Overcoming barriers to renewable energy adoption: A decision-making framework for strategy evaluation and implementation prioritization

Transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy is essential for sustainable development. However, a wide range of economic, technical, regulatory, and social barriers hinder this transition. This study aims to identify these barriers and propose prioritized strategies to overcome them. A novel decision-making framework is developed, combining an adapted Quality Function Deployment (QFD) model with a new hybrid fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) method, named the Fuzzy ARASKOR (F-ARASKOR) method. Data collection involved one in-depth expert interview and four structured questionnaires, completed by a panel of domain experts. First, a comprehensive list of barriers to renewable energy development was identified from the literature. Their importance weights were assessed using the first questionnaire. Then, strategies to overcome the barriers were derived through expert interviews and analyzed via the second questionnaire using a QFD approach. Next, these strategies were evaluated against seven criteria: impact on barriers, implementation cost, duration, capability, risk, complexity, and acceptability. Criterion weights were obtained through the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) using the third questionnaire, and strategy performance was assessed through the fourth. Final prioritization was conducted using the F-ARASKOR method. The results identified 75 barriers and 38 strategies. Among them, “Policy Stability and Long-Term Commitment,” “Promote Renewable Energy as a Climate Solution,” and “Develop Training and Certification Programs” emerged as top-priority strategies. This study offers practical guidance for governments and industries to formulate stable, targeted policies, make effective investments, and address the key barriers hindering renewable energy development.