Policy Mixes for Industrial Transformation: Lessons from Finland and Sweden

An accelerated transition of the existing industry sectors towards low-carbon and renewable energy technologies is crucial to achieving global climate targets and national net zero emission commitments. This thesis departs from the notion that many governments increasingly emphasise the possibilities of combining such a transformation with domestic “green growth”. Recent research suggests that policymakers can influence innovation and transition processes through the implementation of transformative innovation policies, including a mix of instruments oriented towards climate and industrialisation goals. At the same time, scholars have stressed that the design and implementation of policy mixes play a key role in their effectiveness. Despite these advances, there is a lack of studies addressing the outcomes of such policy mixes in the context of transformative change in the industry.This licentiate thesis aims to enrich the current understanding of the impact of policy mixes on industrial transformation processes. To this end, this thesis builds on three historical case studies of industrial transformation in the Nordic countries. It combines qualitative interviews with secondary data and social network analysis to reconstruct how the implemented policy mixes have influenced the industrial transformation over an extended period (2003-2022). Theoretically, this thesis departs from the innovation systems approach and draws on insights from studies of transformative innovation policies, mission-oriented innovation systems and value chains.The thesis contributes to a more advanced understanding of the underlying processes by which policy mixes influence industrial processes towards the targeted transformative change. First, the thesis contributes with a typology of value chains, which describes and explains how differences in the type, design and implementation of policy mixes could lead to alternative value chain developments. Second, the thesis develops a process model that describes and explains how policy feedbacks affect the evolution of policy mixes and the subsequent emergence of renewable energy technologies and industrial structures. Third, the thesis contributes to the understanding of the impact of collaborative R&D programs directed toward promoting low-carbon innovation and experimentation in the established industry by investigating the role of the main Swedish industrial emitters in one policy-driven R&D network

Policy mixes and policy feedback: Implications for green industrial growth in the Swedish biofuels industry

Policymakers have increasingly voiced an ambition to combine the transition to a climate-neutral society with a “green” domestic industrial agenda. In recent years, innovation systems scholars have advanced the understanding of the evolution of industries around renewable energy technologies as well as the role of policy feedback (and indeed politics) surrounding the development of domestic green industrial development policies. To take a step towards combining these literature streams, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of policy mixes and policy feedback in the emergence of domestic green industries. This is achieved in the empirical case of biofuels in Sweden, and the findings show that policy feedback dynamics created difficulties in aligning the national policy mix with the technology and industrial developments in the country. The resulting political uncertainty predominantly hampered the scaling up of domestic production capacity, while R&D and import of biofuels instead could grow strong. Based on this empirical case, a process model is developed to explain the role of policy feedback in the development of domestic industries, thus demonstrating how the growth of domestic industries is driven by the interplay of policy effects and various feedback processes. The findings suggest that future research into the role of policies in “green” domestic industry growth should devote more attention to the dynamics driving the co-evolution of policy, technology and industry structures

Policy mixes and policy feedback: Implications for green industrial growth in the Swedish biofuels industry

In recent years, innovation systems scholars have advanced the understanding of the evolution of industries around renewable energy technologies as well as the role of policy feedback (and indeed politics) surrounding the development of domestic green industrial development policies. To take a step towards combining these literature streams, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of policy mixes and policy feedback in the emergence of domestic green industries. This is achieved in the empirical case of biofuels in Sweden, and the findings show that policy feedback dynamics created difficulties in aligning the national policy mix with the technology and industrial developments in the country. The resulting political uncertainty predominantly hampered the scaling up of domestic production capacity, while R&amp;D and import of biofuels instead could grow strong. Based on this empirical case, a process model is developed to explain the role of policy feedback in the development of domestic industries, thus demonstrating how the growth of domestic industries is driven by the interplay of policy effects and various feedback processes. The findings suggest that future research into the role of policies in “green” domestic industry growth should devote more attention to the dynamics driving the co-evolution of policy, technology and industry structures.Validerad;2023;Nivå 2;2023-02-17 (hanlid)</p

Localizing biofuel industry value chains. A comparative analysis of the impact of policy mixes in Sweden and Finland

No abstract availabl

Strategic decisions on knowledge development and diffusion at pilot and demonstration projects: An empirical mapping of actors, projects and strategies in the case of circular forest bioeconomy

The knowledge developed at pilot and demonstration projects (PDPs) plays an essential role for emerging biorefinery technologies. This research addresses the unexplored role of actor strategies in the construction and operation of PDPs. Drawing on the theory of technological innovation systems, we conduct a pan-European survey to map the current pilot and demonstration projects, their actors and strategies. An online survey has been carried out among managers of PDPs to explore the strategic decisions to develop and diffuse knowledge. The findings reveal that the knowledge developed at PDPs and diffused in PDP contexts tends to focus on the development of technological knowledge at lower stages of technological maturity, while activities related to non-technological knowledge and system build-up were given less importance. Overall, our findings indicate that the consideration of actor strategies is of central importance to explain the value of the knowledge developed in PDP contexts for the transition to a circular forest bioeconomy

D7.5 Final infrastructure Development plan

ERIFORE – European Research Infrastructure for Circular Forest Bioeconomy – has been an Infradev-1 project (GA No 654371, 1.1.2016 – 31.1.2018) under Horizon 2020 Framework Programme. The future mission of the ERIFORE consortium is to establish an open access distributed research and innovation infrastructure for circular forest bioeconomy in Europe. ERIFORE focuses on the science and innovation bridge needed to develop and commercialise novel biorefinery process concepts for production of value added chemicals and materials from forest-based raw materials. The ERIFORE vision is to be a key contributor for European forestbased sector and to enable Europe to take the lead in the development and commercialisation of novel bio-based products. European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) has been successful in identifying research infrastructures (RIs) of pan-European interest to conduct top-level research activities meeting the long-term needs of European research communities and other stakeholders. Next generation RIs drive technological progress that depends on both transformative research and innovation. Implementing ESFRI infrastructures is critical for the European Union to remain at the forefront of science and technology and to stay competitive in the global knowledge-based economy. Furthermore, the coherent and strategy-led approach to policy-making on research infrastructure development has been seen to generate clear advantages on European level, such as avoiding duplication of efforts, pooling resources, rationalizing RI use, standardising processes and procedures and consolidating the global leadership of European RIs. The main result of the ERIFORE project as an ESFRI design study is the action plan to become a distributed research infrastructure on the ESFRI roadmap in 2020. The design study work was based on extensive mapping of research needs and drivers, availability and development needs of existing research infrastructure and collaboration in the field of circular forest bioeconomy. The design study covered outlines for initial business models, financing plans and governance structures. All public deliverable reports are accessible on the ERIFORE web page (www.erifore.eu). Research infrastructure collaboration under the ESFRI concept would bring notable benefits for the ERIFORE partners as well as for the whole European research and innovation system in circular forest bioeconomy. The legal framework of European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) will assure scientific impactful collaboration and long-term commitments from research infrastructure owners, national ministries and funding organisations. The establishment of an ERIFORE ESFRI project would ensure that the voice of the forest-based bioeconomy is heard in policy-making bodies at national and EU level. Work continues after the ERIFORE design study project in order to be ready for the next ESFRI Roadmap call for applications, presumably in 2019. Next phase of ESFRI planning will more carefully address the preconditions for the RI long-term sustainability and secure formal commitments from both Members and Partners Preparation for ESFRI Roadmap submission (2018-2019): The lead-up to submission has to be used to mature the business plan and in particular to ensure adequate commitments from the main stakeholders being national governments and other policy makers, partner organisations and related scientific and industrial interest groups. Scientific Partners need to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for the ESFRI project proposal. In addition, signatures in Expressions of Interest (EoI) and Expressions of Support (EoS) are needed from prospective Members by 2019. ESFRI project: preparation phase (2020-2022): Having achieved ESFRI project status, it will be a continuous task to build awareness through informing and engaging stakeholders. In the preparation phase, the human resource policy will be completed and put into use as setting up the Central Office and recruiting staff becomes topical. Preparations for establishing governance in the chosen legal form will proceed towards applying for European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) status. Preparation phase completes financing and investment plans. From ESFRI project to landmark: implementation and operational phases (from 2023 on): Eventually all legal and contractual arrangements are ready for the distributed RI to become operational. Open access and education and training activities as well as e-infrastructure are in action. Governance structure is fully in place, and funding for all operations is secured. Design and building of new infrastructure is also possible under the ESFRI collaboration. The aim is to ensure that the distributed RI remains at the forefront of science and technology to offer the European research community and industry best opportunities to stay competitive in transferring scientific discoveries into novel concepts, products and services.publishedVersio