Operationalizing transformative capacity: State policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countries

We explored the capacity of the state to facilitate financing for sustainable energy transitions in a developing country context. We responded to the critical challenge of financing in developing and emerging contexts where significant financing gaps contribute to the inequitable deployment of renew...

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Main Authors: Amanda-Leigh O'Connell, Johan Schot
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AIMS Press 2024-11-01
Series:Green Finance
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.aimspress.com/article/doi/10.3934/GF.2024026
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author Amanda-Leigh O'Connell
Johan Schot
author_facet Amanda-Leigh O'Connell
Johan Schot
author_sort Amanda-Leigh O'Connell
collection DOAJ
description We explored the capacity of the state to facilitate financing for sustainable energy transitions in a developing country context. We responded to the critical challenge of financing in developing and emerging contexts where significant financing gaps contribute to the inequitable deployment of renewable energy technologies. A critical realist case study design explored South Africa's transition to green hydrogen as an instrumental case to understand how policy instruments—regulative, economic, and informational—interact with financing social structures to enable or constrain transformative change in financing the energy transition. The conceptual framework drew on sustainability transitions literature and integrated insights from finance, policy, and institutional theories to operationalize the state's transformative capacity in modifying financing rules through policy interventions. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders and analysis of academic and grey literature, including policy documents and government publications. The findings illustrated how policy instruments can reinforce, disrupt, transform, or displace structures, embodying varying degrees of the state's capacity to engender structural change. Critically, the findings support transition scholars who advocate for experimental policy engagements by offering opportunities to challenge fundamental values, norms, beliefs, and cognitive models.
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spelling doaj-art-1b24e0c9845744ea9d2d6a1b3177120f2025-01-24T01:03:56ZengAIMS PressGreen Finance2643-10922024-11-016466669710.3934/GF.2024026Operationalizing transformative capacity: State policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countriesAmanda-Leigh O'Connell0Johan Schot1College of Business and Economics, University of Johannesburg, JBS Park, 69 Kingsway Avenue, Auckland Park, Johannesburg 2092, South AfricaCollege of Business and Economics, University of Johannesburg, JBS Park, 69 Kingsway Avenue, Auckland Park, Johannesburg 2092, South AfricaWe explored the capacity of the state to facilitate financing for sustainable energy transitions in a developing country context. We responded to the critical challenge of financing in developing and emerging contexts where significant financing gaps contribute to the inequitable deployment of renewable energy technologies. A critical realist case study design explored South Africa's transition to green hydrogen as an instrumental case to understand how policy instruments—regulative, economic, and informational—interact with financing social structures to enable or constrain transformative change in financing the energy transition. The conceptual framework drew on sustainability transitions literature and integrated insights from finance, policy, and institutional theories to operationalize the state's transformative capacity in modifying financing rules through policy interventions. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders and analysis of academic and grey literature, including policy documents and government publications. The findings illustrated how policy instruments can reinforce, disrupt, transform, or displace structures, embodying varying degrees of the state's capacity to engender structural change. Critically, the findings support transition scholars who advocate for experimental policy engagements by offering opportunities to challenge fundamental values, norms, beliefs, and cognitive models.https://www.aimspress.com/article/doi/10.3934/GF.2024026energy transitionfinancegreen hydrogenpolicy instrumentsstructural changesouth africatransformative capacity
spellingShingle Amanda-Leigh O'Connell
Johan Schot
Operationalizing transformative capacity: State policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countries
Green Finance
energy transition
finance
green hydrogen
policy instruments
structural change
south africa
transformative capacity
title Operationalizing transformative capacity: State policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countries
title_full Operationalizing transformative capacity: State policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countries
title_fullStr Operationalizing transformative capacity: State policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countries
title_full_unstemmed Operationalizing transformative capacity: State policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countries
title_short Operationalizing transformative capacity: State policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countries
title_sort operationalizing transformative capacity state policy and the financing of sustainable energy transitions in developing countries
topic energy transition
finance
green hydrogen
policy instruments
structural change
south africa
transformative capacity
url https://www.aimspress.com/article/doi/10.3934/GF.2024026
work_keys_str_mv AT amandaleighoconnell operationalizingtransformativecapacitystatepolicyandthefinancingofsustainableenergytransitionsindevelopingcountries
AT johanschot operationalizingtransformativecapacitystatepolicyandthefinancingofsustainableenergytransitionsindevelopingcountries