Efficiency assessment of electricity generation from renewable and non‐renewable energy sources using Data Envelopment Analysis

Abstract

Summary This study assesses the efficiency of electricity generation from renewable and non‐renewable energy sources, by evaluating 126 countries selected as decision‐making units from different continents in the period between 2000 and 2016, using the Data Envelopment Analysis methodology. The model used is Banker‐Charnes‐Cooper output‐oriented, taking into account the totality of electricity generation. Input variables correspond to capacities of electricity generation, such as coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear, hydroelectric, wind, solar, geothermal, tidal, biomass and waste. Output variables are the amounts of electricity produced by each of these sources and carbon dioxide equivalent avoided by each country due to the use of renewable energies in electricity production. Results show that units' efficiency is often set between 60.0% and 79.9%, and countries such as Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Canada, China, South Korea, the United States, France, Paraguay, Russia and South Africa are efficient throughout the study period. It is highlighted that Oceanian countries obtained the highest average efficiency among other evaluated countries, discriminated by continents.

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