German Utilities and Distributed PV: How to Overcome Barriers to Business Model Innovation

Research output: Working paperWorking papers

Authors

The transformation of the energy industry towards a more sustainable production of electricity increases the importance of distributed generation from renewable sources such as solar photovoltaic (PV). German utilities have largely failed to benefit from this development and lost 97% of the distributed PV generation market to investors from outside the electric power industry. Recent studies indicate that utilities have to react to prevent revenue erosion and loss of profits. This study identifies threats and opportunities of distributed PV generation for utilities based on a series of interviews with German utility managers. The key finding is that utilities do not perceive distributed PV as a threat to their current business models nor do they see it as a potential market for them. Relating these findings to the existing literature on transformation processes in other industries leads to the conclusion that the solution for utilities lies in changing their perspective on distributed PV. Utilities could greatly benefit if they did not treat it as just another source of electricity generation in competition with traditional sources (as they do today), but as a strategic gateway into the emerging distributed generation and service market. Distributed PV could function as a basis for further business model innovation in new growth markets such as energy efficiency and distributed storage. A modular value proposition is suggested to help utilities to turn distributed PV into an attractive opportunity.

Keywords: Business Model Innovation, Utility, Solar Energy, Photovoltaic, Energy Transition, Renewable Energy
Original languageEnglish
Place of PublicationLüneburg
PublisherCentre for Sustainability Management
Number of pages35
ISBN (electronic)978-3-942638-25-8
Publication statusPublished - 2012

Documents

Recently viewed

Publications

  1. The role of learning strategies for performance in mathematics courses for engineers
  2. Probabilistic movement models and zones of control
  3. Switching cascade controllers combined with a feedforward regulation for an aggregate actuator in automotive applications
  4. Managing sustainable development with management control systems
  5. Automatic feature selection for anomaly detection
  6. Highly Efficient IPT Transmitter Circuit Based on a Novel Enhanced Class B Amplifier for Consumer Applications
  7. Internet and computer based interventions for cannabis use
  8. Tree species and genetic diversity increase productivity via functional diversity and trophic feedbacks
  9. Individual Scans Fusion in Virtual Knowledge Base for Navigation of Mobile Robotic Group with 3D TVS
  10. Machine Learning and Data Mining for Sports Analytics
  11. How to support students-learning in mathematical bridging-courses using ITS? Remedial Scenarios in the EU-Project Math-Bridge
  12. The effect of psychotherapy for depression on improvements in social functioning
  13. Erroneous examples as desirable difficulty
  14. CDS spreads, systemic risk and interconnectedness
  15. On the role of linguistic features for comprehension and learning from STEM texts. A meta-analysis
  16. Is There a Way Back or Can the Internet Remember its Own History?
  17. Introduction: A strategy for overcoming the definitional struggle
  18. Language Model Transformers as Evaluators for Open-domain Dialogues
  19. Citizen relationship management
  20. A tale of scale: Plot but not neighbourhood tree diversity increases leaf litter ant diversity
  21. A generalized α-level decomposition concept for numerical fuzzy calculus
  22. Calculating the True Profitability of Pollution Prevention
  23. Trust in scientists, risk perception, conspiratorial beliefs, and unrealistic optimism
  24. Mapping Amazon's logistical footprint on the Ruhr
  25. Scientific and local ecological knowledge, shaping perceptions towards protected areas and related ecosystem services
  26. Introduction
  27. Do better pre-migration skills accelerate immigrants’ wage assimilation?
  28. How selective are real wage cuts?
  29. Promoting diversity of thought: bridging knowledge systems for a pluriverse approach to research
  30. Interventionen im Datenraum
  31. What is normal?
  32. rudimentäre Schreibung
  33. Designing an AI Governance Framework
  34. Innovative approaches in mathematical modeling
  35. Separating Cognitive and Content Domains in Mathematical Competence
  36. What can be learnt from the brazilian cerrado?
  37. Acquisitional pragmatics