Who knows what: information barriers to efficient DER roll-out
45 Pages Posted: 12 May 2021
Date Written: May 12, 2021
Abstract
While academic research on Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) has been mostly focused on first-best systems, we hypothesize that in reality multiple information barriers to efficient DER roll-out exist. We thus study the prevalence and importance of information issues arising in the context of deployment of DERs by reviewing the existing engineering and economic literature on distributed resources, analyzing DER-related regulatory proceedings, and surveying the relevant electricity sector stakeholders for their perception of information relevance and accessibility. Our findings suggest that there are substantial information problems, especially faced by DER owners and developers as well as non-profit organizations such as environmental groups. Some of the problems hinder the efficiency of DER roll-out, warranting new regulation, thereby indicating the role of policymakers for the future DER developments.
Keywords: Distributed energy resources, information, regulation
JEL Classification: D82, L94, Q48, Q49
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation