The future of energy ownership

The choice of how to organize and distribute the future of ownership of energy systems is one of the most consequential aspects of the coming energy transition for the future of democracy. There are many possibilities, and the details of how those possibilities get worked out will matter a great deal for how energy ownership shapes the future of the political economy and the future distribution of wealth and power. Especially with the introduction of new technologies, exemplified by solar energy, that has enormous flexibility of ownership, the future of energy ownership has the potential to look very different from the past, with substantially different social, political, and economic implications.