Empirical examination of whether R&D subsidies to private firms crowd out private investments has been hampered by problems related to selection. A particular worry is that research intentions and the quality of current research ideas may be correlated with the likelihood of applying for and...

We find that the Norwegian R&D tax credit scheme introduced in 2002 mainly works as intended. The scheme is cost-effective and it is used by a large number of firms. It stimulates these firms to invest more in R&D, and, in particular, the effect is positive for small firms with little R&D...

An important policy question is whether research and development (R&D) in new, emerging technologies should be more subsidized than R&D in other more mature technologies. In this paper I analyze if innovation externalities caused by knowledge spillovers from private firms may warrant a...

We analyze how knowledge spillovers influence the optimal timing of R&D policy. Using numerical simulations we find that optimal subsidies to R&D may be rising over time even when the returns to knowledge is decreasing. The optimal time profile of the subsidies is determined by the elasticity of...

In this study, I analyze the role of environmental policies and energy cost savings in the switch to natural gas by stationary sources in Chile. According to the data, most of the switching was induced by the lower cost of natural gas, although environmental policies played a small role and...

This study, prepared at the request of the Office of Earth Science at the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), describes a general framework for conceptualizing the value of information and illustrates how the framework might be used to value information from earth science...

At the request of managers at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, this paper describes frameworks for and illustrates societal benefits associated with Earth observations from an experimental satellite known as the Multiangle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR). MISR is a unique...

This paper examines the impacts of R&D tax credits and direct R&D subsidies on Norwegian firms' patenting, with a particular focus on environmental patenting. Whereas direct subsidies are aimed at projects with low private and high social return, tax credits do not discriminate between projects...

Improved technology is often cited as a means to alter the otherwise difficult trade-off between the economic burden of regulation and environmental damage. Focusing on energy-saving technologies that mitigate the threat of climate change, we find that both energy prices and financial health...

Incentivizing innovation through buyouts may alleviate the social costs associated with patent power, but the political economy and feasibility of this potentially important financing mechanism have been understudied. We study an international setting of countries with different innovation and...