Renewable micro-generation of heat and electricity—Review on common and missing socio-technical configurations

Jouni K. Juntunen and Sampsa Hyysalo

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2015, vol. 49, issue C, 857-870

Abstract: A widespread adoption of distributed generation (DG) technologies in energy systems can play a key role in creating clean, reliable energy and support the targets of emission reduction. A transition from current modes of production to a significant deployment of renewable energy technologies can fundamentally affect the structure of the industry and change the way energy is produced, transmitted and sold. The current paper provides an extended review of the socio-technical configurations of micro-generation based on journal publications and reports during the 21st century. The paper analyses currently existing and missing configurations and discusses technology and policy implications to support proliferation of micro-generation technology and local energy production from renewable sources. The potential for new configurations can be found particularly in heat producing micro-generation with solar heat, heat pumps, and biomass. Developing further the operations and maintenance of distributed generation technologies and business models appears an area that calls for further innovation, and corresponding innovation policy measures. Third party service and community-driven deployment models can aide the proliferation of distributed generation and further innovation therein, justifying the introduction of feed-in-tariffs to attract such models during their early diffusion.

Keywords: Renewable energy; Micro-generation; Decentralized energy production; Socio-technical configuration; Business model; Community energy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (14)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136403211500310X
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:rensus:v:49:y:2015:i:c:p:857-870

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600126/bibliographic
http://www.elsevier. ... 600126/bibliographic

DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2015.04.040

Access Statistics for this article

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews is currently edited by L. Kazmerski

More articles in Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().