O carbon lock-in and the wind and photovoltaic energies in Brazil in the 21st century
Keywords:
Carbon lock-in, Wind energy, Photovoltaic energy
Abstract
This article discusses the carbon lock-in, a phenomenon resulting from a path dependent technological change process on carbon-intensive technologies that are harmful to the environment, reinforced by the inertia of institutions and policies and by the resistance of the incumbents. In particular, it discusses the specificities of technological and political-institutional lock-in in Brazil, identifying obstacles to the energy transition, related to the lock-in, both in relation to fossil fossils and to hydroelectricity. In this context, alternative energy sources, such as wind and, to a greater extent, photovoltaics, despite its high potentials, are largely unexplored. Even so, the installed capacity growth rate throughout the beginning of the 21st century and the growth in the participation of these sources in the total electric energy generated demonstrate their important evolutions in the country, especially in the case of wind, largely as result of a series of government policies.
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References
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ABEEÓLICA. Boletim anual de geração eólica 2019. São Paulo: Associação Brasileira de Energia Eólica, 2020.
ABSOLAR. Infográfico ABSOLAR Nº 24. Associação Brasileira de Energia Solar Fotovoltaica, 2020. Disponível em:
AMARANTE, O. A. C..; BROWER, M.; ZACK, J.; SÁ, A. L. Atlas do potencial eólico brasileiro. Brasília: Centro de Pesquisas de Energia Elétrica (CEPEL), 2001.
ANFAVEA. Anuário da indústria automobilística brasileira 2020: Conhecer, avaliar, reformar. São Paulo: Associação Nacional dos Fabricantes de Veículos Automotores, 2020.
ARTHUR, W. B. Competing technologies, increasing returns, and lock-in by historical events. The economic journal, JSTOR, v. 99, n. 394, p. 116–131, 1989.
ARTHUR, W. B. Positive feedbacks in the economy. Scientific American, JSTOR, v. 262, n. 2, p. 92–99, 1990.
AVELINO, L. P. Energia solar fotovoltaica centralizada e distribuída: o caso do Brasil. 89 p. Dissertação (Mestrado em Economia e Gestão do Ambiente) – Faculdade de Economia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, 2020.
BLOOMBERGNEF. Global trends in renewable energy investment 2019. Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, 2019.
BRADSHAW, A. Regulatory change and innovation in Latin America: The case of renewable energy in Brazil. Utilities Policy, Elsevier, v. 49, p. 156–164, 2017.
CARSTENS, D. D. dos S.; CUNHA, S. K. da. Challenges and opportunities for the growth of solar photovoltaic energy in Brazil. Energy policy, Elsevier, v. 125, p. 396–404, 2019.
COADY, D.; PARRY, I.; LE, N.-P.; SHANG, B. Global fossil fuel subsidies remain large: an update based on country-level estimates. IMF Working Papers, International Monetary Fund, v. 19, n. 89, p. 39, 2019.
DOSI, G. Technological paradigms and technological trajectories: a suggested interpretation of the determinants and directions of technical change. Research policy, Elsevier, v. 11, n. 3, p. 147–162, 1982.
DOSI, G. Sources, procedures, and microeconomic effects of innovation. Journal of economic literature, JSTOR, p. 1120–1171, 1988.
EDLER, J.; FAGERBERG, J. Innovation policy: what, why, and how. Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press, v. 33, n. 1, p. 2–23, 2017.
ENERDATA. Global Energy Statistical Yearbook 2019. ENERDATA, 2019. Disponível em:
EPE. Anuário Estatístico de Energia Elétrica 2018. Brasília: Empresa de Pesquisa Energética, 2019.
FERRAÇO, A. L. Transição energética no Brasil: entraves e possibilidades no âmbito institucional. 82 p. Dissertação (Mestrado em Estudos Latino Americanos) – Departamento de Estudos Latino Americanos, Leiden, 2016.
FOXON, T. J. Technological and institutional ‘lock-in’ as a barrier to sustainable innovation. Imperial College Centre for Policy and Technology Working Paper, 2002.
FRAUNDORFER, M.; RABITZ, F. The brazilian renewable energy policy framework: instrument design and coherence. Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis, v. 20, n. 5, p. 652–660, 2020.
FURTADO, A. T.; PERROT, R. Innovation dynamics of the wind energy industry in South Africa and Brazil: technological and institutional lock-ins. Innovation and Development, Taylor & Francis, v. 5, n. 2, p. 263–278, 2015.
HOCHSTETLER, K.; KOSTKA, G. Wind and solar power in Brazil and China: interests, state–business relations, and policy outcomes. Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, v. 15, n. 3, p. 74–94, 2015.
IEA. Data and statistics. International Energy Agency, 2020a. Disponível em:
IEA. Energy subsidies. International Energy Agency, 2020b. Disponível em:
INESC. Incentivos e Subsídios aos Combustíveis Fósseis no Brasil em 2019: Conhecer, avaliar, reformar. Brasília: Instituto de Estudos Socioeconômicos, 2020.
IRENA. Data and Statistics. International Renewable Energy Agency, 2020a. Disponível em:
IRENA. Renewable capacity highlights: 31 march 2020. International Renewable Energy Agency, 2020b.
IRENA. Renewable energy and jobs: annual review 2020. International Renewable Energy Agency, 2020c.
IRENA. Renewable power generation costs in 2019. International Renewable Energy Agency, 2020d.
JUÁREZ, A. A.; ARAÚJO, A. M.; ROHATGI, J. S.; FILHO, O. D. Q. O. Development of the wind power in Brazil: Political, social and technical issues. Renewable and sustainable energy reviews, Elsevier, v. 39, p. 828–834, 2014.
KEMP, R.; NEVER, B. Green transition, industrial policy, and economic development. Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press UK, v. 33, n. 1, p. 66–84, 2017.
LOSEKANN, L.; HALLACK, M. Novas energias renováveis no brasil: desafios e oportunidades. In: NEGRI, J. A. D.; ARAÚJO, B. C.; BACELETTE, R. (Ed.). Desafios da Nação: artigos de apoio, volume 2. Brasília: Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada (Ipea), 2018. p. 631–655.
LUCENA, J. d. A. Y.; LUCENA, K. Â. A. Wind energy in Brazil: an overview and perspectives under the triple bottom line. Clean Energy, Oxford University Press UK, v. 3, n. 2, p. 69–84, 2019.
MATHEWS, J. A.; REINERT, E. S. Renewables, manufacturing and green growth: energy strategies based on capturing increasing returns. Futures, Elsevier, v. 61, p. 13–22, 2014.
MAZZUCATO, M. O Estado Empreendedor: desmascarando o mito do setor público vs. setor privado. São Paulo: Portfolio-Penguin, 2014.
MELO, C. A.; JANNUZZI, G. M.; BAJAY, S. V. Nonconventional renewable energy governance in brazil: Lessons to learn from the german experience. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, v. 61, p. 222–234, 2016.
MONTEIRO, N. d. S. C.; MONTEIRO, R. A. B.; MARIANO, J. D.; JUNIOR, J. U.; ROMANO, C. A. Brazil market outlook for photovoltaic solar energy: a survey study. Current Journal of Applied Science and Technology, p. 1–11, 2017.
NORTH, D. Institutions, institutional change and economic performance. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990.
ORENSTEIN, L.; SOCHACZEWSKI, A. C. Democracia com desenvolvimento: 1956-1961. In: ABREU, M. d. P. (Ed.). A ordem do progresso: cem anos de política econômica republicana. Rio de Janeiro: Elsevier, 2014. p. 157–177.
PEREIRA, E. B. Segurança Energética: perspectivas no enfrentamento às mudanças climáticas globais. Conferência Internacional do INCT para Mudanças Climáticas, 2016. Disponível em:
PEREIRA, E. B.; LIMA, J. H. G. Solar and wind energy resource assessment in Brazil. [S.l.]: National Institute for Space Research, 2008.
PEREZ, C. Microelectronics, long waves and world structural change: new perspectives for developing countries. World development, v. 13, n. 3, p. 441–463, 1985.
REN21. Renewables 2020 global status report. Paris: REN21, 2020.
Disponível em:
RITCHIE, H.; ROSER, M. Energy. Our World in Data, 2018. Disponível em: https://ourworldindata.org/renewable-energy/. Acesso em: 8 mai. 2020.
SETO, K. C.; DAVIS, S. J.; MITCHELL, R. B.; STOKES, E. C.; UNRUH, G.; ÜRGE-VORSATZ, D. Carbon lock-in: types, causes, and policy implications. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, Annual Reviews, v. 41, p. 425–452, 2016.
SILVA, G. D. P. D.; MAGRINI, A.; TOLMASQUIM, M. T.; BRANCO, D. A. C. Environmental licensing and energy policy regulating utility-scale solar photovoltaic installations in Brazil: status and future perspectives. Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal, Taylor & Francis, v. 37, n. 6, p. 503–515, 2019.
UNRUH, G. C. Understanding carbon lock-in. Energy policy, Elsevier, v. 28, n. 12, p. 817–830, 2000.
UNRUH, G. C. Escaping carbon lock-in. Energy policy, Elsevier, v. 30, n. 4, p. 317–325, 2002.
UNRUH, G. C.; CARRILLO-HERMOSILLA, J. Globalizing carbon lock-in. Energy Policy, Elsevier, v. 34, n. 10, p. 1185–1197, 2006.
WORLD BANK. Fossil fuel energy consumption (% of total). World Bank, 2019. Disponível em:
Published
2022-08-25
How to Cite
Corrêa, L., & Cário, S. (2022). O carbon lock-in and the wind and photovoltaic energies in Brazil in the 21st century. A Economia Em Revista - AERE, 30(1). https://doi.org/10.4025/econrev.v30i1.59587
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