Energías renovables y desarrollo económico. Un análisis para España y las grandes economías europeas.

Background: This paper assesses the sustainability of the Spanish economic development model for the period 1980-2010. Moreover, we carry out a comparative analysis with the biggest European economies: France, Germany, Italy and United Kingdom. Methods: In order to achieve the aim of this paper, co-integration techniques have been applied. Through these techniques, we have analyzed the long-term relationship between consumption of renewable and non-renewable and economic development and pollution during the period 1980-2010. After a selection process, for Spain we have used to measure growth the GDP and the Gross Capital Formation; to measure development, the Index of Human Development and Social Capital; for pollution, the emissions of CO2 and consumption of renewable energy in the electricity system and oil consumption for the consumption of renewable and non-renewable, respectively. Secondly, we have compared the results obtained for the Spanish economy with the four biggest economies in the European Union: Germany, France, Italy and the United Kingdom. Given the availability of data for these countries Gross Capital Formation and Human Development Index have been excluded from the analysis. Results: First, a positive impact of consumption of renewable and renewable energy on growth and development is found for the five countries under study, with a greater impact of non-renewable energy. For the three countries for which the data for CO2 emissions are available (Spain, France and the UK), it is observed that the reducing effect of renewable energy on CO2 emissions is less than the polluting effect of non-renewable energy. Second, for Spain, Germany and France, the data point out a feedback process between the consumption of non-renewable and growth and development, which is not observed with the consumption of renewable energy. Conclusions: In order to reconcile the objective of growth with the reduction of pollution, more moderate growth rates are required. The growth model of the countries analyzed stimulates consumption of non-renewable energy, but not renewable. This result points out the requirement of designing policies that encourage the substitution of non-renewable energy by renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]