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Environmental Policy and Firm Selection in the Open Economy

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 ...

The U.S. Coal Sector between Shale Gas and Renewables: Last Resort Coal Exports?

Coal consumption and production have sharply declined in recent years in the U.S., despite political support. Reasons are mostly unfavorable economic conditions for coal, including competition from natural gas and renewables in the power sector, as well as an aging coal- fired power plant fleet. The U.S. Energy Information Administration as well as most models of North American energy markets depict ...

Estimating the Impact of Financial Investments on Agricultural Futures Prices Using Changes in Volatility

This paper studies the impact of financial investments on agricultural futures prices, using structural vector autoregressions. We identify exogenous variation in net long positions of speculators through heteroskedasticity. We first show that demand shocks of both index investors and noncommercial traders lead to a statistically significant contemporaneous increase in futures prices. We then quantify ...

Global Gas Model: Model and Data Documentation v3.0 (2019)

Germany and Climate Protection: From Model Pupil to Laggard: Why Coal Phasing out Makes Economic and Ecological Sense

Germany has gone from being a pioneer to a laggard when it comes to climate protection. The proportion of Germany's most polluting energy source, lignite, is higher than ever before. Renewable energies are being thwarted. There is no sustainable transport policy that focuses on traffic avoidance, relocation, and electrification as well as environmental, climate, and health protection—not even after ...

Energiewende "Made in Germany": Low Carbon Electricity Sector Reform in the European Context

Comprehensive, Whole-of-Government Strategies on Coal Transition in Major Coal Using Countries

In the project Coal Transitions leading research institutes in six major coal-using countries evaluate current policies and develop economicallyfeasible and socially just pathways to transition from thermal coal before 2050, in line with the Paris Agreement. Next to the Climate Policy department and the department of Energy, Transportation and Environment of the DIW Berlin (Germany), these are...

Economics of Nuclear Power Plant Investment: Monte Carlo Simulations of Generation III/III+ Investment Projects

This paper analyzes nuclear power plant investments using Monte Carlo simulations of economic indicators such as net present value (NPV) and levelized cost of electricity (LCOE). In times of liberalized electricity markets, largescale decarbonization and climate change considerations, this topic is gaining momentum and requires fundamental analysis of cost drivers. We adopt the private investors’ perspective ...

Between Stranded Assets and Green Transformation: Fossil-Fuel-Producing Developing Countries Towards 2055

Climate-related asset stranding refers to the depreciation of assets – such as resource reserves, infrastructure, or industries – resulting from the unanticipated changes, such as the tightening of climate policies. Although developing countries – especially fossil-fuel exporters – may be most concerned by this issue, its analysis in development (economics) has so far been limited.We aim at enhancing ...

Life Cycle Environmental Impacts of Electricity from Fossil Fuels in Chile over a Ten-Year Period

This study uses life cycle assessment to evaluate the environmental impacts of electricity generated from fossil fuels in Chile over a ten–year period, from 2004 to 2014. The focus on fossil fuels is highly relevant for Chile because around 60% of electricity currently comes from natural gas, coal and oil. The impacts are first considered at the level of individual technologies, followed by the evaluation ...