Date of Award

2024

Document Type

Honors Thesis (Open Access)

Department

Colby College. Global Studies Program

Advisor(s)

Patrice Franko

Second Advisor

Geoffrey Henderson

Abstract

While renewable energy systems offer solutions to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, promote sustainable development, and foster a just energy transition, certain energy projects account for local needs while others do not. While community energy projects are known to provide localized energy benefits, less is known about large-scale companies’ abilities to foster just transitions through their energy systems. To better understand how global actors can promote a just and sustainable transition through renewable energy deployment, I explore the following research question with a focus on the global electric utility Iberdrola: To what degree does Iberdrola implement energy localization initiatives through wind energy projects in Burgos, Spain? Energy localization is defined as the degree to which private energy companies implement environmental, social, and economic initiatives through their energy projects that both incorporate local actors through a procedural approach and are socially accepted by local stakeholders. I hypothesize that the greater implementation of relevant environmental, social, and economic initiatives and the incorporation of local actors through a procedural approach by Iberdrola will be positively associated with higher levels of stakeholder acceptance of wind farms. Results from semi-structured interview, content analysis, and executive meetings showed the polarizing perspectives of energy localization among stakeholders and in comparison, to Iberdrola. My analysis revealed that Iberdrola performs the best in economic components of energy localization, while its social and procedural efforts need improvement. Looking toward Martin’s (2002) virtue matrix and Szemen & Boyer (2017) concept of a defensive energy transition, Iberdrola’s energy localization initiatives are largely compliant and defensive, acting within the system of profit and capitalism, and are not transformative, implying a true just transition. While energy localization implementation remains a daunting task moving forward, I conclude with various recommendations that Iberdrola could implement to enhance sustainability performance and positively impact local communities. My research establishes a conceptual framework for measuring energy localization of wind energy projects by privately owned energy companies.

Keywords

Energy localization, wind energy, Iberdrola, just transition, sustainable development, Spain

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