Systemic Innovation

11Conflicting Standards and Innovation in Energy Transition

11.1. Introduction: a change of culture

The fight against climate change is bringing a major cultural transition, particularly for the energy sector. The Industrial Revolution, which was the previous major cultural transition, was based on the intensive use of fossil fuels, first coal, then oil and gas. This orientation is now completely revised, with an energy mix that favors renewable and sustainable energies. The abandonment of fossil fuels is renewing the framework of energy thinking. Since the industrial revolution of the 19th Century, the fear of running out of natural resources, the worrying prospecting of new mines or the drilling of new wells have been major features of the energy sector. The new energy times began very modestly, with the connection to the grid of the Gedser wind turbine in Denmark in 1956 by Johannes Juul, who adopted an alternating current standard that allowed the networking of sustainable energy. Standards and networks form the framework for this new energy culture, which has become dominant from an investment perspective since 2013, with the amount of investment in new energies exceeding that of fossil fuels by that date.

In this energy transition, innovation in the energy sector has a dual aspect. A new aspect is provided by an innovation cluster that offers energy networks based entirely on sustainable and renewable energies. However, the energy mix is still based mainly on fossil fuels. ...