Diffusion of Renewable Energy for Electricity: An Analysis for Leading Countries

Many countries are undertaking their energy transition process, by investing in renewable energy technologies, in order to face climate change and energy security problems. This paper investigates the temporal trends of the diffusion process of renewable energies, namely, wind and solar, in leading countries for their consumption. In doing so, a bivariate diffusion model is employed to investigate the possibly competitive dynamics between renewables and the top source for electricity production in each country. The obtained results confirm a significant competitive pressure enacted by renewables on the top source. A notable exception is represented by the USA, where renewables appear to reinforce the dominant position of gas.