Broadly positive, slightly split: How political orientation links to early perceptions of seasonal thermal energy storage

Energy technologies have increasingly become the subject of politicisation, which ultimately impacts their deployment. Existing research has primarily examined polarisation around established or widely debated energy technologies, such as in relation to wind or nuclear energy. Building on this literature and public opinion research, this study investigates to what extent public perceptions of a novel energy storage technology might already be shaped along political lines, even before its widespread deployment or popularity, and its potential politicisation. To do so, it examines the relationship between individuals’ political orientation and perceptions of seasonal thermal energy storage (STES) among Swiss citizens. Drawing on cross-sectional survey data collected in Switzerland (N = 1433), this study assesses how the perceived general importance of STES and its potential to address challenges related to the energy transition, climate change, energy security and energy independence varies by left-right ideology and party alignment. The findings reveal that, while STES is overall positively evaluated across the ideological spectrum and party alignment, differences already exist. These differences are more nuanced regarding general perceived importance and become less significant in terms of perceived potential, once respondents had slightly more engaged with STES throughout the survey. Moreover, the results suggest how the potential for polarisation seems mainly driven by individuals of the right-wing of the ideological and partisan spectrum. Therefore, this study demonstrates that political predispositions appear to inform perceptions of energy technology at an early stage of diffusion, implying that potential grounds for its polarisation are set prior to popularity and politicisation.