Distributed generation of sustainable energy as a common pool resource: social acceptance in rural setting of smart (micro-)grid configurations

According to the major trend in the literature on distributed generation adoption of composite multi-generation systems may yield significant benefits in terms of energy efficiency and reduced carbon emissions. The microgrid is a cluster of loads of electricity users and micro-sources that operate as a single controllable system for generating and using power. It enables the production and storage of renewable energy, as well as the exchange of electricity between energy providers and consumers to take place locally.
The social foundations of smart grids consist of decentralised socio-technical networks that underpin the electricity consumption of groups of consumers/end-users who are increasingly becoming autonomous. This article explores these factors for conditions that can be found in rural areas. These socio-technical networks form a community that exhibits high levels of interaction and integration between the actors, while the social construction of smart metering is key factor in determining the character of the smart grid. Most existing institutions, which are designed to support the centralized power supply system, will prove to be unfit for emerging microgrids within an integrated smart grid. This will likely to impede the deployment of distributed generation, in particular renewable energy.