|
on Energy Economics |
| By: | Rick van der Ploeg; Armon Rezai |
| Abstract: | If global warming is to stay below 2°C, there are four risks of assets stranding. First, substantial fossil fuel reserves will be stranded at the end of the fossil era. Second, this will be true for exploration capital too. Third, unanticipated changes in present or expected future climate policy cause instantaneous discrete jumps in today’s valuation of physical and natural capital. Fourth, if timing and intensity of climate policy are uncertain, revaluation of assets occurs as uncertainty about future climate policy is resolved. E.g. abandoning climate policy plans immediately boosts scarcity rent, market capitalization, exploration investment and discoveries. To explain and quantify these four effects, we use an analytical model of investment in exploration capital with intertemporal adjustment costs, depletion of reserves and market capitalization, and calibrate it to the global oil and gas industry. Climate policy implements a carbon budget commensurate with 2°C peak warming and we allow for different instruments: immediate or delayed carbon taxes and renewable subsidies. The social welfare ranking of these instruments is inverse to that of the oil and gas industry which prefers renewable subsidy and delaying taxes for as long as possible. We also pay attention to how the legislative “risk” of tipping into policy action affects the timing of the end of the fossil era, the profitability of existing capital, and green paradox effects. |
| Keywords: | fossil fuel, exploration investment, discoveries, stranded carbon assets, stock prices, irreversible capital, adjustment costs, policy tipping, botched climate policies |
| JEL: | D20 D53 D92 G11 H32 Q02 Q38 Q54 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7769&r=all |
| By: | Geoffrey Heal; Wolfram Schlenker |
| Abstract: | A carbon tax has been widely discussed as a way of reducing fossil fuel use and mitigating climate change, generally in a static framework. Unlike standard goods that can be produced, oil is an exhaustible resource. Parts of its price reflects scarcity rents, i.e., the fact that there is limited availability. We highlight important dynamic aspects of a global carbon tax, which will reallocate consumption through time: some of the initial reduction in consumption will be offset through higher consumption later on. Only reserves with high enough extraction cost will be priced out of the market. Using data from a large proprietary database of field-level oil data, we show that carbon prices even as high as 200 dollars per ton of CO2 will only reduce cumulative emissions from oil by 4% as the supply curve is very steep for high oil prices and few reserves drop out. The supply curve flattens out for lower price, and the effect of an increased carbon tax becomes larger. For example, a carbon price of 600 dollars would reduce cumulative emissions by 60%. On the flip side, a global cap and trade system that limits global extraction by a modest amount like 4% expropriates a large fraction of scarcity rents and would imply a high permit price of $200. The tax incidence varies over time: initially, about 75% of the carbon price will be passed on to consumers, but this share declines through time and even becomes negative as oil prices will drop in future years relative to a case of no carbon tax. The net present value of producer and consumer surplus decrease by roughly equal amounts, which are almost entirely offset by increased tax revenues. |
| JEL: | Q41 Q54 |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26086&r=all |
| By: | Bragoudakis, Zacharias; Degiannakis, Stavros; Filis, George |
| Abstract: | The aim of this study is to assess whether fuel prices in Greece respond asymmetrically to changes in the global oil prices. To do so, we depart from the current practice in the literature that focuses on fuel prices. Rather, we consider the mark-up of both the refineries and retailers. Even more, unlike the bulk of the existing literature, we take into consideration the whole supply chain, i.e. both the refineries and the retail fuel sector. Hence, we first assess whether the refineries’ mark-up responds asymmetrically to the global oil prices and subsequently whether the retailers’ mark-up shows an asymmetric behaviour relatively to changes in the refineries’ fuel prices. Our findings show that the Greek fuel retailers do not change their mark-up behaviour based on changes of the refined fuel price. By contrast, the asymmetric behaviour is evident in the refineries mark-up relatively to changes in the global oil prices, which is then passed through to the retailers and consumers. Finally, we convincingly show that weekly and monthly data mask any such asymmetric relationship. Thus, we maintain that unless the appropriate data frequency, fuel price transformations and the whole supply chain are considered, misleading findings could be revealed. |
| Keywords: | Oil price shocks, fuel prices, asymmetric responses, rockets and feathers, pass-through. |
| JEL: | C22 C32 D40 Q41 |
| Date: | 2019–05–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:95407&r=all |
| By: | Grant Allan (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde); Kevin Connolly (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde); Peter McGregor (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde); Andrew G Ross (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde) |
| Abstract: | Given public investment in renewable energy technologies, it is important to understand the contribution these make to the economy. Various methods have been used to quantify impacts, such as job counts, surveys and measures based on economic statistics. Economic modelling approaches on the other hand appear to offer an ability to both provide metrics of interest to policy makers, and crucially an understanding of the activities which support that contribution. In this paper, we implement a “hypothetical extraction†of UK activities related to renewable electricity generation – specifically focusing on offshore wind – to identify the contribution that they make to economic activity as well as job quality, and emissions. Undertaking the partial extraction of offshore wind from an aggregated IO table, and then subsequently from one in which we have separated out the offshore wind electricity sector, we highlight the value of more disaggregation and technology-specific detail in economic accounts. We find that a significant portion of activity supported by offshore wind is supported by expansions in capacity, in addition to the operation of existing offshore wind activity, giving policymakers important information on the likely path of economic impacts related to renewable energy activities |
| Keywords: | low carbon economy, industrial strategy, supply chain, offshore wind, economic impact |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:str:wpaper:1911&r=all |
| By: | Abrell, Jan (University of Basel); Chavaz, Léo (University of Basel); Weigt, Hannes (University of Basel) |
| Abstract: | Natural gas plays an important role in many European energy systems especially with regard to the envisioned transition towards a less carbon intensive energy supply. Being dependent on imports - especially from Russia - this raises questions about the future development and security of Europe's gas supply. Using a numerical network model of the European gas system we assess 1) the potential impact of infrastructure extensions for Europe's gas supply and 2) the role of supply security policies in coping with a disruption of Russian imports via the Ukraine. Our results indicate that overall the European gas infrastructure is sufficient for average market conditions. Due to the strong dependency on Russian imports, however, disruptions during the winter months could lead to load curtailment. Projected network extension (Southern Gas Corridor, Nord Stream 2, and new LNG terminals) or a strategic storage policy coordinated across Europe has the potential to reduce this shortage. The positive impact of an extended network, however, also depends on the capability of the global gas market to provide flexible gas that can be reallocated towards Europe. The majority of demand curtailment can already by countered by a relatively modest amount of strategic storage (20% to 30%) if their use during crisis situations is coordination across European countries. |
| Keywords: | Europe, natural gas, North Stream, network model, storage, supply security |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bsl:wpaper:2019/11&r=all |
| By: | Foroni, Claudia; Stracca, Livio |
| Abstract: | We focus on the implications of the shale oil boom for the global supply of oil. We begin with a stylized model with two producers, one facing low production costs and one higher production costs but potentially lower adjustment costs, competing à la Stackelberg. We find that the supply function is flatter for the high cost producer, and that the supply function for shale oil producers becomes more responsive to demand shocks when adjustment costs decline. On the empirical side, we apply an instrumental variable approach using estimates of demand-driven oil price changes derived from a standard structural VAR of the oil market. A main finding is that global oil supply is rather vertical, practically all the time. Moreover, for the global oil market as a whole, we do not find evidence of a major shift to a more price elastic supply as a result of the shale oil boom. JEL Classification: Q33, Q41, Q43, C32 |
| Keywords: | instrumental variables, oil shocks, oil supply, shale oil, sign restrictions, structural VAR |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ecb:ecbwps:20192309&r=all |
| By: | Kilian, Lutz; Zhou, Xiaoqing |
| Abstract: | We study the efficacy of releases from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) within the context of fully specified models of the global oil market that explicitly allow for storage demand as well as unanticipated changes in the SPR. Using novel identifying strategies and evaluation methods, we examine seven questions. First, how much have exogenous shocks to the SPR contributed to the variability in the real price of oil? Second, how much would a one-time exogenous reduction in the SPR lower the real price of oil? Third, are exogenous SPR releases partially or fully offset by increases in private sector oil inventories and how does this response affect the transmission of SPR policy shocks? Fourth, how effective were actual SPR policy interventions, consisting of sequences of exogenous changes in the SPR, at lowering the real price of oil? Fifth, are there differences in the effectiveness of SPR emergency drawdowns and SPR exchanges? Sixth, how much did the creation and expansion of the SPR contribute to higher real oil prices? Finally, how much would selling half of the oil in the SPR, as recently proposed by the White House, lower the global price of oil (and hence the U.S. price of motor gasoline) and how much fiscal revenue would it generate? |
| Keywords: | counterfactual; crude oil; Expectations; Fiscal policy; oil inventories; Policy intervention; SPR; Storage |
| JEL: | E62 Q38 Q43 |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:13849&r=all |
| By: | Soren T. Anderson; Ioana Marinescu; Boris Shor |
| Abstract: | Surveys show majority U.S. support for a carbon tax. Yet none has been adopted. Why? We study two failed carbon tax initiatives in Washington State in 2016 and 2018. Using a difference-in-differences approach, we show that Washington's real-world campaigns reduced support by 20 percentage points. Resistance to higher energy prices explains opposition to these policies in the average precinct, while ideology explains 90% of the variation in votes across precincts. Conservatives preferred the 2016 revenue-neutral policy, while liberals preferred the 2018 green-spending policy. Yet we forecast both initiatives would fail in other states, demonstrating that surveys are overly optimistic. |
| JEL: | D72 H23 H71 H72 Q52 Q54 Q58 |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26146&r=all |
| By: | Andrew W Thompson (RITM - Réseaux Innovation Territoires et Mondialisation - UP11 - Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11, VeDeCom - VEhicule DEcarboné et COmmuniquant et sa Mobilité); Yannick Perez (LGI - Laboratoire Génie Industriel - EA 2606 - CentraleSupélec, VeDeCom - VEhicule DEcarboné et COmmuniquant et sa Mobilité) |
| Abstract: | Vehicle-to-Anything (V2X) is an umbrella term to explain the use of Electric Vehicle (EV) batteries to derive additional value during times of non-use. V2X services generate revenue from the battery asset through dynamic (V1X) or bi-directional (V2X) charging to provide benefits to the electric grid, to reduce energy consumption of buildings and homes, or to provide backup power to loads. While relatively unknown and still regarded as a nascent technology, V2X exhibits low capital costs and enabling costs have decreased by 90% since 2014. We present the V2X Value Stream Framework as a means to better communicate and categorize its full economic potential. A meta-analysis of Value Stream potential gives results contradictory to the literature and indicates that Bill Management, Resource Adequacy, and Network Deferral are more valuable than Energy Arbitrage and Spinning Reserves. We distinguish between Energy and Power Value Streams and show how the latter cause less battery degradation and allow for greater stacking of services. Finally, energy policy recommendations are given to better integrate V2X. While we concur that development is of and by the market, we emphasize that V2X will develop within the constraints of the regulatory environment; therefore regulators have an enabling role to play. |
| Keywords: | Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G),Ancillary Services,Lithium-Ion Battery Degradation Costs,Lithium-Ion Battery Degradation Modeling,Vehicle-to-Anything (V2X) |
| Date: | 2019–08–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-02265826&r=all |
| By: | Grant Allan (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde); Kevin Connolly (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde); Stuart McIntyre (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde) |
| Abstract: | Within the system of national accounts the electricity sector is typically reported as a single entry representing generation, transmission, distribution and trade. The way in which these components interact with the economy differs greatly, a feature lost within the standard accounting framework. In this paper we propose an Electricity Satellite Account (ElSA) approach to better understand the linkages between the economy and the electricity sector, with a particularly focus on generation technologies. To develop this framework, we draw parallels to Tourism Satellite Accounts (TSAs). To illustrate the practical steps in constructing ElSAs, we develop an ElSA for Scotland for 2012. We show how the ELSA framework gives an improved understanding of the electricity sector, which is critical in improving the usefulness of such accounts future climate and energy, as well as economic, policy. |
| JEL: | Q22 Q31 Q56 |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:str:wpaper:1909&r=all |
| By: | Ugis Sarma (Riga Technical University); Girts Karnitis (LU - University of Latvia); Janis Zuters (LU - University of Latvia); Edvins Karnitis (LU - University of Latvia) |
| Abstract: | During the decades the district heating's (DH) advantages (more cost-efficient heat generation and reduced air pollution) overcompensated the additional costs of transmission and distribution of the centrally produced thermal energy to consumers. Rapid increase in the efficiency of low-power heaters, development of separated low heat density areas in cities reduce the competitiveness of the large centralized DH systems in comparison with the distributed cluster-size networks and even local heating. Reduction of transmission costs, enhancement of the network efficiency by optimization of the design of the DH networks become a critical issue. The methodology for determination of the key drivers of the cost-efficiency of the DH networks to implement the most efficient (cost-minimal) thermal energy transmission was developed in this study. An inductive benchmarking modelling was applied; the general causal regularity is based on the observations of specific cases, thus determining the relationships between the network's design and thermal indicators as predictors and transmission costs as the target variable. The key drivers of the network efficiency were disclosed-the network length and the largest inner diameter of the pipes. The methodology is applicable for use by municipalities and heat providers for the heating planning of the new housing developments as well as renovation and/or expansion of the existing DH networks. |
| Keywords: | district heating,network design,data mining,benchmarking methodologies |
| Date: | 2019–09–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02188841&r=all |
| By: | Bostian, Moriah (Department of Economics, Lewis & Clark College); Färe, Rolf (Department of Economics, Oregon State University); Grosskopf, Shawna (Department of Economics, Oregon State University); Lundgren, Tommy (CERE - the Center for Environmental and Resource Economics) |
| Abstract: | We develop a network technology model for pollution abatement that distinguishes between the two primary forms that abatement can take: Prevention of emissions from occurring in the first place, and treatment of any emissions that are generated by the production process. Our network model separates the production process into two stages, an initial production and prevention stage and a final treatment (or cure) stage. We allow for reallocation of abatement resources across the production stages, in order to improve overall abatement and production efficiency and better understand the tradeoffs between the two forms of abatement. This framework is relevant in practice for a number of industrial production processes, including manufacturing and energy, which employ multiple abatement measures at different stages of production. To illustrate, we apply the prevention-treatment network model to estimate the production and abatement technology for firms in Sweden’s pulp and paper manufacturing sector. We find that with reallocation of prevention and treatment resources, the industry could achieve further gains to both production and emissions reductions, relative to those estimated using the more common single-stage approach to technology estimation for pollution-generating processes. In practice, these results could be used by producers for improving managerial efficiency, and by policy makers to better target abatement incentives to the most effective aspects of production. |
| Keywords: | Network DEA; Carbon Policy; Abatement Cost; Environmental Performance |
| JEL: | D21 D22 D24 |
| Date: | 2019–08–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:slucer:2019_011&r=all |
| By: | Grant Allan (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde); David Comerford (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde); Kevin Connolly (qDepartment of Economics, University of Strathclyde); Peter McGregor (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde); Andrew G Ross (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde) |
| Abstract: | The continuing development of the offshore wind sector is an important element of UK energy and industrial policy since it holds the potential of substantial emissions reductions while simultaneously boosting economic activity. A central idea here is that the economic impact of the offshore wind sector can be enhanced by increasing the local content of its inputs. We explore, through simulation of a purpose-built Input-Output model of the UK, the economic and emissions impacts of the likely future development of the UK’s offshore wind sector, with a particular emphasis on the importance of local content. We explore six scenarios all of which embed the capacity expansion anticipated by the Sector Deal, but differ in terms of local content – including a set of illustrative simulations considering the possible impact of Brexit on local content. We find that future offshore wind development does indeed generate a “double dividend†in the form of simultaneous and substantial reductions in emissions and improvements in economic activity. It is also the case that, as anticipated, the scale of the economic stimulus arising from offshore wind development is directly and strongly related to the extent of local content. |
| Keywords: | low carbon economy, industrial strategy, supply chain, offshore wind, economic impact, Brexit |
| JEL: | Q40 Q43 Q54 |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:str:wpaper:1910&r=all |
| By: | Charles Raux (LAET - Laboratoire Aménagement Économie Transports - UL2 - Université Lumière - Lyon 2 - ENTPE - École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'État - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique); Lény Grassot (LAET - Laboratoire Aménagement Économie Transports - UL2 - Université Lumière - Lyon 2 - ENTPE - École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'État - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique); Eric Charmes (EVS - Environnement Ville Société - ENS Lyon - École normale supérieure - Lyon - UL2 - Université Lumière - Lyon 2 - UJML - Université Jean Moulin - Lyon III - Université de Lyon - UJM - Université Jean Monnet [Saint-Étienne] - ENTPE - École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'État - Mines Saint-Étienne MSE - École des Mines de Saint-Étienne - Institut Mines-Télécom [Paris] - ENSAL - École nationale supérieure d'architecture de Lyon - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INSA Lyon - Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon - Université de Lyon - INSA - Institut National des Sciences Appliquées); Elise Nimal (EIFER - European Institute For Energy Research - TH - Universität Karlsruhe - EDF R&D - EDF R&D - EDF - EDF); Marie Sévenet (EIFER - European Institute For Energy Research - TH - Universität Karlsruhe - EDF R&D - EDF R&D - EDF - EDF) |
| Abstract: | The French National Carbon Strategy (SNBC) aims at reducing the CO2 emissions of the transport sector by 30% in 2030, when compared with 2013, and by 70% in 2050. This paper analyses the room for manoeuvre regarding daily mobility in order to contribute to this aim. The framework is a "reasonable" world, where local governments might bring pressure on residential location choices of new anticipated populations on the one hand, and mobility choices by favoring some travel modes on the other hand. In this reasonable world, policies such as moving house for existing population or restraining daily mobility intensity, whether destinations or out-of-home tours, are deliberately denied. Three contrasted areas are studied: two peri-urban areas around Lyon and Strasbourg on the one hand, one densely populated area, Lyon's conurbation, on the other hand. We show that scenarios combining control of vehicle unit emissions and new travel mode behaviors based on ridesharing and bike use including e-bike would arrive at SNBC targets. All levers don't have the same impact on emission reduction: various alternatives of the new population housing location have low stake regarding emissions from now to 2050. Moreover the social and political cost of "guiding" the new population residential location choices limits the relevance of such a policy. |
| Abstract: | La Stratégie Nationale Bas Carbone (SNBC) vise pour le secteur du transport une réduction, par rapport à 2013, de 30 % des émissions de CO2eq en 2030 et de 70 % à l'horizon 2050. Cet article analyse les marges de manœuvre concernant la mobilité du quotidien pour contribuer à cet objectif. Le cadre d'analyse est celui d'un monde « raisonnable », où les collectivités locales pourraient agir d'une part sur les choix des lieux de résidence des populations nouvelles anticipées, d'autre part sur les choix de mobilité, en favorisant certains modes de déplacements plutôt que d'autres. Dans ce monde raisonnable, on s'interdit d'une part d'imposer des déménagements à la population existante, d'autre part de réduire l'intensité actuelle de mobilité quotidienne, exprimée en nombre de sorties et lieux fréquentés. Trois territoires relativement contrastés sont étudiés : d'une part deux territoires périurbains autour de Lyon et Strasbourg, d'autre part un territoire urbain dense, celui de la métropole de Lyon. Nous montrons que des scénarios combinant maîtrise des émissions unitaires des véhicules et nouveaux comportements modaux, à base de covoiturage et de vélo, y compris à assistance électrique, permettraient d'atteindre les objectifs de la SNBC pour la mobilité du quotidien. Tous les leviers n'ont pas le même impact : les différentes alternatives de localisation de la population nouvelle envisagée d'ici à 2050 ne représentent que peu d'enjeux, du moins du point de vue du critère carbone. En outre, le coût social et politique d'une localisation résidentielle « dirigée » de la population nouvelle modère l'intérêt d'une telle mesure. |
| Keywords: | mobilité quotidienne,contrainte carbone,Modes de déplacements,leviers,Stratégie Nationale Bas Carbone (SNBC),comportements de mobilité,simulations,Lyon,Strasbourg,urbain,périurbain |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-02182407&r=all |
| By: | Huang, Kuan-Ming; Etienne, Xiaoli L. |
| Keywords: | Risk and Uncertainty |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:291279&r=all |
| By: | Eva, Mihail; Mihai, Florin-Constantin; Munteanu, Alina-Violeta |
| Abstract: | Between 1990 and 2015, the annual global amount of CO 2 emission generated by transport has increased by 68%, from around 4.6 GtCO 2 to around 7.7 GtCO2. Technological advances towards eco friendly vehicles and policy incentives promoting environmental friendly modes of transport have thus been offset by economic growth and increasing mobility. This study questions the relationship between economic growth and sustainability performance of transport sector. It adds to the literature new insights concerning recent trends in the relationship between gross domestic product and various aspects of transport sustainability such as carbon footprint, carbon intensity and transport safety. A particular attention is given to discussing the emerging issues of “carbon inequality” and the role of political entities that contribute most to global CO2 emissions, such China, USA and the EU. Finally, this study adds to the literature a composite index of transport sustainability performance and explores between country inequalities in terms of sustainability performance. |
| Keywords: | CO 2 emissions, environmental impact, OECD countries, carbon footprint, carbon inequality, road fatalities. |
| JEL: | O13 O18 O19 O44 O47 P48 Q53 Q56 R40 R41 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:95491&r=all |
| By: | Sam Heft-Neal; Jennifer Burney; Eran Bendavid; Kara Voss; Marshall Burke |
| Abstract: | Accurate estimation of air quality impacts on health outcomes is critical for guiding policy choices to mitigate such damages. Estimation poses an empirical challenge, however, because local economic activity can simultaneously generate changes in both air quality and in health impacts that are independent of air quality, confounding pollution-health estimates. To address this challenge, we leverage plausibly exogenous variation in local particulate matter exposure across sub-Saharan Africa due to dust export from the Bodele Depression, a remote Saharan region responsible for a substantial share of global atmospheric dust. Large scale transport of this dust is uncorrelated with local emissions sources and allows us to isolate the causal impact of air quality on infant mortality across Sub-Saharan Africa. Combining detailed information on nearly 1 million births with satellite measures of aerosol particulate matter, we find that a 10mg/m3 increase in local ambient PM2.5 concentration driven by distant dust emission causes a 22% increase in infant mortality across our African sample (95% CI: 10-35%), an effect comparable to quasi-experimental pollution-infant mortality estimates from wealthier countries. We also show that rainfall over the Bodele is a significant control on PM2.5 export and thus child health, and that future climate-change driven changes in Saharan rainfall could generate very large impacts on African child health through this pathway alone. We calculate that seemingly exotic proposals to pump and apply groundwater to the Bodele to reduce dust emission could be cost competitive with leading interventions aimed at improving child health. |
| JEL: | O12 Q53 |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26107&r=all |
| By: | Hertog, Steffen |
| Abstract: | This paper argues that hydrocarbon producers with high rents per capita constitute a specific category in the broader universe of rent-dependent countries, facing a specific set of development challenges that are not shared by mid-rent countries. It surveys patterns of rent distribution in high-rent countries (HRCs), focusing on energy subsidies and excessive public employment, and argues that these result in declining energy efficiency and labor productivity as well as exclusion of nationals from the private labor market. It then proposes unconditional cash grants for HRC citizens in combination with subsidy and public employment reform as a mitigation strategy to minimize the HRC-specific distortive effects of rent distribution. It is shown that none of the conventional counterarguments to unconditional cash grants applies in the context of HRCs. |
| Keywords: | energy subsidies |
| JEL: | N0 |
| Date: | 2017–12–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:101305&r=all |
| By: | ALONSO RAPOSO Maria (European Commission - JRC); CIUFFO Biagio (European Commission – JRC); ARDENTE Fulvio (European Commission - JRC); AURAMBOUT Jean Philippe (European Commission - JRC); Gianmarco BALDINI (European Commission - JRC); Robert BRAUN (European Commission - JRC); Panayotis CHRISTIDIS (European Commission - JRC); Aris Christodoulou (European Commission - JRC); Amandine DUBOZ (European Commission - JRC); Sofia FELICI (European Commission - JRC); Jaime FERRAGUT (European Commission - JRC); Aliki GEORGAKAKI (European Commission - JRC); Konstantinos GKOUMAS (European Commission - JRC); Monica GROSSO (European Commission - JRC); Maria IGLESIAS (European Commission - JRC); Andreea JULEA (European Commission - JRC); Jette KRAUSE (European Commission - JRC); Bertin MARTENS (European Commission - JRC); Fabrice MATHIEUX (European Commission - JRC); Gerhard MENZEL (European Commission - JRC); Silvia MONDELLO (European Commission - JRC); Elena NAVAJAS (European Commission - JRC); Ferenc PEKAR (European Commission - JRC); Ioan RAILEANU (European Commission - JRC); Harald SCHOLZ (European Commission - JRC); Marie TAMBA (European Commission - JRC); Anastasios TSAKALIDIS (European Commission - JRC); Mitchell VAN BALEN (European Commission - JRC); Ine VANDECASTEELE (European Commission - JRC) |
| Abstract: | A perfect storm of new technologies and new business models is transforming not only our vehicles, but everything about how we get around, and how we live our lives. The JRC report “The future of road transport - Implications of automated, connected, low-carbon and shared mobility†looks at some main enablers of the transformation of road transport, such as data governance, infrastructures, communication technologies and cybersecurity, and legislation. It discusses the potential impacts on the economy, employment and skills, energy use and emissions, the sustainability of raw materials, democracy, privacy and social fairness, as well as on the urban context. It shows how the massive changes on the horizon represent an opportunity to move towards a transport system that is more efficient, safer, less polluting and more accessible to larger parts of society than the current one centred on car ownership. However, new transport technologies, on their own, won't spontaneously make our lives better without upgrading our transport systems and policies to the 21st century. The improvement of governance and the development of innovative mobility solutions will be crucial to ensure that the future of transport is cleaner and more equitable than its car-centred present. |
| Keywords: | road transport, mobility, connected vehicles, automated vehicles |
| JEL: | R00 R40 O18 L91 L62 |
| Date: | 2019–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc116644&r=all |
| By: | Naser Rostamni; Tarik A. Rashid |
| Abstract: | This paper evaluates the impact of the power extent on price in the electricity market. The competitiveness extent of the electricity market during specific times in a day is considered to achieve this. Then, the effect of competitiveness extent on the forecasting precision of the daily power price is assessed. A price forecasting model based on multi-layer perception via back propagation with the Levenberg-Marquardt mechanism is used. The Residual Supply Index (RSI) and other variables that affect prices are used as inputs to the model to evaluate the market competitiveness. The results show that using market power indices as inputs helps to increase forecasting accuracy. Thus, the competitiveness extent of the market power in different daily time periods is a notable variable in price formation. Moreover, market players cannot ignore the explanatory power of market power in price forecasting. In this research, the real data of the electricity market from 2013 is used and the main source of data is the Grid Management Company in Iran. |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:1907.11984&r=all |
| By: | Severen, Christopher; Van Benthem, Arthur |
| Abstract: | An individual's initial experiences with a common good, such as gasoline, can shape their behavior for decades. We first show that the 1979 oil crisis had a persistent negative effect on the likelihood that individuals that came of driving age during this time drove to work in the year 2000 (i.e., in their mid 30s). The effect is stronger for those with lower incomes and those in cities. Combining data on many cohorts, we then show that large increases in gasoline prices between the ages of 15 and 18 significantly reduce both (i) the likelihood of driving a private automobile to work and (ii) total annual vehicle miles traveled later in life, while also increasing public transit use. Differences in driver license age requirements generate additional variation in the formative window. These effects cannot be explained by contemporaneous income and do not appear to be only due to increased costs from delayed driving skill acquisition. Instead, they seem to reflect the formation of preferences for driving or persistent changes in the perceived costs of driving. |
| Keywords: | driving behavior; formative experiences; gasoline price; path dependence; preference persistence |
| JEL: | D12 D90 L91 Q41 R41 |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:13859&r=all |
| By: | Boon, Marten |
| Abstract: | In contrast to many other commodities, crude oil trading is a relatively new phenomenon. The end of the concession system in the 1970s caused the oil value chain to disintegrate and a spot market for crude oil to emerge. Oil traders, in particularly the infamous US oil trader Marc Rich, have been credited with creating this spot market and its subsequent development into the global locus of oil price formation. As such traders can be viewed as the little known but vital agents of globalization. Although traders certainly did contribute in the first formative years of the spot market in the late 1970s and early 1980s, their business models were fundamentally challenged by the subsequent evolution of the market in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Whereas globalization is about market integration, traders were typically geared toward profiting from large market distortions and opaque prices. As the spot market matured and gained global acceptance for price formation, the original oil traders were either forced out of the market or fundamentally transformed their businesses. One particular example is Dutch oil trader John Deuss. During the 1980s among the top 3 global oil traders, Deuss’ company languished in the 1990s after a failed corner of the Brent market and competition from firms that were both more sophisticated and better financed. Using Deuss as an example, this paper raises two questions: On the one hand, how did independent oil trading firms contribute to the formation of the modern oil market since the 1970s? On the other hand, how did the subsequent evolution of the market affect the business model of independent oil trading firms from the mid-1980s onwards? The core aim of the paper is to question the relationship between the economics of the trading firm and the economics of the market. The paper combines quantitative data on the development of the spot market using a deals database compiled by Argus Media since 1975 with secondary material ranging from scholarly, trade and news publications. |
| Keywords: | oil industry; trading; John Deuss; evolution of markets |
| JEL: | N2 N22 N24 N7 N72 N74 N8 N82 N84 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:95460&r=all |
| By: | Ruediger Bachmann; Gabriel Ehrlich; Ying Fan; Dimitrije Ruzic |
| Abstract: | This paper uses the 2015 Volkswagen emissions scandal as a natural experiment to provide evidence that collective reputation externalities matter for firms. We find that the Volkswagen scandal reduced the U.S. sales of the other German auto manufacturers—BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Smart—by about 105,000 vehicles worth $5.2 billion. The decline was principally driven by an adverse reputation spillover, which was reinforced by consumer substitution away from diesel vehicles and was partially offset by substitution away from Volkswagen. These estimates come from a model of vehicle demand, the conclusions of which are also consistent with difference-in-differences estimates. We provide direct evidence on internet search behavior and consumer sentiment displayed on social media to support our interpretation that the estimates reflect a reputation spillover. |
| JEL: | D12 D22 D90 L14 L15 L62 |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26117&r=all |
| By: | Germeshausen, Robert; von Graevenitz, Kathrine |
| Abstract: | We study the effect of a state level mandate on renewable heating technologies on the housing market. The mandate requires a minimum share of 10 % renewable energy sources when changing the heating system in the existing building stock. As renewable energy sources are still more expensive than conventional alternatives this mandate could lower the relative price of homes in the existing building stock when a replacement of the heating system is impending. We implement a two stage difference-in-differences nearest neighbor matching approach to identify the effect on prices taking advantage of differences in regulation by location and vintage of the building stock. Our results find no evidence of an effect of the mandate on housing prices. |
| Keywords: | Building regulations,Renewable energy sources,Hedonic pricing |
| JEL: | Q42 Q48 Q58 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:zewdip:19028&r=all |
| By: | Schleich, Joachim; Faure, Corinne; Guetlein, Marie-Charlotte; Tu, Gengyang |
| Abstract: | Conveyance, i.e., the fact that an appliance purchased will be left in the dwelling when moving out, may lead homeowners to purchase appliances of lower quality or performance, because the extra costs are not entirely capitalized into the house sales price. Employing a discrete choice experiment with homeown-ers in the United States, this paper explores the effects of conveyance on homeowners' willingness-to-pay for various attributes of refrigerators. To ac-count for the social nature of purchases when conveyance is likely to occur, it also tests the moderating role of envy (elicited through an incentivized game). The findings suggest that conveyors are more likely to purchase a smaller re-frigerator, from a less well-known brand, and with lower customer ratings. In contrast, conveyance was not found to affect homeowners' choices when it comes to energy cost. In addition, envy was found to generally reinforce the negative effects of conveyance on homeowners' willingness-to-pay for quality and performance attributes. While conveyance and its interaction with envy help explain homeowners' choice of quality/performance attributes of applianc-es, these factors do not appear to explain the energy efficiency paradox. |
| Keywords: | energy efficiency paradox,conveyance,envy,choice experiment |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:fisisi:s062019&r=all |
| By: | Sesmero, Juan Pablo; Bauchet, Jonathan |
| Keywords: | Resource/ Energy Economics and Policy |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:291246&r=all |
| By: | Stefano Carattini; Suphi Sen |
| Abstract: | The climate challenge requires ambitious climate policy. A sudden increase in carbon prices can lead to major shocks to the stock market. Some assets will lose part of their value, others all of it, and hence become “stranded”. If the markets are not ready to absorb the shock, a financial crisis could follow. How well investors anticipate, and thus how large these shocks may be, is an empirical question. We analyze stock market reactions to the rejection of two carbon tax initiatives by voters in Washington state. We build proper counterfactuals for Washington state firms and find that these modest policy proposals with limited jurisdiction caused substantial readjustments on the stock market, especially for carbon-intensive stocks. Our results reinforce concerns about “stranded assets” and the risk of financial contagion. Our policy implications support the inclusion of transition risks in macroprudential policymaking and carbon disclosure and climate stress tests as the main policy responses. |
| Keywords: | carbon pricing, financial returns, systemic risk, macroprudential policies, voting |
| JEL: | G12 H23 H71 L50 Q58 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7785&r=all |
| By: | Doshi, Gaurav; Du, Sheldon |
| Keywords: | Resource/ Energy Economics and Policy |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:291236&r=all |
| By: | Massimo Filippini (Department of Management, Technology and Economics (D-MTEC), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH Zurich), Switzerland; Institute of Economics (IdEP), Università della Svizzera Italiana (USI), Lugano, Switzerland); Giuliano Masiero (Department of Management, Information and Production Engineering, University of Bergamo, Italy; Institute of Economics (IdEP), Università della Svizzera italiana, Switzerland); Sandro Steinbach (Department of Management, Technology and Economics (D-MTEC), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH Zurich), Switzerland) |
| Abstract: | Ambient air pollution is the environmental factor with the most significant impact on human health. Several epidemiological studies provide evidence for an association between ambient air pollution and human health. However, the recent economic literature has challenged the identification strategy used in these studies. This paper contributes to the ongoing discussion by investigating the association between ambient air pollution and morbidity using hospital admission data from Switzerland. Our identification strategy rests on the construction of geographically explicit pollution measures derived from a dispersion model that replicates atmospheric conditions and accounts for several emission sources. The reduced form estimates account for location and time fixed effects and show that ambient air pollution has a substantial impact on hospital admissions. In particular, we show that SO2 and NO2 are positively associated with admission rates for coronary artery and cerebrovascular diseases while we find no similar correlation for PM10 and O3. Our robustness checks support these findings and suggest that dispersion models can help in reducing the measurement error inherent to pollution exposure measures based on station-level pollution data. Therefore, our results may contribute to a more accurate evaluation of future environmental policies aiming at a reduction of ambient air pollution exposure. |
| Keywords: | Ambient air pollution, dispersion model, hospital admissions, count panel data |
| JEL: | I10 Q51 Q53 |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lug:wpidep:1903&r=all |
| By: | Katrina Jessoe; Maya Papineau; David S. Rapson |
| Abstract: | This paper quantifies a tenant-side “split incentives” problem that exists when the largest commercial sector customers are on electricity-included property lease contracts causing them to face a marginal electricity price of zero. We use exogenous variation in weather shocks to show that the largest firms on tenant-paid contracts use up to 14 percent less electricity in response to summer temperature fluctuations. The result is retrieved under weaker identifying assumptions than previous split incentives papers, and is robust when exposed to several opportunities to fail. The electricity reduction in response to temperature increases is likely to be a lower bound when generalized nationwide and suggests that policymakers should consider a sub-metering policy to expose the largest commercial tenants to the prevailing retail electricity price. |
| Keywords: | electricity, principal-agent problem, split incentive, contracts |
| JEL: | D22 L14 Q51 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7734&r=all |
| By: | Kurani, Kenneth S. |
| Abstract: | Early sales and leases of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) appear to be skewed towards men. Data from California’s Clean Vehicle Rebate Project and reports from auto industry observers indicate the ratios of male-to-female buyers of PEVs were in the range of four-to-one to nearly six-to-one during the period 2011 to 2014. This is alarming given the ratio of male-to-female buyers for the full vehicle market is about one-to-one and deviations usually favor more women than men. A skew toward men in the early PEV market should not be dismissed merely as “boys and their toys” motivated to purchase PEVs because of interest in new technology (even if, as this study supports, men are more likely than women to express an interest in PEV technology). Research on early PEV owners indicates that for their many similarities, females and males talked about their PEVs in ways that suggest female PEV drivers’ experiences may carry less influence to shape the future of PEVs and charging infrastructure than males’ experience. If future PEV performance and charging infrastructure deployment are guided by early buyers’ feedback, male-dominated feedback will shape a system to which women will have to adapt. Unless attention is paid to understanding how sex identity and gender roles affect both supply and demand for PEVs, there is a continued risk of limiting PEV market growth. View the NCST Project Webpage |
| Keywords: | Social and Behavioral Sciences, Automobile ownership, Gender, Incentives, Market surveys, Plug-in hybrid vehicles, Surveys |
| Date: | 2018–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsdav:qt07p3p4h6&r=all |
| By: | Martin Stefan; Claudia Wellenreuther |
| Abstract: | Futures for European carbon emission allowances resemble a relatively new class of financial assets that are currently traded on two exchanges: the ICE in London and the EEX in Leipzig. While the former features greater trading volumes, the latter hosts the majority of the primary auctions of ETS emission allowances. This letter, therefore, investigates which of these trading places dominates the carbon price discovery process. The results of various price discovery measures based on a vector error correction model indicate that the ICE leads the price discovery process of carbon futures. |
| Keywords: | Carbon, Price Discovery, Information Leadership Share, EUA, Futures Markets, ETS |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cqe:wpaper:8719&r=all |
| By: | Mahdavi, Sadegh; Bayat, Alireza; Khazaei, Ehsan; Jamaledini, Ashkan |
| Abstract: | This paper focuses on the optimal operation of the islanded microgrid. A novel heuristic method known as the Multiobjective Evolutionary Algorithm Based on Decomposition is presented to search for the optimal solution with a fast response. The efficiency of the method is tested on the IEEE 33 bus test network. |
| Keywords: | Economic operation, energy management, industrial power |
| JEL: | A1 A20 L1 L6 O3 O4 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:95393&r=all |
| By: | Boriboonsomsin, Kanok; Luo, Ji |
| Abstract: | Local, regional, and state agencies in California are making efforts to increase bicycle infrastructure and ridership. In most areas, bicycle routes are a subset of vehicle routes and new bicycle infrastructure is created by adding bicycle lane(s) to existing roadways. The planning process for identifying bicycle routes typically considers available right-of-way, existing roadway infrastructure (e.g., presence of bridges, number of intersections), vehicular traffic volume, safety concerns, and built environment factors (e.g., attractive land uses such as shopping districts, scenic views), among other factors. However, exposure to traffic-related air pollution is rarely considered in this process. This oversight can have negative impacts on bicyclists given they are directly exposed to vehicular exhaust and experience an increased breathing rate during biking. Exposure to traffic-related air pollution has been proven to contribute to a wide range of health problems such as lung and heart diseases. View the NCST Project Webpage |
| Keywords: | Engineering, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Air pollution, Air quality, Bikeways, City planning, Cyclists, Highway traffic, Public health |
| Date: | 2017–11–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsdav:qt6gf3k47n&r=all |
| By: | Chudik, Alexander; Georgiadis, Georgios |
| Abstract: | This paper proposes mixed-frequency distributed-lag (MFDL) estimators of impulse response functions (IRFs) in a setup where (i) the shock of interest is observed, (ii) the impact variable of interest is observed at a lower frequency (as a temporally aggregated or sequentially sampled variable), (iii) the data generating process (DGP) is given by a VAR model at the frequency of the shock, and (iv) the full set of relevant endogenous variables entering the DGP is unknown or unobserved. Consistency and asymptotic normality of the proposed MFDL estimators is established, and their small-sample performance is documented by a set of Monte Carlo experiments. The proposed approach is then applied to estimate the daily pass-through of changes in crude oil prices observed at the daily frequency to U.S. gasoline consumer prices observed at the weekly frequency. We find that the pass-through is fast, with about 23% of the crude oil price changes passed through to retail gasoline prices within five working days, representing about 42% of the long-run pass-through. JEL Classification: C22 |
| Keywords: | estimation and inference, impulse response functions, mixed frequencies, temporal aggregation, VAR models |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ecb:ecbwps:20192307&r=all |
| By: | Matthew E. Kahn; Kamiar Mohaddes; Ryan N.C. Ng; M. Hashem Pesaran; Mehdi Raissi; Jui-Chung Yang |
| Abstract: | We study the long-term impact of climate change on economic activity across countries, using a stochastic growth model where labour productivity is affected by country-specific climate variables—defined as deviations of temperature and precipitation from their historical norms. Using a panel data set of 174 countries over the years 1960 to 2014, we find that per-capita real output growth is adversely affected by persistent changes in the temperature above or below its historical norm, but we do not obtain any statistically significant effects for changes in precipitation. Our counterfactual analysis suggests that a persistent increase in average global temperature by 0.04°C per year, in the absence of mitigation policies, reduces world real GDP per capita by 7.22 percent by 2100. On the other hand, abiding by the Paris Agreement, thereby limiting the temperature increase to 0.01°C per annum, reduces the loss substantially to 1.07 percent. These effects vary significantly across countries. We also provide supplementary evidence using data on a sample of 48 U.S. states between 1963 and 2016, and show that climate change has a long-lasting adverse impact on real output in various states and economic sectors, and on labor productivity and employment. |
| JEL: | E27 Q54 R11 |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26167&r=all |
| By: | Thomas, Stefan; Fischedick, Manfred; Hermwille, Lukas; Suerkemper, Felix; Thema, Johannes; Venjakob, Maike; Aydin, Vera; Samadi, Sascha |
| Abstract: | Dieses Wuppertal Paper dient dazu, a) die mögliche Klimaschutzwirkung eines CO2-Preises zu analysieren, allein und im Gesamtpaket von Instrumenten zum Klimaschutz, b) die Möglichkeiten der Mittelverwendung zu analysieren und zu bewerten, c) dadurch den Dschungel der Argumente und Motivationen in den bestehenden Vorschlägen zu lichten und d) aus der Analyse ein Modell zu skizzieren, das den Anforderungen von Klimaschutz und sozialer Gerechtigkeit sowie Erhalt der Wettbewerbsfähigkeit am besten gerecht wird und damit der Bundesregierung als Anregung bei der Entscheidung über Einführung und Ausgestaltung eines CO2-Preises dienen kann. Im Folgenden werden diese Fragen anhand von neun Thesen mit einem abschließenden Fazit ergründet. |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:wuppap:195&r=all |
| By: | Anna Sophia Ciesielski |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the investment based growth rate effects of climate change. The analysis is based on the Integrated Assessment Model DICE by Nordhaus (2008). I depart from the original model, in that endogenous investments into a knowledge stock drive economic growth. Due to a negative capital accumulation as well as savings effect on the knowledge stock, climate change has a negative impact on gross income that lasts into the long run. In order to be able to quantify the growth rate effects, I calibrate the endogenous growth model version of DICE towards its exogenous growth counterpart. I find that in the exogenous growth model version of DICE, compared to its endogenous growth equivalent, in the social optimum, gross income is over-estimated by 2.3 % in 2100 and by 6.8 % in 2150. |
| Keywords: | endogenous economic growth and climate change |
| JEL: | O44 Q54 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7761&r=all |
| By: | Andreas Gerster; Michael Kramm |
| Abstract: | A growing literature has shown that behavioral biases influence consumer choices. Such so-called internalities are ubiquitous in many settings, including energy efficiency investments and the consumption of sin goods, such as cigarettes and sugar. In this paper, we use a mechanism design approach to characterize the optimal non-linear tax (or subsidy) for correcting behaviorally biased consumers. We demonstrate that market choices are informative about consumers’ bias, which can be exploited for benevolent price discrimination via a non-linear tax schedule. We derive that such “internality revelation” depends on two sufficient statistics: the correlation between valuations and biases, as well as the signal-to-noise ratio of the bias. Furthermore, we find that there must be a minimum alignment of preferences among the designer and the consumer to ensure internality tax implementability. We contrast our results with the insights from standard non-linear income taxation and discuss that the optimal corrective tax schedule is typically convex. In addition, we apply our findings to the light bulb market and determine the optimal non-linear subsidy for energy efficiency. |
| Keywords: | optimal commodity taxation, non-linear taxation, behavioral economics, public economics, internalities, environmental economics |
| JEL: | H21 D82 D04 Q58 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7732&r=all |
| By: | Simplice A. Asongu (Yaounde, Cameroon); Nicholas M. Odhiambo (Pretoria, South Africa) |
| Abstract: | This study investigates the relevance of government quality in moderating the incidence of environmental degradation on inclusive human development in 44 sub-Saharan African countries for the period 2000-2012. Environmental degradation is measured with CO2 emissions and the governance dynamics include: political stability, voice and accountability, government effectiveness, regulation quality, the rule of law and corruption-control. The empirical evidence is based on the Generalised Method of Moments. Regulation quality modulates CO2 emissions to exert a net negative effect on inclusive development. Institutional governance (consisting of corruption-control and the rule of law) modulates CO2 emissions to also exert a net negative effect on inclusive human development. Fortunately, the corresponding interactive effects are positive, which indicates that good governance needs to be enhanced to achieve positive net effects. A policy threshold of institutional governance at which institutional governance completely dampens the unfavourable effect of CO2 emissions on inclusive human development is established. Other policy implications are discussed. |
| Keywords: | CO2 emissions; Economic development; Africa |
| JEL: | C52 O38 O40 O55 P37 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:abh:wpaper:19/011&r=all |
| By: | Don, Fullerton; Ta, Chi L. |
| Keywords: | Resource/ Energy Economics and Policy |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:291237&r=all |
| By: | Berazneva, Julia; Klotz, Richard L. |
| Keywords: | Resource/ Energy Economics and Policy |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:291255&r=all |
| By: | Kaplan, Scott; Gordon, Hal |
| Keywords: | Environmental Economics and Policy |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:290825&r=all |
| By: | Udo Kreickemeier; Philipp M. Richter |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we analyse the effects of a unilateral change in an emissions tax in a model of international trade with heterogeneous firms. We find a positive effect of tighter environmental policy on average productivity in the reforming country through reallocation of labour towards exporting firms. Domestic aggregate emissions fall, due to both a scale and a technique effect, but we show that the reduction in emissions following the tax increase is smaller than in autarky. Moreover, general equilibrium effects through changes in the foreign wage rate lead to a reduction in foreign emissions and, hence, to negative emissions leakage in case of transboundary pollution. |
| Keywords: | trade and environment, heterogeneous firms, unilateral environmental policy, emissions leakage |
| JEL: | F18 F12 F15 Q58 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7725&r=all |
| By: | Petr Jakubik; Sibel Uguz (EIOPA) |
| Abstract: | This article empirically investigates whether the introduction of green bond policies by insurance companies have a positive impact on their equity prices. To this aim, the sample of listed (re)insurers in Europe using monthly data for years 2012 – 2019 is employed. Announcements, press releases and semi-annual or annual reports are used to determine when the insurance companies committed to a green investment, issuance of green bonds or launching a green fund. Our results suggest that market investors positively price introducing such a policies for the issuance of green bonds or launching a green fund. However, the same results were not confirmed for initial investments in green bonds. |
| Keywords: | insurance, green bonds, equity prices |
| JEL: | G11 G12 G22 |
| Date: | 2019–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eio:thafsr:14&r=all |
| By: | Pates, Nicholas J.; Hendricks, Nathan P.; Lark, Tyler |
| Keywords: | Production Economics |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:291138&r=all |
| By: | Cook, Aaron; Shortle, James S. |
| Keywords: | Resource/ Energy Economics and Policy |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:291266&r=all |
| By: | Farhad Farokhi |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we define discounted differential privacy, as an alternative to (conventional) differential privacy, to investigate privacy of evolving datasets, containing time series over an unbounded horizon. Evolving datasets arise in energy systems (e.g., real-time smart meter measurements), transportation (e.g., real-time traces of individual movements), and retail industry (e.g., customer interactions and purchases from online stores). We first define privacy loss as a measure of the amount of information leaked by the reports at a certain fixed time and relate privacy loss to differential privacy. We observe that privacy losses are weighted equally across time in the definition of differential privacy, and therefore the magnitude of privacy-preserving additive noise must grow without bound to ensure differential privacy over an infinite horizon. Motivated by the discounted utility theory within the economics literature, we use exponential and hyperbolic discounting of privacy losses across time to relax the definition of differential privacy under continual observations. This implies that privacy losses in a distant past are less important than the current ones to an individual. We use discounted differential privacy to investigate privacy of evolving datasets using additive Laplace noise and show that the magnitude of the additive noise can remain bounded under discounted differential privacy. We illustrate the quality of privacy-preserving mechanisms satisfying discounted differential privacy on smart-meter measurement time-series of real households, made publicly available by the Ausgrid (an Australian electricity distribution company). |
| Date: | 2019–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:1908.03995&r=all |
| By: | Marc A. C. Hafstead; Roberton C. Williams III |
| Abstract: | Political debates around environmental regulation often center around the effect of policy on jobs. Opponents decry the “job-killing” EPA and proponents point to “green jobs” as a positive policy outcome. And beyond the political debates, Congress requires the EPA to evaluate “potential losses or shifts of employment” that regulations under the Clean Air Act may cause. Yet there is a sharp disconnect between the political importance of the jobs question and the limited research on job effects of policy and general skepticism in the academic literature about the importance of those job effects for the costs and benefits of environmental regulation. In this paper, we discuss how the existing research on jobs and environmental regulations often falls short in evaluating these questions and consider recent new work that has attempted to address these problems. We provide an intuitive discussion of key questions for how job effects should enter into economic analysis of regulations. And, using an economic model from Hafstead, Williams, and Chen (2018), we evaluate a range of environmental regulations in both the short and long-run to develop a set of key stylized facts related to jobs and environmental regulations and to identify the key questions that current models can’t yet answer well. |
| JEL: | E24 H23 J64 Q52 Q58 |
| Date: | 2019–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26093&r=all |
| By: | Bangsund, Dean A.; Hodur, Nancy M. |
| Keywords: | Community/Rural/Urban Development, Demand and Price Analysis, Environmental Economics and Policy, Financial Economics, Marketing, Production Economics |
| Date: | 2019–08–22 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:nddaae:292273&r=all |
| By: | Joseph I. Uduji (University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria); Elda N. Okolo-Obasi (University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria); Simplice A. Asongu (Yaoundé, Cameroon) |
| Abstract: | We assess the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) of multinational oil companies (MOCs) on HIV/AIDS prevalence in Nigeria’s oil producing communities. One thousand, two hundred households were sampled across the rural communities of Niger Delta. Using logit model, the main result indicates that General Memorandum of Understandings (GMoUs) have not significantly impacted on factors behind the spread of HIV/AIDS in rural communities. This implies that the impact of the disease on MOCs business, employees and their families, contractors, business partners and the oil communities has not inclined downward. The findings suggest that CSR offers an opportunity for MOCs to help address HIV/AIDS prevalence through a business case for stakeholders’ health in the region. It calls for MOCs to improve GMoUs health intervention on sensitization campaigns, funding testing and counselling centers, subsidizing anti-retroviral drugs, prevention of mother-to-child transmission, rehabilitation of orphaned and vulnerable children and other cares for people living with AIDS. |
| Keywords: | corporate social responsibility; multinational oil companies; HIV/AIDS initiatives; logit model; Niger Delta |
| JEL: | J43 O40 O55 Q10 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:abh:wpaper:19/012&r=all |
| By: | Angelopoulos, Michail; Kontakou, Christina; Pollalis, Yannis |
| Abstract: | In an era of increasing technological transformation, industries, competitors, and companies are combining platforms to create unique methods for engagement. Survival and growth in a rapidly changing marketplace require companies to embrace internal innovation that adds value for both channel members and customers. The fourth industrial revolution has already begun to take shape, on the road to an end-to-end value chain, by using Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and decentralized intelligence in manufacturing, production and logistics. The world is heading toward a digitized future. Already, an entire generation has grown up immersed in the digital world. This paper focus on the following fields: General Strategy and Procedural Aspects of Digital Transformation, Digital Transformation and Lean, Lean Digital Management, Applying Lean Digital Transformation and Transformation of Enterprise Resource Planning Systems to Smart Engaged Systems. Finally, this research study the challenges of Digital Transformation in Energy Industry of Utilities. |
| Keywords: | Digital Transformation, Lean, Lean Digital Management, Digital Transformation in Energy |
| JEL: | L00 L10 L94 M0 M1 M21 O32 |
| Date: | 2019–08–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:95523&r=all |
| By: | Sampson, Gabriel; Perry, Edward; Taylor, Mykel R. |
| Keywords: | Environmental Economics and Policy |
| Date: | 2019–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea19:290810&r=all |