Socio-technical and political economy perspectives in the Chinese energy transition

Abstract

Electricity systems are so strongly path dependent and deeply embedded in society that vertically integrated monopolistic or oligopolistic supply are justified. However, over-incentivize for capacity investment, excess dependency on fossil fuel, inefficient supply, and lack of customized services, accountability and participation raise dissatisfaction with the prevailing system, urging system transition. Given high potential of renewable energy in breaking the lock-in and generating positive feedback effects, this paper aims to explore how niche innovators and incumbents capitalize on their resources and power to create, augment or weaken prevailing political path-dependencies and lock-in of the prevailing electricity supply system to prospect a future energy transition, taking China as a case. Main findings are: (a) renewable energy has generated feedback effects in China; (b) regime actors have capitalized on their resources and power to organize alliances to be consistent with the government policy orientation while blocking institutional reforms for energy transition; and (c) their resources and power are derived from the monopolistic or oligopolistic electricity supply system and the government price control, both of which are justified for the sake of energy security and economic stabilization.