Stakeholder engagement in large-scale energy infrastructure projects: Revealing perspectives using Q methodology

Public opposition is one of the main political, and less predictable, risks of large-scale energy infrastructure projects. External stakeholder management has become indispensable to the governance of risk in such projects. We integrate insights on public engagement from policy and planning studies with the field of project management to contribute to the governance of risk. We present Q methodology as a congruent method for stakeholder analysis that allows for anticipation of unforeseen stakeholder issues or concerns and to kick-off a participatory procedure with external stakeholders. We present an illustration of Q methodology results of a Dutch shale gas exploration project. If used in the stakeholder management process, this method can help reveal perspectives beneficial for both the governance of risks and the identification of opportunities to create socially valued, successful projects.