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Swedish Renewables Policy: Last Man Standing

European Union
Policy Analysis
Qualitative
Elin Lerum Boasson
Universitetet i Oslo
Hugo Faber
Stockholm University
Elin Lerum Boasson
Universitetet i Oslo
Karin Bäckstrand
Stockholm University

Abstract

Sweden is now the only EU member state that has a market based green certificate scheme as their main policy tool to promote a higher share of renewables in the energy system. In contrast, most EU member states adopted feed-in schemes in the 2000s and are now in the process of replacing them with feed-in premium combined with competitive auctioning. Why has Sweden developed a different and exceptional renewables policy? This paper presents a longitudinal case study, tracing and explaining the development of Swedish renewables policy from the 1970es and until today. We explore how the Swedish developments have been influenced by EU and developments in other European countries, how it has been steered politically and how the electricity industry has collaborated with the public energy regulators. The paper adopts a multi-level field approach, influenced by neo-institutional sociology and historical institutionalism. The certificate scheme idea came from the European Commission and the European electricity industry in the late 1990es. This had long lasting influence on Sweden energy policy, despite these actors failure to influence political decision at the EU level. Major parts of the Swedish electricity industry now has turned against the green certificate scheme, but this has not had much impact on energy political decisions. One reason is that nuclear energy, not renewables, have gained political attention in Sweden, from industry and politicians alike. We aim to develop insights of general value to the political science literatures on energy and climate policy, but also the larger literatures on Europeanization and European Integration.