Willingness to Pay for Renewable Energy in Myanmar: Energy Source Preference

Masako Numata, Masahiro Sugiyama, Wunna Swe and Daniel del Barrio Alvarez
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Masako Numata: Institute for Future Initiatives, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
Masahiro Sugiyama: Institute for Future Initiatives, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
Wunna Swe: Department of Electrical Power Engineering, Mandalay Technological University, Mandalay 05072, Myanmar
Daniel del Barrio Alvarez: Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 5, 1-17

Abstract: The increased use of renewable energy is imperative as a countermeasure to climate change. As with conventional electricity generation technologies, public acceptance of renewables is an important issue, and willingness to pay (WTP) is a widely used indicator to assess such public attitudes. Unfortunately, the literature to date mostly covers developed countries, with few WTP surveys in developing countries. Tackling climate change is an urgent issue for these developing countries; therefore, understanding of public attitudes toward renewables in developing countries is crucial. This study conducted the first survey on WTP for introducing renewable energy in Myanmar. Although Myanmar boasts abundant renewable energy resources, including solar power and biomass in addition to large-scale hydro plants, its resources are not being properly utilized to generate electricity. This study surveyed WTP for power generation by solar photovoltaics, small hydropower, and biomass facilities. The results showed the highest WTP for solar power (USD 1.92) with 10% share in the energy mix, and lower WTP for biomass and small hydropower electricity generations (USD 1.13 and USD 1.17, respectively). Careful public communication is thus crucial for expanding biomass and small-scale hydro power plants.

Keywords: willingness to pay; renewable energy; Myanmar; climate change; stated preference; discrete choice experiment (DCE); random utility theory; energy policy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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