Investments In Energy Technologies Research Articles

Innocent devils: The varying impacts of trade, renewable energy and financial development on environmental damage: Nonlinearly exploring the disparity between developed and developing nations

Global warming has grown to be a significant issue on a global scale and is a result of human activities. As a potential solution, nations are looking for sustainable economic growth and investments in clean energy technologies. Therefore, this study aims to empirically investigate the impact of trade, renewable energy, and financial development on environmental degradation among developed and developing countries in light of the EKC (Environment Kuznets Curve) hypothesis. The influence on carbon emissions from 1990 to 2019 is analyzed and contrasted using the Non-linear Auto Regressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) regression technique. Results show that developed and developing countries emit significantly different amounts of carbon. Consequently, evidence of a non-linear and inverted U-shape relationship supports the EKC hypothesis. Further evidence shows a high risk of carbon emissions among both groups of countries with the increase in financial development and trading activities. However, the usage of renewable energy reduces environmental damage, and the association is non-linear. The study recommends using effective measures to minimize environmental damage by using clean energy sources and strengthening the financial system by offering environment-friendly investment loans. Moreover, policies should be designed that promote sustainable growth and investments in environment-friendly technologies.

Assessing the Electricity Production Capacities of Emerging Markets for the Sustainable Investments

It is essential to supply the necessary electricity for both the increase in the quality of life of the citizens and the stable growth of the country’s economy. For countries to have energy independence, they need to increase their electricity generation capacity. However, all alternatives required to increase electrical capacity have both advantages and disadvantages. Within this scope, it is not easy for countries to make the right investment decisions. Therefore, a comprehensive analysis is needed to determine the right investment policy. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the electricity production capacities of emerging markets. A new fuzzy decision-making model has been constructed to find a solution for this situation. The groups for the electricity production capacities are examined by the extension of DEMATEL with Quantum Spherical fuzzy sets and golden ratio. In the following stage, emerging seven economies are ranked by using QSF TOPSIS technique. This situation helps to understand which of these countries are more successful in generating electricity capacity effectively. The main novelty is to define the most significant electricity generation alternatives by a novel model that integrates DEMATEL and TOPSIS with QSFSs and golden ratio. The results demonstrate that solar photovoltaic is the most optimal way to increase electricity capacity of the countries. Additionally, China is the most successful emerging country to generate electricity in an efficient way. Countries should take some actions to increase their solar energy investments. First, it would be appropriate to provide tax exemptions to solar energy investors so that the costs of these projects can be decreased. Additionally, investments in solar energy technologies need to be further increased.

Climate impacts of the metaverse

Christian Stoll is a research affiliate at the Center for Energy Markets of the Technical University of Munich and at the Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He co-founded CCRI and works as a management consultant. His research focuses on the intersection of sustainability and cryptocurrencies. Ulrich Gallersdörfer is a research associate at the Department of Informatics of the Technical University of Munich. He is a co-founder and CEO of CCRI, a company providing intelligence and data for cryptocurrencies, blockchain, and related technologies. His research focuses on blockchain technology and adjacent fields. Lena Klaaßen is a PhD student at the Climate Finance and Policy group at ETH Zurich. She is also a co-founder of CCRI. Her research focuses on the role of the financial sector in acelerating investment in low-carbon energy technologies as well as the environmental impact of companies and technologies.

Agricultural Production, Renewable Energy Consumption, Foreign Direct Investment, and Carbon Emissions: New Evidence from Africa

This paper explores the nexus between agricultural production, renewable energy, foreign direct investment (FDI), and carbon emissions in Africa, where there is limited evidence on the topic. Relying on panel data covering thirty-one African countries obtained from the World Bank World Development Indicators and FAOSTAT databases, we answered the question of whether agricultural production (proxied by livestock production, fertilizer consumption, and land under cereal cultivation), the use of renewable energy, and FDI increase or reduce carbon emissions. Using the panel autoregressive distributed lag model for analysis, our results show that net FDI, fertilizer consumption, livestock production significantly increased carbon emissions, both in the short run and long run. Meanwhile, renewable energy use consumption significantly decreased carbon emissions, both in the short run and long run. Specifically, a 1% increase in net FDI increased total carbon emissions by 0.003% in the short run and by 0.01% in the long run. Renewable energy consumption significantly decreased carbon emissions, both in the short run and long run. A 1% increase in renewable energy consumption decreased total carbon emissions by 0.16% in the short run and by 0.22% in the long run. Additionally, fertilizer consumption and livestock production significantly increased carbon emissions in the short run and long run. A 1% increase in fertilizer consumption increased total carbon emissions by 0.01% in the short run and by 0.04% in the long run, while a 1% increase in livestock production increased total carbon emissions by 0.20% in the short run and by 0.56% in the long run. The findings call for investment in renewable energy technologies and consumption while advocating for large-scale uptake of climate-smart agriculture, and environmentally friendly targeted foreign direct investments on the continent.

Renewable energy and CO2 emissions in G7 countries: does the level of expenditure on green energy technologies matter?

Promoting green energy is generally considered a crucial way to mitigate energy-related CO2 emissions. However, the level at which a country's expenditure on green energy technologies interacts with renewable energy consumption to save the planet has been ignored in the literature. Within the context of the Stochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence, and Technology (STIRPAT) model, this study investigates the interaction effect of renewable energy and expenditure on green energy technologies in mitigating CO2 emissions in G7 countries over the period 1990-2017. The empirical results based on the Method of Moments-Quantile Regression (MM-QR) with fixed effectssuggest that renewable energy and expenditure on green energy technologies have a negative and heterogeneous effect on CO2 emissions. The interaction term has a stronger negative and heterogeneous effect across quantiles distribution of CO2 emissions. This suggests that the extent to which renewable energy exerts downward pressure on CO2 emissions is dependent on countries' expenditures on green energy technologies. In addition, the effect of the interaction term is stronger in countries with lower levels of CO2 emissions. Given these findings, the study suggests the need to promote investment in green energy technologies as a catalytic converter to mitigate CO2 emissions.

Spatial and temporal evolution characteristics and spillover effects of China's regional carbon emissions

China's carbon emissions account for approximately a quarter of the world's total greenhouse gas emissions. In 2020, China's fossil fuels accounted for approximately 85% of the primary energy demand, with coal alone accounting for 60%. Considering the severe global warming situation, it is necessary to reveal the spatial and temporal differences and analyze the spillover effects of carbon emissions between regions. In this study, a positive and significant spatial correlation between regional carbon emissions in China was found using an exploratory spatial data analysis. The spatial Durbin model was then utilized to explore the direct and spillover effects of factors that included economic growth, the energy intensity, and the level of technological innovation on regional carbon emissions. Whether a direct effect or a spillover effect, economic growth and improvements in the regional levels of technological innovation had significant inhibitory effects on carbon emissions both in the long term and in the short term. Specifically, an increase of 1% in the level of technological innovation led to a reduction of approximately 0.17% in the region's carbon emissions. However, a growth in the energy intensity will increase carbon emissions. In addition, an increase in the technological input intensity will lead to an increase in carbon emissions in local regions. However, an increase in neighboring regions will restrain carbon emissions in a local region. Based on these findings, it is recommended that the government accelerate regional innovation synergies and increase investment in clean energy technologies.

Analysis on the constraint mechanism of transportation carbon emissions in the Pearl River Delta based on ‘Dual carbon’ goals

ABSTRACT Transportation not only provides support for economic and social development, but also has an important impact on emissions. Based on the DPSIR model, the constraint index system of transportation carbon emissions in the Pearl River Delta under ‘Dual carbon’ is constructed, and the hierarchical structure model is constructed by using the DEMATEL-ISM integration method. The constraint mechanism of transportation carbon emission in the Pearl River Delta is analyzed from the three dimensions of the correlation and importance, system hierarchical structure and constraint path of the constraints. The study found that there are six levels of constraints. The economic development level, carbon emission scale and the ‘Dual carbon’ goals are the core factors of the entire system. Developing public transport and intelligent transportation and increasing investment in new energy infrastructure and technology are conducive to the development of transportation in the Pearl River Delta and the realization of ‘double carbon’ goals.

Does R&D investment in renewable energy technologies reduce greenhouse gas emissions?

In this paper, we investigate the impact of public investment in R&D in renewable energy technologies on environmental quality using a spectrum of environmental emissions. We employ new and innovative panel data methods to address the existing econometric issues in estimating the effect of R&D on greenhouse gas emissions. Then, using data from advanced and emerging economies that span the period from 1980 to 2020, we find that R&D investment in renewable technologies has a significant positive effect on environmental quality by reducing a range of pollutants, including carbon dioxide, methane, and other pollutants. The results are robust to a series of sensitivity tests. The findings have important policy implications for climate change and various recent environmental initiatives, including the transition to net-zero emissions and sustainability.

How do green energy technology investments, technological innovation, and trade globalization enhance green energy supply and stimulate environmental sustainability in the G7 countries?

Both developed and developing countries across the world are experiencing climate change-related adversities mainly due to failing to limit the emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. More often than not, the surge in greenhouse gas emissions is instigated through a rise in fossil fuel consumption levels. Hence, in respect of mitigating these emissions, especially carbon dioxide, it is pivotal to raise the share of green energy in the total energy supply. Accordingly, public sector investment in the renewable energy sector is hypothesized to play a vital role in specifically enhancing the technological level required for substantially increasing green energy production and supply. Moreover, the concurrent role of technological innovation, as a whole, in boosting green energy supply and ensuring environmental sustainability cannot be overlooked. Against this backdrop, this study investigates the effect of public investments in research and development related to renewable energy and technological innovation on renewable energy supply shares and carbon dioxide emissions in the G7 countries, controlling for the level of trade globalization in these countries. The results unfolded higher public investments in renewable energy development-related projects, technological innovation, and trade globalization are critical for enhancing renewable energy supply shares and curbing carbon dioxide emissions in the long run. Therefore, considering these major analytical outcomes, some relevant policies are suggested for enabling the G7 countries to achieve some of the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations that are closely related to undergoing green energy transition (SDG-7) and achieving environmental sustainability (SDG-13) through the channel of innovation (SDG-9).

How do macroeconomic dynamics affect small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the power sector in developing economies: Evidence from Turkey

Developing economies are currently projected to hold a major share of the global energy demand in the upcoming decades, giving them a key role in addressing climate change. However, new renewable energy investments in these countries have so far been relatively slow. A specific set of challenges dominate the investment environment in developing countries, including higher exposure to macroeconomic and political risks, uncertainties due to climate change, limited domestic manufacturing capabilities, and heavy reliance on foreign debt in capital investments. These factors tend to disproportionately affect small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) which currently hold a sizeable share of renewable and distributed energy technology investments. Not only does this impact the viability of energy transition, but also has important energy justice and local economic development implications – an overlooked subject in the literature. Using a rich, novel dataset and panel data methods, this paper estimates the effect of a set of key macroeconomic variables on the capital structure and investment outcomes of SMEs within the Turkish power sector. Our results indicate that unfavorable macroeconomic conditions, which lead to a significant growth in liabilities and increased risk of bankruptcy, can cause a slowdown in power sector SME investments despite the prevalence of subsidies.

Demand Response Analysis Framework (DRAF): An Open-Source Multi-Objective Decision Support Tool for Decarbonizing Local Multi-Energy Systems

A major barrier to investments in clean and future-proof energy technologies of local multi-energy systems (L-MESs) is the lack of knowledge about their impacts on profitability and carbon footprints due to their complex techno-economic interactions. To reduce this problem, decision support tools should integrate various forms of decarbonization measures. This paper proposes the Demand Response Analysis Framework (DRAF), a new open-source Python decision support tool that integrally optimizes the design and operation of energy technologies considering demand-side flexibility, electrification, and renewable energy sources. It quantifies decarbonization and cost reduction potential using multi-objective mixed-integer linear programming and provides decision-makers of L-MESs with optimal scenarios regarding costs, emissions, or Pareto efficiency. DRAF supports all steps of the energy system optimization process from time series analysis to interactive plotting and data export. It comes with several component templates that allow a quick start without limiting the modeling possibilities thanks to a generic model generator. Other key features are the access and preparation of time series, such as dynamic carbon emission factors or wholesale electricity prices; and the generation, handling, and parallel computing of scenarios. We demonstrate DRAF’s capabilities through three case studies on (1) the DR of industrial production processes, (2) the design optimization of battery and photovoltaic systems, and (3) the design optimization and DR of distributed thermal energy resources.

The impact of alternative energy technology investment on environment and food security in northern Ethiopia

Energy is a key factor in the economic development. Currently, however, millions of people across the world suffer from energy poverty, having little or no access to energy for cooking, lighting, heating, cooling, or using information and communication technologies. Objective of this study was to investigate the domestic energy sources for households and the impact of biomass use as a source of energy on the environment and food insecurity in the drought-affected northern highlands of Ethiopia. A total of 398 household heads were interviewed using a structured questionnaire, whereas 16 focus group discussions and 12 key informant interviews were conducted. Descriptive data analysis techniques were used to analyze quantitative data while content analysis methods were used to analyze qualitative data. The use of traditional biomass fuels such as firewood, charcoal, crop residue, animal dung, and biomass residue that can be combusted were prevalent in the area, which aggravated the degradation of agricultural lands. As commented by the majority of respondents, the move towards the adoption of modern energy sources was not common due to finance (98%), access (97%), durability (97%) and lack of awareness (93%). The findings showed that land degradation has been severe to the extent that no grain yield can be collected from crop production. As a result, people were exposed to both chronic and transitory food insecurity, and hence the majority of people make their living on food aid. In food-insecure areas, relying on biomass energy could increase land degradation or retard the speed of land restoration, which adversely affects agricultural production and food security. Investing in alternative energy technologies can improve the environment, food security, and people’s health.

Application of M-SWARA and TOPSIS Methods in the Evaluation of Investment Alternatives of Microgeneration Energy Technologies

Investments in microgeneration technologies help to boost the usage of clean energy while reducing pollution. However, selecting the appropriate investment remains the most critical phase in developing these technologies. This study aims to design a multi-criteria decision-making method (MCDM) to evaluate investment alternatives for microgeneration energy technologies. The proposed MCDM is based on a Multi Stepwise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis (M-SWARA), to define the relative importance of the factors. The Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) and q-Rung Orthopair Fuzzy Soft Sets (q-ROFSs) are used to rank investment alternatives. Calculations were also made with Intuitionistic Fuzzy Sets (IFSs) and Pythagorean Fuzzy Sets (PFSs). For analysis, five evaluation criteria were selected based on the literature: frequency of maintenance, ease of installation, environmental adaptation, transmission technologies, and efficiency of cost. Similarly, six alternatives for microgeneration technology investments were selected: ground source heat pumps, micro hydroelectric power, micro combined heat and power, micro bioelectrochemical fuel cell systems, small-scale wind turbines, and photovoltaic systems. The results showed that cost efficiency was the most significant factor in the effectiveness of microgeneration energy investments, and the photovoltaic system was the best alternative to increase microgeneration energy technology investment performance. Furthermore, the results were the same for the analyses made with IFSs and PFSs, demonstrating the reliability of the proposed method. Therefore, investors in microgeneration technologies should prioritize photovoltaic systems. This conclusion is supported by the fact that photovoltaic is a renewable energy source that has witnessed the most technological improvements and cost reductions over the last decade.

Evaluating the impact of regulation on the path of electrification in Citizen Energy Communities with prosumer investment

The success of incentives for investments in sustainable residential energy technologies depends on individual households actively participating in the energy transition by investing in electrification and by becoming prosumers. This willingness is influenced by the return on investments in electrification and preferences towards environmental sustainability. Returns on investment can be supported by a preferential regulation of Citizen Energy Communities, i.e. a special form of a microgrid regulation. However, the exact effect of such regulation is debated and therefore analyzed in this study. We propose a multi-periodic community development model that determines household investment decisions over a long time horizon, with heterogeneous individual preferences in regards to sustainability and heterogeneous energy consumption profiles. We consider that investment decisions which increase individual utility might be delayed due to inertia in the decision process. Decisions are determined in our model based on individual preferences using a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm embedded in an energy system simulation. In a case study, we investigate the development of a neighborhood in Germany consisting of 30 households in regards to community costs and community emissions with and without Citizen Energy Community regulation as proposed by the European Union. We find that Citizen Energy Community regulation always reduces community costs and emissions, while heterogeneous distributions of economic and ecologic preferences within the community lead to higher gains. Furthermore, we find that decision inertia considerably slows down the transformation process. This shows that policymakers should carefully consider who to target with Citizen Energy Community regulation and that subsidies should be designed such that they counterbalance delayed private investment decisions.

Optimal investment analysis for heat pumps and nuclear heat in decarbonised Helsinki metropolitan district heating system

Decarbonisation of district heating and cooling (DHC) system in Helsinki metropolitan area requires investments in new energy technologies and approaches to replace fossil fuel fired district heating (DH) production. Investment paths involving (a) DH heat pumps (HP) from low quality heat sources and (b) small modular nuclear reactors (SMR) are compared by utilising investment analysis based on optimisation model depicting the assumed 2030 situation. Several scenarios, with varying assumptions concerning existing DHC system, investment costs and electricity prices, are analysed in terms of new capacity and total annualised costs. The results indicate that the SMR option is more cost-efficient than the HP option with 4–8 €/MWh difference in operation costs including annualised investments. Biomass fired boiler investments, enabled in both options, are preferred to heat pump investments in most scenarios. The cost-efficiency of HP investments is sensitive to investment cost, whereas SMR investments are relatively stable to investment cost variations. Varying electricity market prices affect cost-efficiency of large-scale heat pumps, and investments in SMR cogeneration units take place only with high electricity prices.

Low-Carbon Strategic Planning of Integrated Energy Systems

With the rapid promotion of renewable energy technologies and the trend to a low-carbon society, the positive impacts of an integrated energy system that realizes various forms of energy-utilizing improvement and carbon reduction have fully emerged. Hydrogen with a decarbonized characteristic being integrated into the integrated energy system has become a viable option to offset the intermittency of renewables and decline the fossil fuel usage. An optimal planning model of a wind–photovoltaic–hydrogen storage-integrated energy system with the objective of total economic and environmental cost minimization by considering various energy technology investments is proposed. Case studies are developed to compare the economic and environmental benefits of different energy investment scenarios, especially hydrogen applications. The cost–benefit analysis was carried out to prove that hydrogen investment is not a cost-competitive option but can alleviate the burden of carbon emissions somehow. Finally, sensitivity analysis of key parameters of sale capacity, carbon tax, and renewable penetration level was performed to indicate the rational investment for a wind–photovoltaic–hydrogen storage-integrated energy system.

Do financial incentive policies for renewable energy development increase the economic growth in Latin American and Caribbean countries?

ABSTRACT This investigation approached the impact of financial incentive policies for renewable energy development on economic growth using panel data with seventeen countries from Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) from 1990 to 2016. The fixed-effects model (FE) and the quantile via moments (QvM) models were used to accomplish this investigation. The FE and the QvM models showed that the financial incentive policies for renewable energy development and consumption of green energy, public and private capital stock, and globalisation increase economic activity in the countries from the LAC region, while gender inequality reduces it. Indeed, the positive impact of financial incentive policies for renewable energy development and consumption of green energy on economic growth could be related to the possible capacity of these policies to encourage investments in green energy technologies and the consumption of green energy.

Population aging, renewable energy budgets and environmental sustainability: Does health expenditures matter?

From the last few centuries, the human population has grown exponentially around the globe, and an increase in affluence has increased resource usage and pollutant emissions. In this respect, investment in renewable energy technologies plays an essential role in fighting against climate change and helps to achieve carbon neutrality targets. However, the pace of population aging is also increasing dramatically, which may require more health expenditures that may affect the renewable energy budgets. In this context, this study investigates the linkage between population aging, health expenditures, renewable energy budgets and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in G7 (Group of Seven) countries from 1985 to 2019. The second-generation estimation techniques robust to cross-sectional dependence and slope heterogeneity are used. The findings of Cross-Sectional Autoregressive Distributed Lag (CS-ARDL) depict that population aging and renewable energy budgets enhance the environmental quality of G7 countries by decreasing CO2 emissions. In contrast, health expenditures and economic growth attenuate environmental sustainability. The finding of CS-ARDL is also confirmed by the Augmented Mean Group (AMG) method. The Dumitrescu and Hurlin causality test outcomes indicate the unidirectional causality from population aging and renewable energy to CO2 emissions. There is a feedback effect between health spending, economic growth, and CO2 emissions. Another interesting discovery is that population aging leads to health expenditures and consequently affects renewable energy budgets. We also find that population aging can affect renewable energy budgets directly. In addition, this paper also reveals a bidirectional causal relationship between health expenditures and renewable energy budgets. Finally, drawing on these consequences, this paper proffers some policy recommendations to help G7 countries to achieve climate-related goals.

The impact of eco-environmental regulation on green energy efficiency in China - Based on spatial economic analysis

To figure out at what extent of China's investment in energy technology in recent years has helped economic growth and improved the environment. From the basic theory of environmental regulation’s influence on energy consumption efficiency, this study uses the super-efficiency slack base model to measure the green energy efficiency of 30 provinces in China from 2010 to 2019, and uses the kernel density function to analyze evolution trajectory. Then, the spatial Dubin model is used to test the influence of some important economic variables. The results of value show that although China's green energy efficiency improved significantly from 2010 to 2019, the overall performance was lacking. However, the overall efficiency value was significantly improved during the study period. Moreover, the efficiency value was closely related to the performance of economic development. From the dynamic trajectory perspective, efficiency values of all years show the type of "two peaks".Altough the width between the two peaks did not change noticeably, but the efficiency still had a significantly improved. In addition, according to the results of spatial economic regression analysis, eco-environmental constraints, foreign direct investment, and industrial agglomeration were not conducive to the efficiency value, while industrial structure and manufacturing enterprise scale had positive effects. In addition, the influence effects had obvious spatial phenomena. Therefore, for the Chinese government, enterprises and society, the next step is not only to vigorously exploit energy-saving and emission reduction technologies to improve energy consumption efficiency but also to establish reasonable environmental regulation policies to push enterprises to produce in a cleaner way. Additionally, a reasonable regional development plan should be established to promote the rational distribution and flow of the energy industry across different places. This paper provides a novel perspective for the study of energy input and usage.

Synthesizing urbanization and carbon emissions in Africa: how viable is environmental sustainability amid the quest for economic growth in a globalized world?

Global emission statistics show that Africa is among the least carbon-emitting continents. However, the rising drive for economic growth amid urbanization and globalization in recent years has continued to attract the attention of policymakers to the attendant potential environmental risks. Hence, using robust empirical techniques, this study examines the impacts of increasing urbanization alongside its interactions with energy portfolios on environmental prospects of 15 selected African countries including the most urbanized and leading oil producers in the continent of Africa. The results of the analysis produced insightful implications for achieving both environmental and economic sustainability for the understudied countries. Firstly, the trio of urbanization, economic globalization, and income levels aggravate environmental degradation among these countries as they were found to be essential drivers of carbon emission levels over the understudied period (1990-2015). Secondly, while urbanization significantly poses threat to environmental sustainability, the evidence obtained regarding its interaction with energy portfolios of the understudied countries differs. The significant detrimental environmental impacts of the interaction between urbanization and energy portfolios were only confirmed in the context of fossil energy consumption among the countries, while renewables exist as a significant decarbonization channel within the framework of the increasing level of urbanization among the countries. Thirdly, the study upholds the EKC conjecture. Hence, policymakers and authorities in Africa should capitalize on maximizing the benefits of the huge renewable resource potentials on the continent through adequate investments in green energy technologies for urban infrastructures toward the realization of sustainable development goals (SDGs 11 and 13).