Barriers for Renewable Energy Technologies Diffusion: Empirical Evidence from Finland and Poland

Oskar Juszczyk, Juliusz Juszczyk, Sławomir Juszczyk and Josu Takala
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Oskar Juszczyk: Department of Production, School of Technology and Innovations, University of Vaasa, 65101 Vaasa, Finland
Juliusz Juszczyk: Institute of Economics and Finance, Faculty of Economics, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Sławomir Juszczyk: Institute of Economics and Finance, Faculty of Economics, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Josu Takala: Department of Production, School of Technology and Innovations, University of Vaasa, 65101 Vaasa, Finland

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 2, 1-14

Abstract: A harmful impact of climate change and global warming has concerned various sectors of the international community. Numerous energy policies aiming at climate change mitigation have been implemented on a national and global scale. Renewable energy technologies (RETs) play a critical role in enhancing sustainable solutions that significantly limit greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Such innovative technologies can facilitate energy transition through providing, e.g., energy security, sustainable development, and effective usage of indigenous resources. However, the commercialization of RETs is extremely challenging. The barriers can be of a different nature, although this study focused on socioeconomic and regulatory issues. There is ample evidence that energy policies play a central role in supporting adoption of renewables. It is also claimed that RETs require the whole ecosystem to support their successful diffusion. In this study, we explored multifarious barriers for widespread RET diffusion in two European Union countries, Finland and Poland, indicating the most common barriers existing in the literature as well as analyzing major bottlenecks from the viewpoint of renewable energy companies’ executives. We also present statistics of the most commonly used RETs in these countries in order to express the diffusion issues more appropriately. The research shows that inflexible, ineffective, and excessive regulatory frameworks; limited financing options; as well as an insufficient level of societal awareness have been seen as the main bottlenecks for RET diffusion in both countries. The outcomes of this study provide useful insights for the researchers in the energy transition field as well as practical managerial and regulatory implications aimed at overcoming these challenges.

Keywords: renewable energy; technology diffusion; innovation management; energy policy; sustainable development; European Union (EU); barriers (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: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

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