IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/hal/journl/hal-02644272.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Distorted time preferences and time-to-build in the transition to a low-carbon energy industry

Author

Listed:
  • Christoph Heinzel

    (LERNA - Economie des Ressources Naturelles - UT Capitole - Université Toulouse Capitole - UT - Université de Toulouse - INRA - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - CEA - Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives)

  • Ralph Winkler

    (UNIBE - Universität Bern / University of Bern)

Abstract

We study the welfare-theoretic consequences of diverging social and private time-preference rates and time-to-build for the transition to a low-carbon energy industry. We show that time-to-build, a prevalent characteristic of capital accumulation in the energy sector, amplifies the distortion induced by the split discount rates. Thus, these two characteristics create in a mutually reinforcing way less favorable circumstances for the introduction of new clean energy technologies as compared to the social optimum, even if welfare losses from emissions are internalized. We discuss resulting policy implications with particular emphasis on the energy sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Christoph Heinzel & Ralph Winkler, 2011. "Distorted time preferences and time-to-build in the transition to a low-carbon energy industry," Post-Print hal-02644272, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02644272
    DOI: 10.1007/s10640-010-9431-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    To our knowledge, this item is not available for download. To find whether it is available, there are three options:
    1. Check below whether another version of this item is available online.
    2. Check on the provider's web page whether it is in fact available.
    3. Perform a search for a similarly titled item that would be available.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Asea, Patrick K. & Zak, Paul J., 1999. "Time-to-build and cycles," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 23(8), pages 1155-1175, August.
    2. Faggian, Silvia & Gozzi, Fausto, 2010. "Optimal investment models with vintage capital: Dynamic programming approach," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(4), pages 416-437, July.
    3. Boucekkine, Raouf & Licandro, Omar & Puch, Luis A. & del Rio, Fernando, 2005. "Vintage capital and the dynamics of the AK model," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 120(1), pages 39-72, January.
    4. Calvo, Guillermo A & Obstfeld, Maurice, 1988. "Optimal Time-Consistent Fiscal Policy with Finite Lifetimes," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 56(2), pages 411-432, March.
    5. Heinzel, Christoph, 2008. "Implications of diverging social and private discount rates for investments in the German power industry: a new case for nuclear energy?," Dresden Discussion Paper Series in Economics 03/08, Technische Universität Dresden, Faculty of Business and Economics, Department of Economics.
    6. G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), 2003. "Handbook of the Economics of Finance," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, Elsevier, edition 1, volume 1, number 1.
    7. Jaffe, Adam B. & Newell, Richard G. & Stavins, Robert N., 2005. "A tale of two market failures: Technology and environmental policy," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(2-3), pages 164-174, August.
    8. Dreze, Jean & Stern, Nicholas, 1990. "Policy reform, shadow prices, and market prices," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(1), pages 1-45, June.
    9. Peter M. Demarzo & Michael J. Fishman & Zhiguo He & Neng Wang, 2012. "Dynamic Agency and the q Theory of Investment," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 67(6), pages 2295-2340, December.
    10. Ralph Winkler, 2008. "Optimal compliance with emission constraints: dynamic characteristics and the choice of technique," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 39(4), pages 411-432, April.
    11. Kenneth J. Arrow & Robert C. Lind, 1974. "Uncertainty and the Evaluation of Public Investment Decisions," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Chennat Gopalakrishnan (ed.), Classic Papers in Natural Resource Economics, chapter 3, pages 54-75, Palgrave Macmillan.
    12. Richard G. Newell & Adam B. Jaffe & Robert N. Stavins, 1999. "The Induced Innovation Hypothesis and Energy-Saving Technological Change," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 114(3), pages 941-975.
    13. G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), 2003. "Handbook of the Economics of Finance," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, Elsevier, edition 1, volume 1, number 2.
    14. Mehra, Rajnish & Prescott, Edward C., 2003. "The equity premium in retrospect," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, in: G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Finance, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 14, pages 889-938, Elsevier.
    15. Mauro Bambi, 2006. "Endogenous Growth and Time-to-Build: the AK Case," Economics Working Papers ECO2006/17, European University Institute.
    16. Gollier, Christian, 2002. "Discounting an uncertain future," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(2), pages 149-166, August.
    17. Lans Bovenberg, A. & Smulders, Sjak, 1995. "Environmental quality and pollution-augmenting technological change in a two-sector endogenous growth model," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(3), pages 369-391, July.
    18. Winkler, Ralph, 2005. "Structural change with joint production of consumption and environmental pollution: a neo-Austrian approach," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 16(1), pages 111-135, March.
    19. Menahem E. Yaari, 1965. "Uncertain Lifetime, Life Insurance, and the Theory of the Consumer," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 32(2), pages 137-150.
    20. Ben Groom & Cameron Hepburn & Phoebe Koundouri & David Pearce, 2005. "Declining Discount Rates: The Long and the Short of it," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 32(4), pages 445-493, December.
    21. Fabbri, Giorgio & Gozzi, Fausto, 2008. "Solving optimal growth models with vintage capital: The dynamic programming approach," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 143(1), pages 331-373, November.
    22. van der Zwaan, B. C. C. & Gerlagh, R. & G. & Klaassen & Schrattenholzer, L., 2002. "Endogenous technological change in climate change modelling," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(1), pages 1-19, January.
    23. Blanchard, Olivier J, 1985. "Debt, Deficits, and Finite Horizons," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 93(2), pages 223-247, April.
    24. Winkler, Ralph & Brandt-Pollmann, Ulrich & Moslener, Ulf & Schlöder, Johannes, 2005. "On the Transition from Instantaneous to Time-Lagged Capital Accumilation: The Case of Leontief Type Production Functions," ZEW Discussion Papers 05-30, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    25. Shane Frederick & George Loewenstein & Ted O'Donoghue, 2002. "Time Discounting and Time Preference: A Critical Review," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 40(2), pages 351-401, June.
    26. Gerlagh, Reyer & van der Zwaan, Bob, 2003. "Gross world product and consumption in a global warming model with endogenous technological change," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 35-57, February.
    27. Goulder, Lawrence H. & Mathai, Koshy, 2000. "Optimal CO2 Abatement in the Presence of Induced Technological Change," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 1-38, January.
    28. Tahvonen, Olli & Salo, Seppo, 2001. "Economic growth and transitions between renewable and nonrenewable energy resources," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(8), pages 1379-1398, August.
    29. El-Hodiri, Mohamed A & Loehman, Edna & Whinston, Andrew B, 1972. "An Optimal Growth Model with Time Lags," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 40(6), pages 1137-1146, November.
    30. Goulder, Lawrence H. & Schneider, Stephen H., 1999. "Induced technological change and the attractiveness of CO2 abatement policies," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(3-4), pages 211-253, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Maik T. Schneider & Christian Traeger & Ralph Winkler, 2010. "Trading Off Generations: Infinitely-Lived Agent Versus OLG," Diskussionsschriften dp1007, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    2. Greiner, Alfred & Gruene, Lars & Semmler, Willi, 2014. "Economic growth and the transition from non-renewable to renewable energy," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 19(4), pages 417-439, August.
    3. Wenli Cheng & Dingsheng Zhang, 2021. "Optimal Environmental Tax-Subsidy Regime in the Presence of Increasing Returns," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 22(2), pages 525-540, November.
    4. Grischa Perino & Maximilian Willner, 2019. "Rushing the Impatient: Allowance Reserves and the Time Profile of Low-Carbon Investments," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 74(2), pages 845-863, October.
    5. Schneider, Maik T. & Traeger, Christian P. & Winkler, Ralph, 2012. "Trading off generations: Equity, discounting, and climate change," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(8), pages 1621-1644.
    6. Nyambuu, Unurjargal & Semmler, Willi, 2020. "Climate change and the transition to a low carbon economy – Carbon targets and the carbon budget," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 367-376.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Heinzel, Christoph & Winkler, Ralph, 2006. "Gradual versus structural technological change in the transition to a low-emission energy industry: How time-to-build and differing social and individual discount rates influence environmental and tec," Dresden Discussion Paper Series in Economics 09/06, Technische Universität Dresden, Faculty of Business and Economics, Department of Economics.
    2. Christoph Heinzel & Ralph Winkler, 2007. "The role of environmental and technology policies in the transition to a low-carbon energy industry," CER-ETH Economics working paper series 07/71, CER-ETH - Center of Economic Research (CER-ETH) at ETH Zurich.
    3. Gerlagh, Reyer & Lise, Wietze, 2005. "Carbon taxes: A drop in the ocean, or a drop that erodes the stone? The effect of carbon taxes on technological change," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(2-3), pages 241-260, August.
    4. d’Albis, Hippolyte & Augeraud-Véron, Emmanuelle & Hupkes, Hermen Jan, 2014. "Multiple solutions in systems of functional differential equations," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 50-56.
    5. M. Bambi & G. Fabbri & F. Gozzi, 2012. "Optimal policy and consumption smoothing effects in the time-to-build AK model," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 50(3), pages 635-669, August.
    6. Gerlagh, Reyer, 2008. "A climate-change policy induced shift from innovations in carbon-energy production to carbon-energy savings," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 425-448, March.
    7. Reyer Gerlagh & Marjan W. Hofkes, 2004. "Time Profile of Climate Change Stabilization Policy," Working Papers 2004.139, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    8. Mauro Bambi & Cristina Girolami & Salvatore Federico & Fausto Gozzi, 2017. "Generically distributed investments on flexible projects and endogenous growth," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 63(2), pages 521-558, February.
    9. Gerlagh, Reyer & Kverndokk, Snorre & Rosendahl, Knut Einar, 2008. "Linking Environmental and Innovation Policy," Economic Theory and Applications Working Papers 37847, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    10. Gerlagh, Reyer, 2007. "Measuring the value of induced technological change," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(11), pages 5287-5297, November.
    11. d’Albis, Hippolyte & Augeraud-Veron, Emmanuelle & Venditti, Alain, 2012. "Business cycle fluctuations and learning-by-doing externalities in a one-sector model," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(5), pages 295-308.
    12. Ralph Winkler, 2008. "Optimal control of pollutants with delayed stock accumulation," CER-ETH Economics working paper series 08/91, CER-ETH - Center of Economic Research (CER-ETH) at ETH Zurich.
    13. Ralph Winkler, 2008. "Optimal compliance with emission constraints: dynamic characteristics and the choice of technique," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 39(4), pages 411-432, April.
    14. Raouf Boucekkine & Giorgio Fabbri & Patrick-Antoine Pintus, 2011. "On the optimal control of a linear neutral differential equation arising in economics," Working Papers halshs-00576770, HAL.
    15. Fabbri Giorgio & Federico Salvatore, 2014. "On the Infinite-Dimensional Representation of Stochastic Controlled Systems with Delayed Control in the Diffusion Term," Mathematical Economics Letters, De Gruyter, vol. 2(3-4), pages 1-11, November.
    16. Frédéric Zumer & Jacques Le Cacheux & Marc Flandreau, 1998. "Stability without a pact? Lessons from the European Gold Standard, 1880-1913," Sciences Po publications n°98-01, Sciences Po.
    17. Fabbri, Giorgio, 2017. "International borrowing without commitment and informational lags: Choice under uncertainty," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 103-114.
    18. Carraro, Carlo & De Cian, Enrica & Nicita, Lea & Massetti, Emanuele & Verdolini, Elena, 2010. "Environmental Policy and Technical Change: A Survey," International Review of Environmental and Resource Economics, now publishers, vol. 4(2), pages 163-219, October.
    19. Tunç Durmaz & Fred Schroyen, 2020. "Evaluating Carbon Capture And Storage In A Climate Model With Endogenous Technical Change," Climate Change Economics (CCE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 11(01), pages 1-47, February.
    20. BOUCEKKINE, Raouf & FABBRI, Giorgio & PINTUS, Patrick, 2012. "On the optimal control of a linear neutral differential equation arising in economics," LIDAM Reprints CORE 2449, Université catholique de Louvain, Center for Operations Research and Econometrics (CORE).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    DISCOUNTING ; DISTORTED TIME PREFERENCES ; ENERGY INDUSTRY ; ENVIRONMENTAL AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY ; TECHNOLOGICAL TRANSITION ; TIME-TO-BUILD;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
    • H43 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Project Evaluation; Social Discount Rate

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02644272. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: CCSD (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.