developments. The majority of fishermen surveyed feel their fishing grounds and livelihoods are threatened by OWFs, with social, wellbeing and economic impacts felt across vessel sizes (5–50m in length) and fleet sectors (represented by 11 types of fishing gear). A small minority identified potential benefits, and most suggested potential solutions and opportunities for mitigation of impacts. We summarise the findings, outline conflicts and opportunities, and converge these into policy recommendations with the aim of supporting increased collaboration and equity between commercial fishermen and energy companies in future offshore leasing rounds, and provide insight and best practice to other global nations developing offshore wind energy.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"200 ","pages":"Article 114555"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143453790","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A delicate dance: Value-added services and electricity security in decentralized systems","authors":"Elad Shaviv , Shiri Zemah-Shamir , Yael Parag , Naama Teschner","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114550","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114550","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>While the impact of liberalized and distributed energy systems (DES) on power systems and electricity security is well-documented, the role of small non-energy actors (NEAs) remains under-explored. These businesses offer electricity services as value-added services (VAS) alongside their core operations, often without formal classification or regulation within the energy sector. They may directly serve consumers or support energy actors such as aggregators and utilities by providing essential services like energy storage and distributed system maintenance. While NEAs can enhance market agility and competitiveness, they may also pose challenges to electricity affordability, reliability, and accessibility. This future-oriented study employs the Delphi method and an expert workshop to examine the implications of NEAs’ participation in DES. Findings indicate that existing policies lack effective mechanisms to govern DES involving multiple NEAs, particularly as their services become embedded in the electricity supply chain. Key concerns include NEAs' short-term focus, limited expertise in electricity markets, and unfamiliarity with power system regulations. The study recommends a balanced regulatory framework that fosters market openness and mitigates the identified concerns. Recommendations include defining clear service-level policies, developing business guidelines to ensure transparency, and establishing competency standards for these new actors.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"200 ","pages":"Article 114550"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143464506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-20DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114523
Taimyra Batz Liñeiro , Felix Müsgens
{"title":"Pay-back time: Increasing electricity prices and decreasing costs make renewable energy competitive","authors":"Taimyra Batz Liñeiro , Felix Müsgens","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114523","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114523","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The global energy transition needs a large-scale rollout of electricity generation from renewable energy sources (RES). Leading nations such as Spain, Japan, and Germany have invested early and substantially in RES. This leadership has been associated with high expenditures, but the trend is reversing as RES become more competitive. First, levelized costs of electricity for RES have decreased significantly and second, wholesale prices for electricity have increased, due to more ambitious climate protection and rising fuel prices.</div><div>Despite favorable developments indicating a decline in the financial support needed for renewable deployment—and the fact that many countries still need to significantly increase their renewable capacities to meet climate objectives—renewable support has once again come under criticism. This paper demonstrates that cost-related criticism and concern is often unwarranted. By quantifying the aggregated subsidies of all RES units in Germany, which arguably are among the highest in the world, our findings reveal that: i) the net support costs of RES have been high in the past, ii) most net subsidies have already been paid and iii) newer installations of wind offshore, wind onshore and ground mounted PV are economically profitable. In addition, we show that wind onshore has been the most cost-efficient technology over time and explore the remarkable evolution of solar technologies, transitioning from one of the costliest to one of the most cost-effective options.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"199 ","pages":"Article 114523"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143445575","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-20DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114538
Jiazheng Wu , Shuo Mi , Jiahui Meng , Nannan Yu
{"title":"Does the residential photovoltaic station programme aid poverty alleviation? Evidence from rural China","authors":"Jiazheng Wu , Shuo Mi , Jiahui Meng , Nannan Yu","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114538","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114538","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>China has made globally recognised improvements in poverty alleviation through a comprehensive array of support policies, of which the residential photovoltaic station programme, implemented in several northern and western provinces, stands out. This study evaluates the residential photovoltaic station programme’s impact using difference-in-differences analysis tracking 2434 impoverished households in a border county in northeastern China from 2016 to 2022. Our findings demonstrate that the RPSP significantly raised households’ income, with particularly pronounced benefits for families with fewer members, lower educational attainment and those impoverished due to health issues. These results offer valuable insights for designing sustainable rural development policies, indicating that anti-poverty policies that integrate clean energy solutions can target vulnerable groups in rural China and other emerging economies facing similar challenges more effectively.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"200 ","pages":"Article 114538"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143444931","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-20DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114530
Xusheng Yao , Zhiqi Shao , Ze Wang , Zhu Zhu , Zuanxu Chen , Qingyang Wu
{"title":"Policy incentives and market mechanisms dual-driven framework for new energy vehicles promotion","authors":"Xusheng Yao , Zhiqi Shao , Ze Wang , Zhu Zhu , Zuanxu Chen , Qingyang Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114530","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114530","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Incentive policies represented by financial subsidies and dual-credit policies play an essential role in the market cultivation of the new energy vehicle. However, the current promotion is transitioning from a policy-guided stage to a stage driven by both policy and market forces, whose effectiveness has received limited attention. This paper constructs a tripartite evolutionary game model involving the government, automobile manufacturers, and consumers, combining the Hotelling model and evolutionary game theory. We explores the interactive processes and dynamic evolutionary paths of decision-making among the stakeholders in vehicle promotion. The study reveals that: a) Market-driven mechanisms, such as the demonstration effect of new energy ride-hailing, increase the vehicles’ price and market share, with the dual-driven mechanism further enhancing the promotional effect; b) The system exhibits four stable equilibrium strategies, and the target equilibrium will be achieved when the government gains significant social reputation from the environmental benefits; c) The initial selection probabilities of stakeholders significantly impact the equilibrium, while optimizing key elements (e.g., strengthening the influence of tradable driving credits) would partially mitigate the influence of initial probabilities, nudging the evolution towards the target stable strategy. This paper offers theoretical explanations and managerial insights for government decision-making within the dual-driven framework.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"199 ","pages":"Article 114530"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143445576","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-18DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114546
Andrea Trianni , Jarrod Leak , A S M Monjurul Hasan
{"title":"Switching on ESCOs: Barriers, challenges and opportunities for the development of Australia's ESCO market","authors":"Andrea Trianni , Jarrod Leak , A S M Monjurul Hasan","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114546","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114546","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Energy service companies (ESCOs) are key players in reducing energy consumption for businesses, recognized globally by the International Energy Agency for their role in promoting energy efficiency. Despite this, the Australian ESCO market remains in its nascent stages. This study aims to gain an understanding of barriers hindering the development of the ESCO market, along with potential actions to support the development of the ESCO market. This study examined previous literature and conducted 54 interviews with operators in the ESCO market and final users within Australia to identify the barriers and drivers to support ESCOs. The study highlights that the main barriers to ESCO market development stem from a lack of trust, complex business models, and lack of information on costs and benefits. However, these challenges can be addressed through drivers like ESCO project investment funds, tax incentives, and performance-based energy contracts, which enhance both financial viability and trust. This study concludes with key policy recommendations to strengthen the ESCO market: developing mechanisms for strategic factor allocation, establishing an accreditation system to enhance market credibility, and prioritizing capacity-building initiatives for long-term sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"199 ","pages":"Article 114546"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143437570","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-17DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114535
Qingfeng Luo , Jingyuan Wang
{"title":"The impact of artificial intelligence development on embodied carbon emissions: Perspectives from the production and consumption sides","authors":"Qingfeng Luo , Jingyuan Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114535","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114535","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The positive impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on carbon emission issues has been widely discussed, but no research has yet thoroughly examined the specific effects of AI on embedded carbon emissions (ECE). To address this gap, this study examines the impacts and underlying mechanisms of AI development on ECE from both production and consumption perspectives. The results show that AI development significantly reduces carbon emissions on both fronts, with a more noticeable effect on the production side. Specifically, AI has generated significant carbon reduction effects on ECE from both the production and consumption sides by optimizing manufacturing structures, promoting low-carbon energy consumption, and driving green product innovation. Additionally, factors such as strengthened environmental regulations, improved ecological civilization, improved green innovation capacity, and higher renewable energy consumption further strengthen the carbon reduction effects of AI. However, the impact of AI on carbon emissions shows regional heterogeneity. This study offers a new perspective on differentiated carbon governance and equitable allocation of carbon emission responsibilities. It also offers empirical evidence and theoretical insights for policymakers, supporting the effective use of AI technology to achieve carbon reduction goals.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"199 ","pages":"Article 114535"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143429638","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-17DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114545
Giwoong Park, Donghyun Kim
{"title":"Spatial analysis of Urban land use impact on new solar photovoltaic capacity: A case study of South Korea","authors":"Giwoong Park, Donghyun Kim","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114545","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114545","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>High urban development density poses both challenges and opportunities for the installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. This study analyzes the impact of urban land use on new solar PV capacity and provides urban planning insights for achieving carbon neutrality in cities. Spatial regression was conducted for 229 local governments in South Korea as of 2021. The results show that a 1% increase in the proportion of residential areas leads to a 1.3% increase in capacity, while a 1% increase in the proportion of commercial areas results in a 3.9% decrease in capacity. Subsidies and ordinances were found to have no statistically significant effect on capacity. The study findings highlight two key implications: first, policies are needed to promote solar PV adoption in commercial and industrial areas; second, institutional factors must be strengthened to play a more effective role.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"199 ","pages":"Article 114545"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143429639","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-02-17DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114501
Jinah Noh , Jip Kim , Young-Jin Kim , Kwang Y. Lee , Seung-Mook Beak , Jung-Wook Park
{"title":"Compensation strategies for renewable energy curtailment in South Korea","authors":"Jinah Noh , Jip Kim , Young-Jin Kim , Kwang Y. Lee , Seung-Mook Beak , Jung-Wook Park","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114501","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114501","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study proposes the systematic compensation strategies for renewable energy curtailment in South Korea. South Korea has experienced curtailment owing to an increase in renewable energy. However, there is no systematic systems for curtailment compensation in South Korea, and the renewable energy producers bear all the losses. Although the country's goal is to expand renewable energy, the absence of compensation for curtailment deters investments in renewable energy. This study categorizes the causes of renewable energy curtailment in South Korea by reviewing domestic regulations and international experiences. Using the classified causes, it proposes a method for accurately identifying the causes of curtailment through variations in constraints when the unit commitment model is applied. This study also provides a strategy to compensate for the losses of each generator according to the compensation criteria. The proposed strategy and its effectiveness are evaluated through scenario-based simulations. The results demonstrate that the proposed compensation strategy provides an equilibrium of curtailment responsibility between grid operators and renewable energy producers. This study aims to contribute to the achievement of South Korea's national energy transition goals by providing a systematic framework to encourage continued investment in renewable energy, particularly during the transition to market-based operations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"199 ","pages":"Article 114501"},"PeriodicalIF":9.3,"publicationDate":"2025-02-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143421548","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}