IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/hal/ciredw/hal-04510798.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Energy efficiency policy in an n-th best world: Assessing the implementation gap

Author

Listed:
  • Lucas Vivier

    (CIRED - Centre International de Recherche sur l'Environnement et le Développement - Cirad - Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - AgroParisTech - ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech - Université Paris-Saclay - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech)

  • Louis-Gaëtan Giraudet

    (CIRED - Centre International de Recherche sur l'Environnement et le Développement - Cirad - Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - AgroParisTech - ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech - Université Paris-Saclay - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech)

Abstract

The market failures and behavioral anomalies at the source of the Energy Efficiency Gap tend to be studied in isolation, which biases welfare assessment of energy efficiency policies. We develop a dynamic model of home energy retrofit fit for capturing cumulative inefficiencies due to multiple frictions -- CO2 externality, cold-related illness, credit rationing, landlord-tenant dilemma, free-riding in multi-family housing, present bias and status quo bias. Focusing on France, we find that health, rental and multi-family frictions each entail higher deadweight losses than the CO2 externality alone. Taking all frictions into account implies that energy efficiency subsidies generate net social benefits -- at odds with previous findings. In contrast, the benefit-cost balance of regulations is net negative due to ancillary costs. Finally, the French policy portfolio, which blends subsidies, taxes and regulations, only closes half of the energy efficiency gap. Its efficiency could be improved by better targeting low-income families, multi-family housing and rental housing.

Suggested Citation

  • Lucas Vivier & Louis-Gaëtan Giraudet, 2024. "Energy efficiency policy in an n-th best world: Assessing the implementation gap," CIRED Working Papers hal-04510798, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:ciredw:hal-04510798
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-04510798v2
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://hal.science/hal-04510798v2/document
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Risch, Anna, 2020. "Are environmental fiscal incentives effective in inducing energy-saving renovations? An econometric evaluation of the French energy tax credit," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    2. Nauleau, Marie‐Laure, 2014. "Free‐Riding in Tax Credits For Home Insulation in France: An Econometric Assessment Using Panel Data," Energy: Resources and Markets 165796, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    3. Marie-Laure Nauleau, 2014. "Free-Riding in Tax Credits For Home Insulation in France: An Econometric Assessment Using Panel Data," Working Papers 2014.26, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    4. Alain Quinet, 2019. "What Value Do We Attach to Climate Action?," Economie et Statistique / Economics and Statistics, Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques (INSEE), issue 510-511-5, pages 165-179.
    5. Thomas Douenne, 2020. "The Vertical and Horizontal Distributive Effects of Energy Taxes: A Case Study of a French Policy," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 3), pages 231-254.
    6. Giraudet, Louis-Gaëtan & Bourgeois, Cyril & Quirion, Philippe, 2021. "Policies for low-carbon and affordable home heating: A French outlook," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    7. Zeyen, Elisabeth & Hagenmeyer, Veit & Brown, Tom, 2021. "Mitigating heat demand peaks in buildings in a highly renewable European energy system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    8. Nauleau, Marie-Laure, 2014. "Free-riding on tax credits for home insulation in France: An econometric assessment using panel data," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 78-92.
    9. Marie-Laure Nauleau, 2014. "Free-riding on tax credits for home insulation in France: An econometric assessment using panel data," Post-Print hal-01083206, HAL.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Bourgeois, Cyril & Giraudet, Louis-Gaëtan & Quirion, Philippe, 2021. "Lump-sum vs. energy-efficiency subsidy recycling of carbon tax revenue in the residential sector: A French assessment," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    2. Huang, Fu-Wei & Chen, Shi & Lin, Jyh-Horng, 2022. "Free riding and insurer carbon-linked investment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    3. Bettina Chlond & Claire Gavard & Lisa Jeuck, 2023. "How to Support Residential Energy Conservation Cost-Effectively? An analysis of Public Financial Schemes in France," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 85(1), pages 29-63, May.
    4. Gilbert, Ben & LaRiviere, Jacob & Novan, Kevin, 2022. "Uncertainty and additionality in energy efficiency programs," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    5. Schleich, Joachim & Faure, Corinne & Meissner, Thomas, 2021. "Adoption of retrofit measures among homeowners in EU countries: The effects of access to capital and debt aversion," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    6. Damette, Olivier & Delacote, Philippe & Lo, Gaye Del, 2018. "Households energy consumption and transition toward cleaner energy sources," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 751-764.
    7. Singhal, Puja & Pahle, Michael & Kalkuhl, Matthias & Levesque, Antoine & Sommer, Stephan & Berneiser, Jessica, 2022. "Beyond good faith: Why evidence-based policy is necessary to decarbonize buildings cost-effectively in Germany," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    8. Charlier, Dorothée, 2015. "Energy efficiency investments in the context of split incentives among French households," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 465-479.
    9. Eoin Ó Broin & Jonas Nässén & Filip Johnsson, 2015. "Energy efficiency policies for space heating in EU countries: A panel data analysis for the period 1990–2010," Post-Print hal-01205485, HAL.
    10. Charlier, Dorothée & Risch, Anna & Salmon, Claire, 2018. "Energy Burden Alleviation and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction: Can We Reach Two Objectives With One Policy?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C), pages 294-313.
    11. Xueping Wu & Ming Gao & Shihong Guo & Wei Li, 2019. "Effects of environmental regulation on air pollution control in China: a spatial Durbin econometric analysis," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 55(3), pages 307-333, June.
    12. Ó Broin, Eoin & Nässén, Jonas & Johnsson, Filip, 2015. "Energy efficiency policies for space heating in EU countries: A panel data analysis for the period 1990–2010," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 211-223.
    13. Drivas, Kyriakos & Rozakis, Stelios & Xesfingi, Sofia, 2018. "The Effect of House Energy Efficiency Costs on the Participation Rate and Investment Amount of Lower-Income Households," MPRA Paper 86590, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    14. Giraudet, Louis-Gaëtan, 2020. "Energy efficiency as a credence good: A review of informational barriers to energy savings in the building sector," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    15. Glotin, David & Bourgeois, Cyril & Giraudet, Louis-Gaëtan & Quirion, Philippe, 2019. "Prediction is difficult, even when it's about the past: A hindcast experiment using Res-IRF, an integrated energy-economy model," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(S1).
    16. Henningsen, Geraldine & Wiese, Catharina, 2019. "Do Household Characteristics Really Matter? A Meta-Analysis on the Determinants of Households’ Energy-Efficiency Investments," MPRA Paper 101701, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    17. Kerr, N. & Winskel, M., 2020. "Household investment in home energy retrofit: A review of the evidence on effective public policy design for privately owned homes," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    18. Giraudet, Louis-Gaëtan & Bourgeois, Cyril & Quirion, Philippe, 2021. "Policies for low-carbon and affordable home heating: A French outlook," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    19. Hiroko Okajima & Shigeharu Okajima & Kenji Takeuchi, 2019. "Corporate responses to public pressures and price increases:Evidence from Japan's electricity crisis," Discussion Papers 1908, Graduate School of Economics, Kobe University.
    20. Marie-Laure Nauleau & Louis-Gaëtan Giraudet & Philippe Quirion, 2015. "Energy Efficiency Policy with Price-quality Discrimination," Working Papers 2015.33, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    climate change mitigation; energy efficiency; residential sector; building stock models; ex-ante policy assessment; applied policy analysis;
    All these keywords.

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    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:ciredw:hal-04510798. 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.