The impact of energy transition on economic growth: The case of Morocco

Abstract

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions responsible for global warming, the depletion of fossil resources, the instability of oil prices exacerbated by geopolitical tensions and the constant increase in energy demand, are all factors favoring the development of renewable energies (RE). In these circumstances, in order to meet the growing demand for energy while preserving the environment, Morocco has bet on RE and energy efficiency, in order to reconcile economic development and environmental protection. The purpose of this article is to examine the impact of the energy transition on economic growth in Morocco. To do this, we used the terminal cointegration test proposed by (Pesaran et al, 2001) and causality in the sense of (Toda Yamamoto, 1995) to respectively test the existence of a long-term relationship and a causal relationship between , GDP and RE consumption per capita in Morocco from 1980 to 2017. The results of the ARDL cointegration test indicate the appearance of a cointegration link between GDP per capita, consumption of renewable energies per capita, consumption of non-renewable energies per capita and gross fixed capital formation per capita.

Keywords: Renewable energy, Non-renewable energy, Investment, Economic growth, Morocco, ARDL, Toda & Yamamoto.

Classification JEL : Q56.

Paper type : Applied Research