Can reduction of local carbon emissions motivate participation in demand-side flexibility programs? Evidence from the United Kingdom

Increasing demand-side flexibility is important for decarbonising electricity systems with increasing intermittent and variable renewable energy. Although previous research has identified the benefit of reducing carbon emissions as a potential driver for households to provide demand-side flexibility, it is not yet clear whether households would be more willing to do so if emission reduction is achieved locally. This study conducted an online factorial survey across the UK to investigate the determinants of household willingness to participate in time-of-use and direct load control programs related to electric vehicle (EV) charging and heat pump (HP) control. The results show that respondents generally preferred the static time-of-use tariffs to more flexible charging/heating programs (e.g., vehicle-to-grid charging). However, the benefits of electricity bill savings, reduction of carbon emissions, and localisation of emission reductions can significantly motivate participation in demand-side flexibility programs. Keeping other variables constant, localisation of emission reductions could increase the likelihood of program acceptance by around 11 %. This motivational effect for individual households was equivalent to annual electricity bill savings of around £200 and £80 for EV charging and HP control programs, respectively. Moreover, socio-demographic variables (e.g., age), energy consumption behaviour (e.g., monthly electricity expenditure), trust in power service suppliers, concerns over data privacy, and attitudes towards climate change and local carbon targets could also significantly influence household willingness to provide demand-side flexibility.