The drivers of renewable energy: a global empirical analysis of developed and developing countries

The need for renewable energy is regarded as a major component in the move towards achieving sustainable development. Using a large sample of 177 countries over the period 1990 to 2020, this research explores the impact of the most significant drivers of renewable energy. Findings from this work contribute to the literature by identifying the most significant drivers of renewable energy deployment and their different responses in developed and developing economies. Empirical results suggest that GDP, oil price, access to electricity, and CO₂ and methane emissions are significant determinants of renewables both as a share in energy consumption and as a share in electricity production. Additionally, trade is found to be a significant driver for the share of renewables in total energy consumption but not for the share of renewables in the electricity production model. Finally, our findings indicate that the factors influencing the development of renewables vary significantly between developed and developing countries, necessitating distinct approaches for each group of countries. These results can play a significant role from a policy perspective in designing and implementing specific policies to increase renewable energy deployment.