Multilevel governance, PV solar energy, and entrepreneurship: the generation of green hydrogen as a fuel of renewable origin

Abstract

In Spain, the institutional framework for photovoltaic energy production has experienced distinct stages. From 2007 to 2012, the feed-in-tariff system led to high annual growth rates of this renewable energy, but after the suppression of the policy of public subsidies, the sector stagnated. In recent years, green hydrogen, an innocuous gas in the atmosphere, has become a driving force that stimulates photovoltaic energy production. Since 2020, encouraged by the European energy strategies and corresponding funds, Spain has established a regulation to promote green hydrogen as a form of energy resource. Adopting the new institutional economics (NIE) approach, this article investigates the process of changing incentives for the energy business sector and its impact on photovoltaic energy production. The results show an increase in the number of both projects, approved or on approval, and companies involved in green hydrogen, that are planning to use photovoltaic energy in Spain, thus engendering the creation of a new photovoltaic business environment based on innovation and sustainability.