Winding down Spain's looming energy poverty amid green energy transition: Evidence from novel multivariate quantile-on-quantile (M-QQR) regression

Abstract

Universal access to energy is instrumental in the pursuit of sustainable development. However, energy security in the era of energy transition has become a massive challenge for energy stakeholders and policymakers. Prolonged winters and energy insecurity issues have forced residents in many European territories to depend more on pollution-intensive biomass energies (i.e., fuelwood), leading to a crackdown on establishing an ecological civilization. As such, we scrutinize how green energy transition (REN), information globalization (IGL), green innovation (GIN), and natural resources rent (RNT) help combat Spain's energy poverty. We use quarterly data from 1990-Q2 to 2021-Q4 and employ novel non-parametric multivariate quantile-on-quantile (M-QQR) and quantile-on-quantile Granger causality approaches. We note the following findings: 1) Renewable energy transition is instrumental in curbing Spain's hidden energy poverty. 2) As the real income falls, low-income residents' energy affordability gets compromised, while the opposite holds for an income hike. 3) Green innovation and resource rent strongly reduce Spain's energy poverty. 4) Moreover, information globalization improves Spain's access to electricity. The findings of our study offer significant policy implications, particularly in the context of the attainment of resilience in energy use through the green revolution aimed at achieving SDGs 7 and 13. These insights can help shape strategies and initiatives to foster sustainable development and address the challenges related to energy security and environmental sustainability.