| dc.description.abstract | An increasing penetration of sustainable and decentral energy production provokes a new challenge regarding managing and governing our energy system: coping with irregular energy provision by means of sustaining grid flexibility. For this, energy storage is one of the means. However, more technological and institutional innovation is needed in order to reduce costs, increase efficiency and to successfully adopt energy storage within our energy system. The central question is how the policy mix, that includes all policy instruments relevant for innovation of energy storage, is stimulating innovation and adoption of energy storage. This ex ante evaluation is relevant for providing recommendations for the adaptation of the innovation policy mix concerning energy storage.
Starting point of this analysis is that (i) sustainable energy innovations are in need for transformative policy that stimulates socio-technical change, meaning sufficient interaction between technology, people and institutions, and (ii) that they face challenges to become adopted within the current energy regime, as they have to compete with the fossil-fuel based energy regime that is supported by vested interests, economies of scale and by optimal institutional arrangements.
For answering this question, a policy mix assessment frameworks has been created. This framework includes conditions that, according to a literature search of the theoretical frameworks TIS & MLP, should be present in order to sufficiently stimulate innovation and adoption of sustainable energy technologies. The policy mix, that has been evaluated by means of desk research and interviews, should include niche creative and regime destructive policy programmes and relevant policy goals.
It is concluded that there is a strong niche creative innovation policy mix, which mainly is the result of a wide variety of technology push policy instruments. However, there is a serious lack of instruments that aim at market creation. Furthermore, adoption of energy storage is hampered by a variety of institutional barriers that have to be adapted in order to prepare the energy system and market for the adoption of energy storage technologies. These are mainly a consequence of outdated regulatory frameworks and a rigid energy market that both are too much focused on centralised energy production. Therefore, the main recommendations for the adaptation of the policy mix include aiming for market creating instruments (e.g. favourable tax regimes and standards), and the adaptation of institutional frameworks (e.g. the Electricity Law) that takes decentral generated energy production more into account. | |
