Comparing renewable energy import options: Toward a multidimensional approach

The current energy crisis has dramatically increased pressures to accelerate the transition of energy systems away from fossil fuels towards renewable sources. The transition has high salience for the fight against climate change and requires the decarbonization of sectors with considerable fossil fuel consumption. Moreover, for many European countries, the Russian war on Ukraine has essentially eliminated the option of using natural gas as a bridging technology to compensate for the volatility of renewables in the transition process. In this urgent situation, high hopes are being placed on the development of renewable energy (RE) trade, that is the storage, transport, and on-demand release of RE by means of different technologies, including carriers such as hydrogen and metals. The emerging trade market unlocks considerable opportunities for RE producers, especially for sunshine and wind abundant countries. However, as prospective RE importers need to consider the energy trilemma of cost effectiveness, security of supply, and sustainability, it is unclear how to choose as potential partner countries. In this paper, we focus on the case of Germany and the possibility of using iron as a carbon-free carrier of renewable energy to develop a multidimensional approach for assessing and comparing RE import options. We discuss different aspects that need to be considered in the selection of partner countries and conduct an exploratory factor analysis on a global country sample to identify meaningful dimensions and criteria which may be used to assess potential RE trade partnerships. Our approach combining multiple criteria along four dimensions, namely, (1) economy, (2) sustainability, (3) regulation and governance, and (4) cooperation and innovation advances our understanding of RE import options and may provide important guidance for developing clean energy trade partnerships in energy transitions.