IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/euv/dpaper/006.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Environmental Policy and the Energy Eficiency of Vertically Differentiated Consumer Products

Author

Listed:
  • Magdalena Brzeskot

    (Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, European University Viadrina, Frankfurt (Oder))

  • Alexander Haupt

    (School of Management (Plymouth Business School))

Abstract

We analyse optimal environmental policies in a market that is vertically differentiated in terms of the energy efficiency of products. Considering energy taxes, subsidies to firms for investment in more eco-friendly products, and product standards, we are particularly interested in how distributional goals in addition to environmental goals shape the choice of policy instruments. We Önd that an industry-friendly government levies an energy tax to supplement a lax product standard, but shies away from subsidies to firms. By contrast, a consumer-friendly government relies heavily on a strict product standard and additionally implements a moderate subsidy to firms, but avoids energy taxes.

Suggested Citation

  • Magdalena Brzeskot & Alexander Haupt, 2012. "Environmental Policy and the Energy Eficiency of Vertically Differentiated Consumer Products," Discussion Paper Series RECAP15 006, RECAP15, European University Viadrina, Frankfurt (Oder).
    • Handle: RePEc:euv:dpaper:006
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.europa-uni.de/de/forschung/institut/recap15/downloads/recap15_DP006.pdf
    File Function: First version, 2012
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Crampes, Claude & Hollander, Abraham, 1995. "Duopoly and quality standards," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 71-82, January.
    2. Bureau, Benjamin, 2011. "Distributional effects of a carbon tax on car fuels in France," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 121-130, January.
    3. Kenneth A. Small & Kurt Van Dender, 2007. "Fuel Efficiency and Motor Vehicle Travel: The Declining Rebound Effect," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 1), pages 25-52.
    4. José Moraga-González & Noemi Padrón-Fumero, 2002. "Environmental Policy in a Green Market," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 22(3), pages 419-447, July.
    5. Kenneth Gillingham & Richard G. Newell & Karen Palmer, 2009. "Energy Efficiency Economics and Policy," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 1(1), pages 597-620, September.
    6. Bansal, Sangeeta, 2008. "Choice and design of regulatory instruments in the presence of green consumers," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 345-368, August.
    7. Cremer, Helmuth & Thisse, Jacques-Francois, 1999. "On the taxation of polluting products in a differentiated industry," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(3), pages 575-594, March.
    8. Avner Shaked & John Sutton, 1982. "Relaxing Price Competition Through Product Differentiation," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 49(1), pages 3-13.
    9. Cremer, Helmuth & Thisse, Jacques-Francois, 1994. "Commodity Taxation in a Differentiated Oligopoly," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 35(3), pages 613-633, August.
    10. Jonathan E. Hughes & Christopher R. Knittel & Daniel Sperling, 2008. "Evidence of a Shift in the Short-Run Price Elasticity of Gasoline Demand," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 29(1), pages 113-134.
    11. Wei, Taoyuan, 2010. "A general equilibrium view of global rebound effects," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 661-672, May.
    12. C. Lombardini-Riipinen, 2005. "Optimal Tax Policy under Environmental Quality Competition," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 32(3), pages 317-336, November.
    13. 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.
    14. Austin, David & Dinan, Terry, 2005. "Clearing the air: The costs and consequences of higher CAFE standards and increased gasoline taxes," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 50(3), pages 562-582, November.
    15. Arora, Seema & Gangopadhyay, Shubhashis, 1995. "Toward a theoretical model of voluntary overcompliance," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 289-309, December.
    16. Rauscher, Michael, 1997. "International Trade, Factor Movements, and the Environment," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198290506.
    17. Espey, James A. & Espey, Molly, 2004. "Turning on the Lights: A Meta-Analysis of Residential Electricity Demand Elasticities," Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Southern Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 36(1), pages 1-17, April.
    18. Jaskold Gabszewicz, J. & Thisse, J. -F., 1979. "Price competition, quality and income disparities," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 340-359, June.
    19. Eriksson, Clas, 2004. "Can green consumerism replace environmental regulation?--a differentiated-products example," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 281-293, September.
    20. Laffont, Jean-Jacques & Tirole, Jean, 1996. "Pollution permits and environmental innovation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(1-2), pages 127-140, October.
    21. Uri Ronnen, 1991. "Minimum Quality Standards, Fixed Costs, and Competition," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 22(4), pages 490-504, Winter.
    22. Bansal, Sangeeta & Gangopadhyay, Shubhashis, 2003. "Tax/subsidy policies in the presence of environmentally aware consumers," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 45(2, Supple), pages 333-355, March.
    23. Peter C. Reiss & Matthew W. White, 2005. "Household Electricity Demand, Revisited," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 72(3), pages 853-883.
    24. Peltzman, Sam, 1976. "Toward a More General Theory of Regulation," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 19(2), pages 211-240, 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. Jing Shuai & Xin Cheng & Jing Liu & Jinhua Cheng, 2018. "What do consumers expect for government subsidies on low-carbon products in China?," International Journal of Low-Carbon Technologies, Oxford University Press, vol. 13(2), pages 131-139.

    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. Alexander Haupt & Magdalena Stadejek, 2010. "The Choice of Environmental Policy Instruments: Energy Efficiency and Redistribution," CESifo Working Paper Series 2986, CESifo.
    2. Bansal, Sangeeta, 2008. "Choice and design of regulatory instruments in the presence of green consumers," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 345-368, August.
    3. Marco A. Marini & Ornella Tarola & Jacques-François Thisse, 2020. "Is Environmentalism the Right Strategy to Decarbonize the World?," Working Papers 2020.31, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    4. Doni, Nicola & Ricchiuti, Giorgio, 2013. "Market equilibrium in the presence of green consumers and responsible firms: A comparative statics analysis," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 380-395.
    5. Keith Brouhle & Madhu Khanna, 2007. "Information And The Provision Of Quality Differentiated Products," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 45(2), pages 377-394, April.
    6. Klaus CONRAD, 2005. "Price Competition and Product Differentiation when Goods have Network Effects," Industrial Organization 0502002, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Maccarrone, Giovanni & Marini, Marco A. & Tarola, Ornella, 2023. "Shop Until You Drop: the Unexpected Effects of Anticonsumerism and Environmentalism," FEEM Working Papers 330384, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    8. Dorothée Brécard, 2011. "Environmental Tax in a Green Market," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 49(3), pages 387-403, July.
    9. Mads Greaker, 2006. "Eco-labels, Trade and Protectionism," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 33(1), pages 1-37, January.
    10. Paolo G. Garella, 2021. "The effects of taxes and subsidies on environmental qualities in a differentiated duopoly," Letters in Spatial and Resource Sciences, Springer, vol. 14(2), pages 197-209, August.
    11. Dominic Hauck & Erik Ansink & Jetske Bouma & Daan van Soest, 2014. "Social Network Effects and Green Consumerism," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 14-150/VIII, Tinbergen Institute.
    12. Giulia Ceccantoni & Ornella Tarola & Cecilia Vergari, 2023. "Tax and pollution in a vertically differentiated duopoly: When consumers matter," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 74(2), pages 416-445, May.
    13. Dorothée Brécard, 2013. "Environmental Quality Competition and Taxation in the Presence of Green Network Effect Among Consumers," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 54(1), pages 1-19, January.
    14. Conrad, Klaus, 2004. "Price Competition and Product Differentiation when Goods have Network Effects," Discussion Papers 612, Institut fuer Volkswirtschaftslehre und Statistik, Abteilung fuer Volkswirtschaftslehre.
    15. Lambertini, Luca & Pignataro, Giuseppe & Tampieri, Alessandro, 2020. "The effects of environmental quality misperception on investments and regulation," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 225(C).
    16. Lutz, Stefan H., 2002. "The Effects of Quotas on Vertical Intra-Industry Trade," ZEW Discussion Papers 02-61, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    17. Andrea Mantovani & Ornella Tarola & Cecilia Vergari, 2014. "Hedonic quality, social norms, and environmental campaigns," Working Papers 2014/36, Institut d'Economia de Barcelona (IEB).
    18. Ibrahima Barry & Olivier Bonroy & Paolo G. Garella, 2017. "Eco-labelling by a for-profit certifier: Countervailing power and its consequences," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 50(4), pages 1037-1062, November.
    19. Yoshinori Wada, 2019. "Discriminatory tax and subsidy on environmental behaviors," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 21(1), pages 25-36, January.
    20. Kurtyka, Oliwia & Mahenc, Philippe, 2011. "The switching effect of environmental taxation within Bertrand differentiated duopoly," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 62(2), pages 267-277, September.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Energy tax; energy efficiency standard; subsidy; vertically differentiated markets; product quality;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q58 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Government Policy
    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets

    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:euv:dpaper:006. 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: Dekanat (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/fwffode.html .

    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.