The Impact of Natural Gas, Oil, and Renewables Consumption on Carbon Dioxide Emissions: European Evidence

Oil and natural gas rents and CO2 emissions nexus in MENA: spatial analysis

Background

Oil rents (OR) and natural gas rents (NGR) have significant contributions to the income of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) economies and may increase emissions. Moreover, spatial autocorrelation is expected in carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions due to the geographically closed economies in the MENA region. Thus, we examine the impact of OR and NGR on CO₂ emissions caring spatial dimensions and analyze the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC).

Methods

We apply the spatial Durbin model technique on the effects of OR, NGR, and economic growth on CO₂ emissions in 17 MENA nations from 2000-2019, i.e., Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Yemen. Moreover, diagnostic tests are applied to reach the most appropriate spatial specification and to have the most robust results.

Results

The results disclose that CO₂ emissions have spillovers and emissions of any country can damage the environment of neighboring countries. The EKC is corroborated with a turning point of 38,698 constant 2015 US dollars. Israel and Qatar are in 2^nd phase of the EKC, and 15 MENA economies are in 1^st stage. Thus, the economic expansion of most economies has ecological concerns. The effect of natural gas rents is found statistically insignificant. Oil rents have minute negative effects on emissions of local economies with an elasticity coefficient of -0.2117. Nevertheless, these have a positive indirect effect with an elasticity coefficient of 0.5328. Thus, the net effect of oil rents is positive. One percent increase in oil rents could accelerate 0.3211% of emissions. Thus, we suggest the MENA countries reduce reliance on oil rents in their income to avoid the negative environmental effects of the oil sector.

The "Vertigo" of the Food Sector within the Triangle of Climate Change, the Post-Pandemic World, and the Russian-Ukrainian War

Over the last few years, the world has been facing dramatic changes due to a condensed period of multiple crises, including climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russian-Ukrainian war. Although different, these consecutive crises share common characteristics (e.g., systemic shocks and non-stationary nature) and impacts (e.g., disruption of markets and supply chains), questioning food safety, security, and sustainability. The current article analyses the effects of the noted crises in the food sector before proposing target mitigation measures to address the different challenges. The goal is to transform the food systems to increase their resilience and sustainability. This goal can only be achieved if all relevant actors within the supply chain (e.g., governments, companies, distributors, farmers, etc.) play their role by designing and implementing target interventions and policies. In addition, the transformation of the food sector should be proactive concerning food safety, circular (valorizing several bioresources under the principles of climate neutral economy and blue bioeconomy), digital (based on Industry 4.0 applications), and inclusive (ensuring that all citizens are actively engaged). Food production modernization (e.g., by implementing emerging technologies) and developing shorter and more domestic supply chains are also critical to achieving food resilience and security.

A comparative study on renewable and traditional electricity: The influence of the European Union framework and the impact of COVID-19

By means of the event study approach, we analyse the effect of COVID-19 on listed European renewable and traditional electricity companies, inside and outside the European Union, for the pandemic announcement and lockdowns. We find that the pandemic negatively affected both subsectors of electricity production, but the negative effect was more intense for renewable electricity companies, since they represent a riskier investment. Moreover, this negative effect was larger for European electricity companies than for companies from countries that do not belong to the European Union. Our results show the riskier profile of the clean energy industry together with the importance of a stable and supportive regulatory framework to develop and consolidate renewable energy. Our findings have important implications for policymakers. In addition to the intrinsic risks associated with renewable energy, this type of investment poses policy and regulatory risks, which they should take into account when evaluating future energy policies. Policymakers must be aware of the importance of these specific risks, and seek to respond to investors' expectations about long-term, stable regulations.