Abstract
Concern about energy in the European Union (EU) has been a recurrent issue from the very beginning. Though initially addressed at the state level, energy is now a shared competency as stressed by article 194 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. New challenges, added from time to time, need public support in order to be properly addressed. Such is the case of substituting traditional energy production with renewable energy sources. Our paper seeks to determine whether the Romanian public opinion favors such an evolution, which is traditionally associated with significant investment efforts. The study is focused on the north-east development region, which has the highest population and registered the fastest economic growth in 2019. The topic was explored through a survey applied to a sample of 649 household respondents. The results suggest strong support for introducing renewable energy sources, serious concerns about climate change, and a preoccupation for energy saving. Concerns regarding climate change or various economic factors, behaviors oriented towards reducing energy waste, as well as perceived knowledge on the matter are the factors with the biggest impact on supporting electricity production based on renewable energy sources. However, TV and online exposure have a negative impact on support. Demographics, along with social and political values remain mostly not significant.
Highlights
Energy policy can be considered the political issue of the decade
While the issues of security and sustainability can be addressed through local production of renewable energy, the policy mechanisms that support the development of clean energy production can generate price increases and market volatility, which can have a negative impact on vulnerable consumers, especially during economic downturns
The aim of this paper is to identify the factors that have a significant impact on shaping public opinion on renewable energy
Summary
Energy policy can be considered the political issue of the decade. It is tied to climate change, energy security, and, more prevalent in recent decades, energy poverty—complex and highly debated issues, involving various actors and conflicting points of view. We seek to achieve this through means of a survey applied to a proportional sample of households within the north-east development region—the poorest and most populous region of the country. It has the nineteenth lowest GDP per capita among the EU NUTS-2 regions and was chosen as the target of our survey given that its population is the most likely to prioritize the more immediate threats of poverty and economic underdevelopment over the more intangible issue of climate change
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