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ID: 192733

Combined effect of regulators’ and retailers’ actions to stimulate consumer participation in retail energy markets / Hester M. Huisman

Hester M. Huisman	Journal Article
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Summary/Abstract

Active consumer participation in retail markets is crucial for an affordable and sustainable energy transition. While energy regulators encourage active consumer participation through policies which decrease consumers’ switching costs, energy retailers seek to advance customer retention to boost profits. This study investigates how these seemingly opposing goals influence consumer participation in energy retail markets. Using data on the Dutch energy markets, we combine micro-economic and marketing insights through a retailer-aggregated panel vector auto-regression (VAR) model and a market-level VAR to analyse the dynamic interactions. The results indicate that the regulator affects consumer participation both directly and indirectly through energy retailers’ actions. We conclude that energy retailers’ acquisition and retention actions do not counteract the regulator’s efforts to increase active consumer participation. While retention actions lead to decreased switching behaviour, they concurrently decrease perceived switch costs while increasing search behaviour and the consideration to switch. Therefore, retention actions may still improve consumer welfare. Our research reveals mediating relations that require comprehensive examination of the overall impacts of regulatory policies and energy retailer’s actions.

Key Words

Energy Transition ; Switching Costs ; Consumer Participation ; Regulation of retail markets ; Energy retailers

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ID: 132613

Study of factors enhancing smart grid consumer engagement / Park, Chan-Kook; Kim, Hyun-Jae; Kim, Yang-Soo

Park, Chan-Kook	Journal Article
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2014.

Summary/Abstract

It is important to ensure consumer acceptance in a smart grid since the ultimate deployment of the smart grid depends on the end users× acceptance of smart grid products and services such as smart meters and advanced metering services. We examine how residential consumers perceive the smart grid and what factors influence their acceptance of the smart grid through a survey for electricity consumers in Korea. In this study, consumers× smart grid acceptance factors, including the perceived risk, were examined with the existing technology acceptance model suggested by Davis. This study has an implication that it has provided theoretical and empirical ground, based on which the policies to promote consumer participation in the deployment of the smart grid can be developed. Since there are few studies on the policies from the perspective of the smart grid users, this study will contribute directly to the development of the strategy to ensure the acceptance of the smart grid.

Key Words

South Korea ; Energy Strategy ; Energy Demand ; Energy Supply ; Smart Grid ; Consumer engagement ;
Technology Acceptance Model ; Consumer Participation

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