ABSTRACT

This paper analyses the evolution of renewable energy cooperatives, examining all such cooperatives founded in German districts between 2006 and 2016. The rise of the cooperative form in renewable energy production is a prominent example of the strong involvement of users in market formation. We investigate the effects of ‘institutional relatedness’, arguing that renewable energy cooperatives can leverage the organizational knowledge and the legitimacy gained by cooperatives active in other industries in the same district. Using an organizational ecology approach, we find that the local presence of cooperatives in other industries indeed supported the founding of renewable energy cooperatives.

摘要

本文分析了可再生能源合作社的演变，考察了 2006 年至 2016 年间在德国各地区成立的所有此类合作社。可再生能源生产中合作社形式的兴起是用户强烈参与市场形成的一个突出例子。我们调查了“机构相关性”的影响，认为可再生能源合作社可以利用活跃于同一地区其他行业的合作社的组织知识和合法性。使用组织生态学方法，我们发现其他行业合作社在当地的存在确实支持了可再生能源合作社的成立。