Let’s turn up the heat transition: An exploration of the role of energy cooperatives in the heat transition
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2018-10-26
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en
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The heat transition in the Netherlands is a practical example of how the socio-technical transition theory works. Since almost every household changed its heating provision from coal to natural gas in the 50’s, the natural gas regime of dominant market parties, science, policy and techniques existed unquestionably for many decades, until the last one or two decades in which global trends have put pressure on the natural gas regime. Meanwhile, society seems to have taken matters in own hands. Because of the lack of action by government and market parties, a bottom-up movement in the broader energy transition has been established: the number of energy cooperatives in the Netherlands grew from about 20 in 2010 to almost 400 in 2017. This research aims to answer the question: What is the role of energy cooperatives as an emerging form of societal organisation in transition process of the heat supply for households in the Netherlands?
Overall, the energy cooperatives give society a place in the playing field of the heat transition by being the voice of society to market and governmental parties. Besides, based on this research, there can be concluded that energy cooperatives take the heat transition to the next step by creating more awareness and agents of change in society, providing the market with new consumer markets to launch innovations and complementing the government in reaching the policy goals. A constant exchange between market, state and society in the form of energy cooperatives is essential for the role of energy cooperatives. At last, more abstractly, the role of energy cooperatives in the heat transition shows that Giddens’ structuration theory is still relevant in modern society: to create change in society, new structures through which this change is facilitated are needed.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen