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Market definition as value reconciliation: the case of renewable energy promotion under the WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures

Author

Listed:
  • Harri Kalimo

    (Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB))

  • Filip Sedefov

    (Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB))

  • Max S. Jansson

    (Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB))

Abstract

The interrelationship between renewable energy support policies and World Trade Organization (WTO) law is an important recent manifestation of the challenge to reconcile environmental and economic values in contemporary societies. This article strives to contribute to the discussion by using the intersection between policies to support renewable energy, in particular sustainable biofuels in the EU, and the WTO’s Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures as a case study. The article discusses how efforts to promote renewable energy seem to have become contingent upon the core legal notion of ‘relevant markets’. The article further claims that this contingency is problematic: renewable energy markets are highly complex in practice, and combined with the WTO’s convoluted interpretations of ‘relevant markets’, the legal outcomes struggle to find the proper balance between appropriate support for sustainability and the prevention of protectionist market fragmentation.

Suggested Citation

  • Harri Kalimo & Filip Sedefov & Max S. Jansson, 2017. "Market definition as value reconciliation: the case of renewable energy promotion under the WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 427-443, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:ieaple:v:17:y:2017:i:3:d:10.1007_s10784-017-9361-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s10784-017-9361-1
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Beckman, Jayson, 2015. "Biofuel Use in International Markets: The Importance of Trade," Economic Information Bulletin 262114, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    2. Coppens,Dominic, 2014. "WTO Disciplines on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107014770, November.
    3. Charnovitz, Steve & Fischer, Carolyn, 2015. "Canada–Renewable Energy: Implications for WTO Law on Green and Not-So-Green Subsidies," World Trade Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 14(2), pages 177-210, April.
    4. Emily Barrett Lydgate, 2012. "Biofuels, Sustainability, and Trade-Related Regulatory Chill," Journal of International Economic Law, Oxford University Press, vol. 15(1), pages 157-180, March.
    5. Klessmann, Corinna & Held, Anne & Rathmann, Max & Ragwitz, Mario, 2011. "Status and perspectives of renewable energy policy and deployment in the European Union—What is needed to reach the 2020 targets?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(12), pages 7637-7657.
    6. Searchinger, Timothy & Heimlich, Ralph & Houghton, R. A. & Dong, Fengxia & Elobeid, Amani & Fabiosa, Jacinto F. & Tokgoz, Simla & Hayes, Dermot J. & Yu, Hun-Hsiang, 2008. "Use of U.S. Croplands for Biofuels Increases Greenhouse Gases Through Emissions from Land-Use Change," Staff General Research Papers Archive 12881, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    7. Frank Biermann & Philipp Pattberg & Harro van Asselt & Fariborz Zelli, 2009. "The Fragmentation of Global Governance Architectures: A Framework for Analysis," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 9(4), pages 14-40, November.
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    Cited by:

    1. Thijs Van de Graaf & Harro van Asselt, 2017. "Introduction to the special issue: energy subsidies at the intersection of climate, energy, and trade governance," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 313-326, June.
    2. Nicky R. M. Pouw & Hans-Peter Weikard & Richard B. Howarth, 2022. "Economic analysis of international environmental agreements: lessons learnt 2000–2020," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 279-294, June.
    3. Joyeeta Gupta & Courtney Vegelin & Nicky Pouw, 2022. "Lessons learnt from international environmental agreements for the Stockholm + 50 Conference: celebrating 20 Years of INEA," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 229-244, June.

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