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The Green Paradox and Learning-by-Doing in the Renewable Energy Sector

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  • Daniel Nachtigall
  • Dirk Rübbelke

Abstract

The green paradox conveys the idea that climate policies may have unintended side effects when taking into account the reaction of fossil fuel suppliers. In particular, carbon taxes that will be implemented in the future induce resource owners to extract more rapidly which increases present carbon dioxide emissions and accelerates global warming. Our results suggest that future carbon taxes may even decrease present emissions if resource owners face increasing marginal extraction costs and if there is a clean energy source that is a perfect substitute and exhibits learning-by-doing (LBD). If the marginal extraction cost curve is sufficiently at, resource owners respond to a future carbon tax with lowering total extraction and only slightly increase present extraction. Moreover, taxation leads to higher energy prices which induces the renewable energy firms to increase output not only in the future, but also in the present because of the anticipated benefits from LBD. This crowds out energy from the combustion of fossil fuels and may outweigh the initial increase in present extraction, leading to less emissions in the present.

Suggested Citation

  • Daniel Nachtigall & Dirk Rübbelke, 2014. "The Green Paradox and Learning-by-Doing in the Renewable Energy Sector," CESifo Working Paper Series 4880, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_4880
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    2. Alena Miftakhova & Clément Renoir, 2021. "Economic Growth and Equity in Anticipation of Climate Policy," CER-ETH Economics working paper series 21/355, CER-ETH - Center of Economic Research (CER-ETH) at ETH Zurich.
    3. van der Meijden, Gerard & van der Ploeg, Frederick & Withagen, Cees, 2015. "International capital markets, oil producers and the Green Paradox," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 275-297.
    4. Yuan, Yongna & Duan, Hongbo & Tsvetanov, Tsvetan G., 2020. "Synergizing China's energy and carbon mitigation goals: General equilibrium modeling and policy assessment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    5. Okullo, Samuel J. & Reynès, Frédéric & Hofkes, Marjan W., 2021. "(Bio-)Fuel mandating and the green paradox," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    6. Christian Beermann, 2015. "Climate Policy and the Intertemporal Supply of Fossil Resources," ifo Beiträge zur Wirtschaftsforschung, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 62.
    7. Wang, Huiqing & Wei, Weixian, 2020. "Coordinating technological progress and environmental regulation in CO2 mitigation: The optimal levels for OECD countries & emerging economies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    8. Lancker, Kira & Quaas, Martin F., 2019. "Increasing marginal costs and the efficiency of differentiated feed-in tariffs," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 104-118.
    9. Mark Schopf, 2016. "Unilateral Supply Side Policies and the Green Paradox," Working Papers Dissertations 28, Paderborn University, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics.
    10. Hattendorff, Christian, 2014. "Natural resources, demand for external finance and financial development," Discussion Papers 2014/33, Free University Berlin, School of Business & Economics.
    11. Espinola-Arredondo, Ana & Muñoz-García, Félix & Duah, Isaac, 2019. "Anticipatory effects of taxation in the commons: When do taxes work, and when do they fail?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 1-1.
    12. Marie-Catherine Riekhof & Johannes Bröcker, 2017. "Does The Adverse Announcement Effect Of Climate Policy Matter? — A Dynamic General Equilibrium Analysis," Climate Change Economics (CCE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 8(02), pages 1-34, May.
    13. Kosugi, Takanobu, 2023. "Learning rate matters: Reexamining optimal power expansion planning with endogenized technological experience curves," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 283(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    climate change; exhaustible resources; learning-by-doing; green paradox;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q38 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Government Policy (includes OPEC Policy)
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming
    • Q28 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Government Policy
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies

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