Entrepreneurship is a key driver of the transition to sustainable energy. This new review article in Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews synthesizes 142 scientific articles to show how start-ups shape the renewable energy sector. It distinguishes three types of entrepreneurship—technology-driven, community-based, and rural—and analyzes the factors that enable their success and the hurdles they encounter.

Key insights include:

• Technology entrepreneurship accelerates developing and adopting new energy solutions (e.g., battery recycling, AI-enabled grid management) but often faces capital intensity and regulatory uncertainty.
• Community entrepreneurship advances local energy transitions, strengthening energy independence, environmental protection, and regional economic growth, yet it frequently encounters financial and technical constraints and social resistance.
• Rural entrepreneurship is key in extending affordable energy access to underserved regions, predominantly via solar, while other technologies remain underexplored.
• Market access is often hindered by complex structures and high barriers to entry, such as the integration of sustainable energy into existing infrastructures or their replacement.
• The energy industry is heavily regulated, making it difficult for start-ups to enter the market.

Start-ups are essential to advancing innovation and sustainability. They pioneer new business models, speed up decarbonization, and expand energy access, yet face structural barriers.

Supporting entrepreneurial ventures in renewable energy is not only about technology. Success depends on stable and predictable regulation, access to finance, and strong local engagement. Start-ups should actively monitor regulatory developments and engage with policy processes to identify opportunities and risks early. Partnerships—with established companies, research institutions, or other start-ups—and adapting business models to local conditions are crucial.

The study “Entrepreneurship in the renewable energy sector: A systematic literature review of types, characteristics, and sustainability impacts” by Prof. Dr. David Bendig and Linda Brüss, School of Business and Economics, University of Münster, and Dr. Florian Degen, Fraunhofer FFB, was published in Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews (Journal Impact Factor 2024: 16,3). Read the article here (open access): https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2025.115337.