Toward sustainable electricity generation mix: an econometric analysis of the substitutability of nuclear energy and hydropower for fossil fuels in Canada
Loading...
Date
2021-02
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
International Journal of Green Energy
Abstract
The dominance of fossil fuels in electricity generation fuel mix continues to undermine the importance of
electricity as a critical factor for sustainable economic development. As with most economies of the world,
the Canadian fuel mix for electricity generation is dominated by fossil fuels. This scenario creates both
environmental and resource sustainability challenges. There are questions marks over the potentials of
nonfossil energy sources to address these challenges and ensure a more sustainable electricity generation.
This study aims to examine the potentials of nuclear energy and hydropower to substitute the fossil
fuels of coal and natural gas in electricity generation for Canada. A trans-log production function was
estimated with the ridge regression method to obtain the parameter estimates. The empirical findings
show that, with the exception of coal input, all energy inputs have positive output elasticities, which
indicate that an increase in the energy inputs will increase output in Canada. The results further provide
evidence of positive elasticity of substitution between the non-fossil energy sources and the fossil fuels
which give credence to the hypothesis that clean energy sources such as nuclear energy and hydropower
have the potential to substitute for the fossil fuels of coal and natural gas the electricity generation
process for Canada. The estimates show that the smallest substitution occurs between coal and gas, which
is an additional evidence that clean energy has higher chances of substituting fossil fuels. Policies that
promote the adoption of more renewable and clean energy sources are recommended in the body of the
paper.
Description
Staff Publication
Keywords
Interfuel substitution;, electricity;, nuclear energy;, hydropower;, ridge regression;, Canada
Citation
Sakiru Adebola Solarin, Mufutau Opeyemi Bello & Olabode Eric Olabisi (2021) Toward sustainable electricity generation mix: an econometric analysis of the substitutability of nuclear energy and hydropower for fossil fuels in Canada, International Journal of Green Energy, 18:8, 834-842, DOI: 10.1080/15435075.2021.1880917