The Governance of Energy Finance: The Public, the Private and the Hybrid

Strong and effective systems of governance are required to steer energy finance towards the fulfilment of policy goals around energy security, energy poverty and sustainability. This article assesses and explains the nature of the contemporary governance of energy finance. It first provides a typology and analysis of the different governance dimensions associated with: (i) the public governance of public finance; (ii) the public governance of private finance; and (iii) the private governance of private finance. It then identifies and seeks to account for key cross-cutting trends in these patterns of governance. Overall, while it finds evidence of significant activity in each of these areas, there remains a substantial imbalance towards governance for energy finance over governance of energy finance. This has important implications for constructing effective solutions to the multiple challenges that energy policy currently faces.