Revisiting the Nexus between Non-Renewable Energy Consumption and Economic Growth in South Africa : New Evidence from a Non-Linear Ardl Model

This paper aims to re-examine the impact of non-renewable energy consumption on economic growth in South Africa using disaggregated data over the period from 1970 to 2020. The study uses a non-linear ARDL model based to examine this linkage. In addition, the study uses disaggregated levels of energy consumption, namely electricity, coal, gas, and oil. The study found that there is a long-run non-linear relationship between energy consumption and economic growth in all energy consumption proxies, with the exception of electricity consumption. In the main, the study found that i) a positive shock in coal consumption has a positive impact on economic growth in the long run; ii) negative and positive shocks in gas consumption have a positive impact on economic growth in the long- and short run, respectively; and iii) a negative shock in oil consumption has a positive impact on economic growth in the short- and long run