Many experts are worried about the would-be character of smart grid users, and that they will not engage with smart grid technologies out of disinterest or lack of knowledge. This has been held as problematic as users are conceived as a fundamental key to unlocking the full potential of the smart grid. This paper engaged smart grid users from the Norwegian demo Steinkjer pilot, and through focus group interviews, articulations of every day smart grid enactments were collected. Eliciting little lack in either knowledge or interest, informants were able to articulate relevant smart grid enactments through a spectrum of skepticism, pragmatism and enthusiasm. Mobilising the concept of material publics (Marres 2012) this paper argues that smart meters bridge the green political economy of climate challenge issues and the user's context of everyday energy consumption. The paper found evidence that user articulations, whether skeptical or enthusiastic, are firmly rooted in a political engagement. This suggests a strong case for material publics of the smart grid, indicating that explanations for user disengagement likely can be found in subversive co-articulations among users, rather than disinterest or lack of knowledge. This paper suggests acknowledging smart grid users as politically engaged, material publics.

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The paper discusses the dynamics behind price-based incentives in demand response programmes promoting time shifting of energy consumption in households. Through a comparative analysis of smart energy pilots in Norway, Austria, and Denmark, the study shows that economic incentives under certain conditions influence energy-consuming practices of households but not in ways anticipated by widespread rational conceptualisations within economic, engineering, and policy-making approaches. The paper elaborates the practice-theoretical understanding of financial structures in smart energy interventions and identifies the socio-material configurations causing price to play a role. This informs policymakers and developers of future smart energy interventions. The overall policy recommendation of the paper is that smart energy designers, planners, and policymakers need to consider the complexity of interrelated elements that codetermine the effectiveness of price incentives. Thus, a successful coupling between price incentives and demand response actions can best be realised via a productive mixture of mutually supporting elements (engagements, devices, and competences). In addition, the paper provides specific recommendations related to the design of effective and workable price schemes that fit into the everyday lives of households.

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