Considering nonlinearity and structural changes in the convergence of clean energy consumption: the case of OECD countries

Abstract

PurposeIn this study, we aim to test the stochastic convergence of per capita clean energy use in 30 OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries for the period of 1965–2017.Design/methodology/approachThis study employed both linear and nonlinear panel unit root tests, and unlike other studies, this study allowed fractional values in addition to integer values for frequencies in the Fourier functions. Integer values of frequency indicate temporary breaks, while fractional values show permanent breaks.FindingsThe results of the linear panel unit root test indicate that clean energy use does not converge to group average for almost all OECD countries. However, the results of nonlinear panel unit root tests provide evidence that the stochastic convergence hypothesis of clean energy consumption cannot be rejected for most countries. This study does not find any evidence for stochastic convergence of clean energy use in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Ireland, Norway or Sweden. Therefore, the policies regarding clean energy are mandatory in these countries due to their effectiveness. This study also reveals that there are permanent structural breaks in the convergence process of clean energy consumption in approximately half of OECD countries.Originality/valueThis study considers temporary and permanent smooth structural shifts in addition to nonlinearity when testing the stationarity of clean energy consumption in a country i relative to the group average. This new method eliminates deficiencies of the previous panel data techniques. Thus, it provides more reliable results compared to existing literature.

Investigating the modern renewable energy-environmental Kuznets curve (REKC) hypothesis for East Africa Community (EAC) countries

“…This study focuses exclusively on modern renewable energy consumption, distinguishing itself from previous studies that consider it as a whole. Modern renewable energy includes non-carbonated energies like solar, hydro, wind and geothermal (Bhattacharyya, 2019; Yilanci and Gorus, 2021). The study's primary variable of interest is MREC, which is quantified as the proportion of modern renewables in total final energy consumption (percentage), excluding the traditional use of biomass (IEA, 2022).…”

Governance and modern renewable energy consumption in the East African Community (EAC): a dynamic panel CS-ARDL approach

“…The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/1477-7835.htm Traditional renewable energy entails dirty carbonated energy obtained using simple methods and is mainly forest-based, whereas modern renewable energy consists of clean non-carbonated energy that requires modern technologies such as solar, hydro, wind and geothermal energy (Bhattacharyya, 2019;Yilanci and Gorus, 2021). The consumption of modern renewable energy is heavily linked to several aspects of sustainable development in regions where it has been adopted and developed.…”

“…Global energy establishments and experts advocate the use of modern renewable energy as a mechanism for tackling risks associated with climate change and dangerous greenhouse gases (Fawzy et al ., 2020), as opposed to non-renewables (such as fossil fuels and nuclear) and traditional renewable energies (mainly forest-based) that cause these climate change risks (Kyayesimira and Muheirwe, 2021; Hafezi and Alipour, 2021; Osabuohien et al ., 2015). Traditional renewable energy entails dirty carbonated energy obtained using simple methods and is mainly forest-based, whereas modern renewable energy consists of clean non-carbonated energy that requires modern technologies such as solar, hydro, wind and geothermal energy (Bhattacharyya, 2019; Yilanci and Gorus, 2021). The consumption of modern renewable energy is heavily linked to several aspects of sustainable development in regions where it has been adopted and developed.…”

Convergence behaviours of energy series and GDP nexus hypothesis: A non-parametric Bayesian application

“…One observes that most of previous studies are based on per capita energy consumption as indicator for which convergence is analysed [25,[32][33][34][35][36][37]. Often, previous empirical applications constrained the scope of their analyses to large sample of countries [16,17,35,38,39], OECD countries [1,15,40,41] and U.S. states [36,42]. Only a few of them paid an explicit attention to EU countries, but so far, we observe that energy indicators, sub-EU samples, and conclusions differ and often conflicts.…”