Investments from those with interest in fossil fuels are well researched in the context of energy transitions. However, how actors across the wider energy sector perceive the role of fossil fuel interests in delaying energy transitions is less understood. Now, Laura Kuhl and colleagues from Northeastern University and University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in the United States present insights from interviews on perceived fossil fuel interests and the role that narratives of resistance to fossil fuels may play in slowing the renewable energy transition in Puerto Rico.
The researchers conducted semi-structured, expert interviews with 56 energy sector actors in Puerto Rico in 2021 to better understand perceptions of the energy transition. Participants came from the private, public and non-profit sectors, and included a range of government officials, academics, community organization members and union workers. Interviews were coded to identify key narratives and perceptions of obstruction according to a “discourses of delay” framework, where repeated and perpetuated narratives promote delayed action on an issue. The team note diverse views on the maintenance of a fossil-fuel based system in Puerto Rico, with both resistance to change at the community level and obstruction to action on climate change related to maintaining political power perceived as supporting the status quo. Interview feedback highlights a contested renewable energy transition, but equally sheds light on agreement amongst study participants that Puerto Rico’s energy future will eventually be renewables-based.
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