Enlightenment in Norway's Oil-Shadow? Governance Assemblages of a Wood-based District Heating Network in Norway's Inland Region

Abstract

With 95% of Norway's electricity production based on hydropower, a renewable source, and most households and institutions based on direct electric heating, the development of biomass-based district heating systems is set within a rather different environment than many other European countries. A case study of a medium-scale district heating network in Norway's Inland Region is used here to evaluate a set of relational aspects which influence and shape local bioenergy development in Norway. Interviews with Norwegian bioenergy actors are used to evaluate the enabling and hindering aspects of bioenergy governance. Framed by national and European Union energy policies, the study focuses on the role of socio-cultural and economic issues which are examined with reference to a local case study. Additionally, the role of knowledge production and distribution is highlighted and displays the importance of rationalities and their shifting properties for bioenergy governance. While the initial motivation for bioenergy development in Norway is often understood as residing at the local level with resistance deriving from certain national institutions, this study portrays bioenergy development to be (re-)produced through heterogeneous and shifting sets of relational assemblages. Accordingly, the findings refute such black and white accounts and present the complexity of bioenergy governance spaces.

Key Words:

• Bioenergy governance
• relational assemblages
• rationalities
• Norway
• case study

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Jarmo Kortelainen and two anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments on the previous versions of the paper. I would also like to thank the interviewees and particularly the Manager/Co-owner of NVL for their valuable time and information.

Notes

1 The requirement is for new buildings and renovated buildings while size requirements are under municipal decision (KRD, 2010; MD, 2009). In the case of Gran the limit is 400 m² (Gran kommunestyre, 2011).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Academy of Finland [grant number 14770] and the strategic funding of the University of Eastern Finland [grant number 931429].