A Resource-Based View of Competitiveness in the Wind Energy Sector: The Case of Gran Canaria and Tenerife

Abstract

This paper proposes a new model to assess the socio-economic potential of two outermost islands of the EU to exploit their resources and capabilities for the sustainable development of the wind energy sector. To that end, a territory competitiveness index is calculated from the resource-based view to assess the socio-economic potential of renewable energy sources in Gran Canaria and Tenerife. We propose a model where local resources and capabilities in the wind energy industry are measured, taking into account different sources of information and methodologies, thus ensuring a rigorous process in the index calculation. In order to quantify the basic resources, for example, a methodology based on a multi-criteria analysis (MCA) with a geographic information system (GIS) is suggested, with the objective of obtaining an indicator called “index of available territorial resources." This index synthesizes the map information through a numerical value that allows integrating the territory resource with other indicators of the model, such as market growth, innovative behavior, firms’ concentration, or investment effort by the government. The results of the study show that capabilities development is a key factor to exploit the islands resource endowment in order to achieve a competitive advantage in wind energy.