Public preferences for renewable energy options: A choice experiment in Kenya

Kenya has made considerable policy efforts to expand its renewable energy portfolio to meet energy demand and mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Development of proper policies requires a robust framework for an-alyzing the benefits of renewable energy investments. Towards this end, this study applied a choice experiment analysis to determine how attributes (type of energy, ownership, impact on environment, distance and visibility, community job creation, and yearly renewable energy tax) impact the public willingness to pay for renewable energy development in Kenya. A nationwide survey of 1020 households was conducted in nine counties using conditional logit (MNL) and random parameter logit (RPL) frameworks. The results reveal that the Kenyan public places a high value on environmental impact, followed by type of renewable energy and community job creation, respectively. On the other hand, respondents do not place much emphasis on ownership or distance and visibil-ity. Policy simulation suggests that while renewable energy adoption is highly valued by households, the total willingness to pay is not enough to cover the higher capital cost for the development of various renewable energy technologies. (c) 2021 Published by Elsevier B.V.

Automated summary

The study reveals that the Kenyan public values environmental impact, renewable energy type, and community job creation the most in terms of willingness to pay for renewable energy development. However, there is less emphasis placed on ownership or distance and visibility in the decision-making process.