Investigating the energy security performance, productivity, and economic growth for the EU

Abstract

AbstractEnergy is one of the key elements of economies. The maintenance of daily economic activities would not be possible without assurance of energy security, which is also a critical contributor to sustainable energy. The European Union (EU) strives to protect the energy security of its members in order to prevent supply problems or crises. The main purpose of our analysis is to evaluate the energy security of EU countries by analyzing their performance, productivity, and relationship with economic growth. Using hybrid and comparative MCDM and Malmquist productivity approaches, we assess the static and dynamic energy security performance of the EU countries in the period from 2014 to 2018. We use IDOCRIW‐weighted SAW, MARCOS, and CODAS techniques for static performance measurement and the Malmquist productivity approach for dynamic performance evaluation. Considering both static and dynamic performance among developed EU countries, Denmark is found to be superior. Further, the Malmquist productivity index results indicate a slight improvement for developed countries and deterioration for developing countries. According to the panel data analysis, energy security is a factor that leads to economic growth. Consequently, energy efficiency initiatives such as efficiency action plans, hybrid and electric vehicles, and energy storage advancements play crucial roles in enhancing the EU's energy security.