Energy transition assessment

Our energy system is in a state of flux. The shift away from coal and oil and the expansion of solar, wind and hydropower have far-reaching economic and social consequences. How can we capture the associated "wave" of technological innovation in a comparative way and assess both local and systemically relevant consequences and potential risks in an early stage? This project is about the development of a new research approach for the comparative and systematic assessment of innovation impacts. The aim is to analyse intended and unintended effects of energy innovations in order to increase the social value of such innovations in the energy system. It is no longer simply a matter of improving individual functions, but rather of designing and building new infrastructures, institutions and lifestyles. In science, the term transition is used in this context because the focus is placed on the shift from one state to another. The so-called energy transition is a prominent example of this. By the middle of this century, almost the entire energy supply in Europe will be based on renewable sources. The changes can be seen in both production and consumption and affect individual technologies, as well as existing infrastructures. The requirements for technological development are thus considerably more demanding. Technology must not only function and show as few negative consequences and risks as possible, but in the future, it must also make a substantial contribution to the transition of the energy system. The research approach developed in this project will be used to investigate whether and to what extent this will be accomplished. The project consists of three parts: First, a theoretical concept will be developed on the basis of existing knowledge. The focus will be placed on the idea that many consequences of technology only arise in connection with tangible forms of use. Technical innovations should therefore be described as a combination of technology and use. Second, new methods and rules for their application will be developed in the project. And third, the new research approach will be tested using an example involving innovations that enable the decentralised generation, storage and utilisation of renewable energy.

Our energy system is currently undergoing a profound transformation. The phase-out of coal and oil and the increased expansion of solar energy, wind and hydropower are having a significant impact on the economy and society. How can we comprehensively appraise this "wave" of technical innovations and assess both the local and systemic consequences and possible risks at an early stage? In this project, we developed a new research approach to systematically and comparatively analyse the impacts of energy innovations. Our goal was to comprehensively investigate the intended and unintended effects of these innovations in order to maximise their societal benefits. The next two decades will be less about improving individual technologies and more about designing and building new infrastructures, institutions and ways of life. This transition from one state to another is referred to in science as a "transition" because it involves moving from one state to another. The energy transition is a significant example in this respect. To largely switch the energy supply in Europe to renewable energies by 2050, radical changes in energy supply and energy consumption are required. This places considerably higher demands on technical development: technology must not only function efficiently and have as few negative effects and risks as possible, but it must also actively contribute to the transition of the energy system. Whether and to what extent this can be achieved should be better assessed with the research approach developed in this project. Within this project, we have achieved the following results: Based on existing knowledge, we have developed a new theoretical approach for the comparative assessment of impacts and risks. In doing so, we have focused on the idea that the impacts of technology are closely linked to its concrete utilisation. We therefore view innovations as a combination of technology and the way in which it is used. Our new approach also proposes to examine the implications of innovations on three levels: local, systemic and global. In this project, we have also examined different research methods and strategies for their suitability in assessing innovation impacts. In doing so, we created a systematic overview of the different methods and their areas of application, which did not exist before the project began. In addition, we tested the method of software-supported qualitative content analysis using a concrete example. The results show that innovations for the integration of decentralised photovoltaic systems differ considerably in their effects and risks.