Who's winning the low-carbon innovation race? An assessment of countries' leadership in renewable energy technologies

Clément Bonnet (1, 2) , Emmanuel Hache (1, 3, 2) , Gondia Sokhna Seck (1) , Marine Simoen (1) , Samuel Carcanague (3)

1 IFPEN - IFP Energies nouvelles
2 EconomiX
3 IRIS - Institut de Relations Internationales et Stratégiques

Intellectual property is a central issue in climate negotiations. On the one hand, it shapes and encourages innovation in low-carbon technologies. On the other hand, it can reduce access to these technologies by giving patent holders market power. We analyse the interactions between climate negotiations and the acquisition of renewable energy technology patents. First, we present the history of climate negotiations, emphasizing the role of technologies. Second, we conduct an empirical analysis aimed at determining which countries could be considered leaders in renewable energy technologies (RETs). Major changes were observed in the geographical distribution of low-carbon innovation during the 2000s, foreshadowing a reorganization of the geopolitical balances of innovation in renewable energies.

Keywords: Q55; O31; O38; Patent data; International relations; energy transition; renewable energy technology; innovation; international relations JEL Classification: Q42

Domains: Humanities and Social Sciences; Economics and Finance

Clément Bonnet, Emmanuel Hache, Gondia Sokhna Seck, Marine Simoen, Samuel Carcanague. Who's winning the low-carbon innovation race? An assessment of countries' leadership in renewable energy technologies. International Economics, 2019, 160, pp.31-42. ⟨10.1016/j.inteco.2019.07.006⟩. ⟨hal-02417569⟩