Deployment of renewable energies: global determinants and participatory financing in France.

Summary In the context of mitigation actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions related to energy consumption, renewable energy sources (RE) appear as a relevant solution. They can be used for the production of electricity, heat and cold and in the transport sector. However, these energy sources have been slow to develop and there are significant differences between countries. In this thesis, I first study the empirical determinants of RE deployment. To do so, I conduct a systematic review of the existing quantitative literature that focuses on this topic at the country level. I find that this literature is quite fragmented and analyze the authors' results based on the specifications considered to study the existence of a consensus on the possible determinants of RE development at the national level. To complete this multi-country analysis, I focus on two barriers that are considered as important hindrances to the widespread use of RE: financing and acceptability. More specifically, I focus on the sector of participatory financing of RE. Indeed, crowdfunding is an innovative way of financing that allows citizens to participate in the financing of RE projects and therefore involves them in the process of energy transition to low-carbon sources. More specifically, I have chosen to study participatory financing of RE in the case of France because the sector has experienced strong growth in a favorable regulatory context. I carry out a case study of a participatory financing platform specialized in RE projects in order to present its economic model and the associated risks. Then, in order to better understand the characteristics of this sector, I give an overview of the different actors involved in the RE participatory financing sector in France: platforms, project holders and contributors. Finally, I conduct an empirical analysis of survey data concerning the decision-making process of citizens who have invested in RE participatory financing projects in France.