Towards the development of underutilized renewable energy resources in achieving carbon neutrality

Abstract

Rapid population growth, industrialization, and socioeconomic development have continued to give rise to increased energy consumption. The global energy sector has been overshadowed by the utilization of fossil-based energy sources with their attendant economic, ecological, and human health consequences. Though the share of renewable energy (RE) production and utilization in the global energy mix has increased in the last few decades, the percentage of deployment indicates that the sector is nonetheless grossly underexploited and underutilized. The current intervention examines strategies for achieving increased development and utilization of hydropower, solar power, wind energy, geothermal, nuclear, and ocean power technologies as cost-effective, eco-friendly, and low-emission RE sources. The strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats, and strategies for attaining rapid development and utilization of the underutilized RE sources are examined. The study recommends increased funding and investment, enactment, and implementation of appropriate policies, legal, and regulatory frameworks, human capacity and infrastructural development, improved technologies and innovations, and strengthening of security and safety measures to energy security and sustainability. Governments from various jurisdictions should initiate policies, fund research on novel conversion techniques, and engage in international collaborations to hasten the development and utilization of the underutilized RE towards achieving carbon neutrality.