Industrial activity periodically experiences breakthrough innovations in energy efficiency, but the estimated impacts of these innovations on aggregate energy use are highly varied. We develop a general equilibrium model to investigate whether this variation is determined by the structure of the...

Industrial activity periodically experiences breakthrough innovations in energy efficiency, but the estimated impacts of these innovations on aggregate energy use are highly varied. We develop a general equilibrium model to investigate whether this variation is determined by the structure of the...

Renewable portfolio standards (RPS) are commonly promoted as a policy tool to reduce emissions associated with fossil generation, while also stimulating development of local renewable resource endowments. We develop a general equilibrium model of an RPS policy that captures key features such as...

The point of departure for the study of the impact of energy and environmental policies is the neoclassical theory of economic growth formulated by Cass (1965) and Koopmans (1967). The long-run properties of economic growth models are independent of energy and environmental policies. However,...

Firms subject to cost-of-service regulation cannot withhold windfall profits associated with free emissions allowances. This paper examines the efficiency and distributional impacts of two approaches to transfer free allowances to consumers: output subsidies and lump-sum payments. We employ an...

This paper proposes that the national focus of energy ‘rebound’ studies should be extended to an international context in the presence of supra-national agreements such as EU 20-20-20. The potential for energy efficiency improvements in one nation to impact energy use in others means that...

The aim of this paper is to investigate bi-directional spillovers into residential and industrial sectors induced by energy efficiency improvement (EEI) in both the short- and long-term, and the impact of nesting structure as well as the size of elasticities of substitution of production and...

We develop a stylized general equilibrium model to decompose the rebound effect of energy efficiency improvements into its partial and general equilibrium components. In our theoretical analysis, we identify key drivers of the general equilibrium rebound effect, including a composition channel,...

In December 1997, a number of countries - referred to as the Annex 1 countries - signed the Kyoto Protocol under which they agreed to ceilings on their emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). Such unilateral action by a group of countries has often been criticized on the grounds that it could be...

This paper proposes that the national focus of energy ‘rebound’ studies should be extended to an international context in the presence of supra-national agreements such as EU 20-20-20. The potential for energy efficiency improvements in one nation to impact energy use in others means that...