Innovation and institutional change: the transition to a sustainable ...

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The path of coal gasification serves as another example of co-evolution. The
case shows how strong the focus of energy R&D within the electricity sector
was on extending specific technological and organisational forms within
existing institutional frameworks. Moreover in the institutional setting of a
SEP collective of monopolistic producers, R&D and investment costs could
be transferred to consumers enabling huge investments such as for the
Buggenum plant. In a liberalised, competitive market, these types of
investments are unlikely to occur, unless expectations of projects are rather
robust in terms of expected turnover, costs, reliability, and efficiency, and/or
government plays a central role.
The pattern of change for biomass serves as a second relevant example of the
way a transition path may unfold. Whereas in the case of the gas turbine the
pattern was from symbiosis to competition, here the pattern is from
competition to symbiosis. After the knowledge base for biomass options,
logistics and conversion routes had developed, and waste incineration units
and stand-alone biomass facilities started to compete with existing power
stations mainly based on environmental considerations, coal-fired power
plants developed symbiotic relations by crafting a strategy of co-combustion
of coal and biomass. Important institutional changes were the acceptance of
the EU of the organic fraction of waste as biomass and renewable energy,
strongly advocated by the Netherlands, and the eligibility of the biomass
fraction co-combusted in coal-fired power plants under green electricity
schemes. Important policy changes were the agreements regarding the
carbon profile of coal-fired power plants that were expected to converge
towards the level of gas-fired power plants. In this pattern the incumbent
power producers defend outside threats through adaptation of strategies to
climate change concerns. The effect is that incumbent power producers
develop expertise, knowledge and routines regarding biomass resources, use
and logistics and may be better placed if more profound changes become
inescapable.
8.3 Understanding momentum in the electricity system
In chapters five and six a more in-depth analysis of two remarkable
processes of change in the electricity system was conducted. Here we
followed more closely the way different elements became reconfigured as
part of the emergence and development of the new practice.
A more detailed look at the evolution of decentral cogeneration leads to the
following conclusions. First of all we need to stress the extent of change that
had to take place in order to make the large uptake of cogeneration possible.