Investigating values in the MCDA-based group decisionmaking process on local grid impact with energy transition scenarios

Amsterdam aims to become natural gas free by 2050, and Amsterdam Zuidoost is taking actions to be energy-neutral by 2040. Energielab Zuidoost (ELZO) is a project to engage multiple parties to involve in energy transition. As one living lab from ELZO, the LIFE (Local Inclusive Future Energy) city platform project contributes to mitigate local grid congestion with different energy solutions. This research applied Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) to support and facilitate decision-making on these energy solutions. Criteria were collected through literature reviews, participatory observations and stakeholder interviews (phase 1 with internal group and phase 2 with external group), and energy scenarios performance were analyzed by AHP method. The result in phase 1 showed that energy scenario 4 with collective energy system was chosen by the internal group with the highest score out of five scenarios. The external group involved in phase 2 preferred integration of multiple solutions instead of one. Apart from the results of energy scenarios evaluations, the researcher also investigated the value dynamic during decision-makings from phase 1 to phase 2. Values such as willingness and affordability were identified from both phases, and such values would be translated to newly added criteria for further MCDA-based decision-making process with other stakeholders in future study in other areas of Amsterdam Zuidoost.