Abstract
Companies operating in the energy sector are under pressure to boost the level of green energy production. The use of renewable energy sources will have a positive impact on the environment, but the basic question is whether power plants that produce electricity using renewable energy sources are in better financial condition than those that use only traditional energy sources. We address the latter using a new hybrid approach that extends prior research by combining three analyses: ratio analysis with a large set of indicators, the Altman model and cluster analysis. To test the statistical significance of differences between groups, Student’s t-test is applied. The sample concerns companies from the Baltic States and Central Europe in the years 2008–2017. The results indicate that in most cases there is no statistical difference in the financial standing of companies that use renewable energy sources and those that generate only fossil fuel-based energy.
Highlights
The majority of the global energy supply depends on fossil fuels (FF), sources of which are unevenly distributed across world regions, creating meaningful energy security challenges
Businesses operating in the energy sector have recently been under serious financial threat as a result of the plunge in oil prices, which has led to the calling off or delay of planned infrastructure and exploration tasks, while shrinking the prospects of investments already under implementation
This article examined whether power plants that are producing energy using renewable energy sources have a better financial condition than companies that are producing energy using fossil fuel resources
Summary
The majority of the global energy supply depends on fossil fuels (FF), sources of which are unevenly distributed across world regions, creating meaningful energy security challenges. To react to the challenges and to improve the security of the energy supply, diversification and utilization of renewable energy resources (RER). The local availability, cleanliness, eco-friendliness, and sustainability of RER have caused some economists and policymakers to agree that the only way to achieve an improvement in environmental sustainability is through greater consumption of RER [1]. This means increasing energy production using mainly biomass, geothermal, photovoltaic, high-temperature solar thermal, wind, and non-utility hydro resources. The viability of Energies 2019, 12, 3856; doi:10.3390/en12203856 www.mdpi.com/journal/energies
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
