A consumer perspective on corporate governance in the energy transition: Evidence from a Discrete Choice Experiment in Germany

Numerous countries seek to decarbonize their economy. Previous research has shown that the active involvement of citizens raises the acceptance of change in the energy system. While most studies on citizen participation have focused on citizens as investors, in this paper, we take a consumer perspective. Based on a sample of more than 2000 German electricity consumers, we conduct a Discrete Choice Experiment to estimate willingness to pay for co-determination rights, transparent pricing policies, and an electricity utility's profit distribution. We find large additional willingness to pay for all of these attributes, which, in total, amount to more than a quarter of the overall electricity price per kilowatt hour. Women have a higher willingness to pay of up to one Eurocent per kilowatt hour. We discuss the implications of our findings for Germany's and the European Union's energy policy. Among other things, we conclude that governmental labeling initiatives should include participation-related information to enhance consumer welfare. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.