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Energy Sustainability in the 21st Century

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 February 2027 | Viewed by 1755

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Tonmoy Choudhury

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Business and Management, Rochester Institute of Technology (Dubai Campus), Block C 308 Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai P.O. Box 341055, United Arab Emirates
Interests: risk management; sustainable investment; energy economics; volatility transference
Dr. Panagiotis Kokkalis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Business and Management, Rochester Institute of Technology, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
2. Department of Strategy, Enterprise, and Sustainability, Manchester Metropolitan University Business School, Manchester, UK
Interests: sustainability in education; philosophical perspectives in education; decision making; ethics of AI
Dr. Fakhrul Hasan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Finance, Newcastle Business School, Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK
Interests: pro-environmental attitude; environmental sustainability; behavioural finance; public finance; FinTech
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue, Energy Sustainability in the 21st Century, focuses on the technological, socio‑economic and policy dimensions of achieving sustainable energy systems in a rapidly changing global landscape. Its scope spans renewable energy deployment, energy efficiency, low‑carbon transitions and the tools and metrics needed to define, measure and monitor sustainability in the energy sector. The purpose is to bring together interdisciplinary research that advances understanding of how energy systems can support long‑term environmental, economic and social well‑being.

Building on existing literature in sustainable development, this issue supplements prior work by integrating technical energy research with broader sustainability frameworks, including policy implementation, socio‑economic impacts and global change assessment—areas emphasized in Sustainability’s aims and scope. By highlighting empirical evidence, methodological innovations and case studies from diverse regions, the Special Issue contributes to the journal’s mission to support the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and to promote reproducible, transdisciplinary research that informs sustainable energy policies and practices. Based on these discussions, the following topics might be suitable for this Special Issue:

  • Volatility transmission of energy asset base
  • Renewable Energy Transitions
  • Energy Efficiency Innovations
  • Low‑Carbon Development Strategies
  • Socio-Economic Dimensions of Energy Sustainability
  • Sustainable Energy Policy and Governance

Dr. Tonmoy Choudhury
Dr. Panagiotis Kokkalis
Dr. Fakhrul Hasan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • energy sustainability
  • energy economics
  • renewable energy
  • energy efficiency
  • low‑carbon transition
  • sustainable development

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 1493 KB  
Article
Stochastic Assessment of Availability Factors: The Case of Spain
by Roberto Álvarez Fernández and Borja Dalmau Giménez
Sustainability 2026, 18(9), 4527; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18094527 - 4 May 2026
Viewed by 797
Abstract
Following the massive power cut in Spain on 28 April 2025, questions have been raised about the reliability of energy generation infrastructure in the face of the variability of renewable energy sources. On the other hand, the market penetration of electric vehicles and [...] Read more.
Following the massive power cut in Spain on 28 April 2025, questions have been raised about the reliability of energy generation infrastructure in the face of the variability of renewable energy sources. On the other hand, the market penetration of electric vehicles and their charging requirements implies the need for knowledge about the availability of electric generation technologies. This research work presents a macro-level analysis of the availability factor of electricity generation mix, applied to the case of Spain and based on data collected between 2019 and 2024. Using hourly generation and installed capacity data, a methodology is developed to estimate the seasonal and daily availability of the main generation technologies: photovoltaic, solar thermal, wind, hydroelectric, nuclear, combined cycle, coal and others. The analysis reveals that conventional sources, such as nuclear and combined cycles, exhibit low variability, with daily fluctuation of less than 1%. In contrast, renewable sources show significant variability. Photovoltaic availability increases from 22.6% ± 1.3% in the early morning to 57.8% ± 0.6% during summer afternoons, while solar thermal energy reaches a maximum of 78.5% ± 1.3% under the same conditions. The results highlight the uncertainty generated by the high penetration of renewable energy and the challenges posed by balancing generation with demand, particularly given new consumption patterns influenced, for example, by electric vehicles, battery storage and green hydrogen, among others. The integration of probabilistic planning frameworks into infrastructure development and the extension of this analysis to the provincial level, together with the incorporation of restriction and self-consumption scenarios involving constraints and self-consumption, will help to ensure the robust operation of the grid in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Energy Sustainability in the 21st Century)
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33 pages, 1056 KB  
Article
Barriers and Socio-Economic Drivers of Renewable Energy Adoption Among Manufacturing SMEs: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach
by Tanvir Fittin Abir, Md. Mamun Mia and Jewel Kumar Roy
Sustainability 2026, 18(8), 3809; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18083809 - 11 Apr 2026
Viewed by 667
Abstract
Background: Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) constitute a large portion of the industrial energy demand in the emerging economies, but their shift to renewable energy is not well comprehended at the firm level. Bangladesh is a special case, since the country has adopted [...] Read more.
Background: Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) constitute a large portion of the industrial energy demand in the emerging economies, but their shift to renewable energy is not well comprehended at the firm level. Bangladesh is a special case, since the country has adopted national commitments to Sustainable Development Goal 7 on clean energy, but the uptake of renewable energy by SMEs remains minimal due to complex socio-economic factors. Most of the literature has concentrated on household access to energy or national policy models, leaving a gap in empirically validated models of firm-level adoption in the manufacturing sector. Method: Based on the diffusion of innovation theory, institutional theory, and the resource-based view, this research paper formulates and empirically verifies a combined socio-economic model of renewable energy adoption. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze a cross-sectional survey of 426 owners and managers of manufacturing SMEs in Bangladesh’s textile and food processing sub-sectors. Findings: Four out of five hypothesized direct relationships were supported. The most important drivers were environmental orientation (β = 0.467, p < 0.001, f2 = 0.413), market competitiveness (β = 0.287, p < 0.001, f2 = 0.413), policy and institutional factors (β = 0.211, p < 0.001, f2 = 0.413), and access to finance (β = 0.096, p = 0.004). Perceptions of cost did not become significant (β= −0.036, p = 0.279). Top management support significantly and negatively moderated the relationship between environmental orientation and adoption (β = −0.093, p = 0.003), possibly because it moderates the substitution mechanism in SME decision-making, which is highly centralized. The model accounted for 64.5% of the variation in renewable energy adoption (R2 = 0.645). Conclusion: The results show that attitudinal and institutional factors tend to be more important than financial barriers in determining SMEs’ energy transitions. Environmental consciousness, market incentives, and streamlined institutional access should be the focus of policy interventions to hasten inclusive low-carbon transitions in emerging manufacturing economies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Energy Sustainability in the 21st Century)
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