User innovation, niche construction and regime destabilization in heat pump transitions

Mari Martiskainen,Johan Schot,Benjamin K Sovacool

doi:10.1016/j.eist.2021.03.001

Abstract

Domestic heating systems require a rapid shift to low-carbon options to meet global climate targets. We analyse a heat pump transition in two contrasting case studies: Finland and the United Kingdom, utilizing original data from interviews, document analysis, and archival online data. Finland has an almost completed transition, while the United Kingdom can be considered a stalled one. Building on previous research that has highlighted the importance of context, policy and users in transitions, we explore various user roles within low-carbon transitions, and how they shape processes of niche construction and regime destabilisation. Our findings show that the role of users is one key explanatory element of the different heat pump transitions. We also find that specific characteristics of a transition context can influence the types of users that emerge. We conclude that instead of just providing incentives, policy should also aim to mobilise users.

Highlights

There is widespread agreement that decarbonisation of the energy system is required to limit climate change inducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
We provide a chronological history of the development of the heat pump transition in Finland and the UK, paying particular attention to the roles of users in both cases
We argue that this passive attitude of users may be an important missing factor for a domestic heating transition in the UK

Summary

Introduction

There is widespread agreement that decarbonisation of the energy system is required to limit climate change inducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) (2019) projects that to meet climate objectives, the number of heat pumps in households needs to jump from 20 million in 2015 to 253 million by 2050, more than a tenfold increase. This is not a process of heat pump adoption, but a transition to a new indoor domestic regime that requires many other regulatory, institutional, market, industry, and cultural changes in addition to the technological ones. Water source heat pumps (WSHP) use the same principle as GSHPs, but they use water directly in an open loop, and they can be connected to the sea, lakes, rivers, aquifiers, and/or wastewater, industrial cooling water or district heating systems

Results

Discussion

Conclusion