Ralitsa Hiteva

Fuel poverty and vulnerability in the EU low-carbon transition: the case of renewable electricity

The European Union (EU) and member states alike are following a tradition of addressing fuel poverty and vulnerability at the point of purchase by final consumers by seeking to influence the impact of income, energy price and the built environment on the ability of household consumers to access the energy that they need. By focusing on the conditions of energy transmission in the most rapidly growing renewable electricity sector in the UK – offshore wind – this paper aims to question whether the regulatory socio-technological framing of renewable electricity transmission is reproducing conditions for fuel poverty and vulnerability in the UK. By drawing a comparison with renewable electricity transmission in Bulgaria, this paper argues that the problem might be symptomatic of the EU as a whole. While not arguing against the proliferation of renewable electricity and its importance in meeting the 2020 targets, this paper calls for expanding the scope of fuel poverty alleviation policy throughout the whole renewable electricity supply chain, building on Helms argument that energy companies at the middle of the supply chain are better suited to deliver fuel policy.

The political economy of low carbon infrastructure in the UK

This chapter discusses the political economy of low carbon infrastructure, proposing an extended, and inclusive definition of low carbon infrastructure. This places emphasis on adopting a systemic approach, building on integration between different elements, interdependencies, and cumulative and networked effects of infrastructure. Changes in governance arrangements could promote more inclusive infrastructure decision-making processes and enable greater consistency in aligning with the UK’s low carbon commitments under the Paris Agreement and the Climate Change Act. This requires attention to be paid to the range of social, environmental and economic values (social justice, equality and giving people more influence in important government decisions), which struggle to find place in traditional cost–benefit analysis of infrastructure. Using a business model framework for thinking about infrastructure in terms of creating and capturing value, the chapter shows how certain elements of low carbon infrastructure can be used to address core governance challenges through two case studies: of transnational municipal networks and local supply networks.

A Complementary Understanding of Residential Energy Demand, Consumption and Services

This chapter explores potential ways to implement, and benefits for policymaking of, the complementary use of two different types of modelling for analysing residential energy consumption and ethnographic research. The more traditional approach of techno-economic modelling is considered alongside agent-based modelling that incorporates both causal and intentional relationships; ethnographic approaches provide ‘thick understanding’ of the relationships between social and technical elements and the environment. In doing so, the chapter builds on real examples from academic-policy engagement in the EU on energy demand, consumption and services. We examine three myths of the role of modelling in policymaking and propose practical ways of employing different types of modelling in a complementary way to increase policymakers’ understanding of residential energy demand, consumption and services. Finally, we make three concrete recommendations for developing future interdisciplinary work on integrating social and technical models for informing policy.