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Where does the wind blow? Green preferences and spatial misallocation in renewable energy sector

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  • Yatang Lin

Abstract

Are "greener" investments less efficient? This paper looks at the location choices by wind power investors. I measures the efficiency loss in this sector due to wrong project location and explore the factors contributing to it. Using extensive information on wind resources, transmission, electricity price and other restrictions that might affect the siting of wind farms, I calculate the predicted profitability of wind power projects for all the possible places across the contiguous US, use it as a counterfactual for profit-maximizing wind power investment and compare it to the actual placement of wind farms.

Suggested Citation

  • Yatang Lin, 2016. "Where does the wind blow? Green preferences and spatial misallocation in renewable energy sector," CEP Discussion Papers dp1424, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
  • Handle: RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1424
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jonathan A. Cook and C.-Y. Cynthia Lin Lawell, 2020. "Wind Turbine Shutdowns and Upgrades in Denmark: Timing Decisions and the Impact of Government Policy," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 3), pages 81-118.
    2. Hunt Allcott, 2012. "Site Selection Bias in Program Evaluation," NBER Working Papers 18373, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Meredith Fowlie & Christopher R. Knittel & Catherine Wolfram, 2012. "Sacred Cars? Cost-Effective Regulation of Stationary and Nonstationary Pollution Sources," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 4(1), pages 98-126, February.
    4. Kahn, Matthew E. & Kok, Nils, 2014. "The capitalization of green labels in the California housing market," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 25-34.
    5. Pablo D Fajgelbaum & Eduardo Morales & Juan Carlos Suárez Serrato & Owen Zidar, 2019. "State Taxes and Spatial Misallocation," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 86(1), pages 333-376.
    6. Mark Jacobsen & Jacob LaRiviere & Michael Price, 2014. "Public Goods Provision in the Presence of Heterogeneous Green Preferences," NBER Working Papers 20266, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    7. Hunt Allcott, 2015. "Site Selection Bias in Program Evaluation," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 130(3), pages 1117-1165.
    8. Koichiro Ito & James M. Sallee, 2018. "The Economics of Attribute-Based Regulation: Theory and Evidence from Fuel Economy Standards," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 100(2), pages 319-336, May.
    9. Bird, Lori & Bolinger, Mark & Gagliano, Troy & Wiser, Ryan & Brown, Matthew & Parsons, Brian, 2005. "Policies and market factors driving wind power development in the United States," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(11), pages 1397-1407, July.
    10. Sexton, Steven E. & Sexton, Alison L., 2014. "Conspicuous conservation: The Prius halo and willingness to pay for environmental bona fides," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 303-317.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Spatial misallocation; renewable energy policies; productivity; green preferences;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)
    • R38 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - Government Policy
    • Q42 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Alternative Energy Sources
    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy

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