Powering Nigeria's future: balancing renewable and non-renewable energy for environmental sustainability

This study examines the role of non-renewable and renewable energy sources in promoting environmental sustainability in Nigeria. It also considers the influence of foreign direct investment (FDI), trade openness, and economic growth on environmental degradation. The analysis covers the period from 1990 to 2021, and the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bound test approach is adopted to establish the long-run relationships among the variables. The empirical results reveal that renewable energy contributes negatively but insignificantly to environmental degradation, implying that an increase in renewable energy consumption does not significantly worsen environmental conditions. On the other hand, non-renewable energy consumption has a positive and significant impact on environmental degradation, indicating that reliance on non-renewable energy sources exacerbates environmental problems. Based on these findings, policy recommendations are put forward to enhance environmental sustainability in Nigeria. These include promoting the adoption and investment in renewable energy technologies, increasing the share of renewable energy in the energy mix, and implementing measures to reduce dependence on non-renewable energy sources. Additionally, efforts should be made to attract sustainable foreign direct investment, foster trade practices that prioritize environmental considerations, and pursue sustainable economic growth strategies that decouple economic development from environmental degradation. By implementing these policy suggestions, Nigeria can move towards a more sustainable and environmentally friendly energy system while maintaining economic growth and attracting foreign investments.