May 9, 2017

Modeling Unit Commitment in Political Context

Electricity sector restructuring processes can undergo long, protracted transition periods that are not well-captured in typical power systems operation models. We create a tractable dispatch optimization with important political considerations for a region of China, demonstrating interactions among institutions relevant for ongoing power sector reforms.

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April 13, 2017

Early Nuclear Retirements in Deregulated U.S. Markets

U.S. nuclear reactors have been retiring at an unprecedented pace for the last few years. Tens of gigawatts of zero-emission nuclear capacity are now at risk of retiring prematurely, before the end of their operating license. We examine the root causes of this phenomena and discuss regulatory options for policymakers.

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March 21, 2017

A Green Bargain? Impacts of an Energy Saving Program on China’s Iron and Steel Industry

The impact of environmental regulation on firm productivity has been long been debated, however, mainly for western economies and with limited firm-level evidence. We study the impact of a large-scale national energy saving program in China on firm productivity in the iron and steel industry and find positive effects on productivity growth.

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March 17, 2017

Tropical Forests, Tipping Points, and the Social Cost of Deforestation

The existence of a forest-savanna tipping point implies that changes in forest resilience affect the marginal economic value of a standing forest. We propose a new framework for calculating the economic value of a standing tropical forest, and explore the implications of tipping points on the design of optimal land-use policy and payments for ecosystem services.

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March 17, 2017

When Do States Disrupt Industries? Electric Cars in Germany and the United States

When do states drive green industrial change? We show that in mature industries with powerful incumbents the ability of the state to organize private interests in support of technological change is critical to develop innovation policy. States with competitive state-business relations can accomplish this more easily than states with cooperative state-business relations. In the case of the auto industry, the United States adopted a policy package to commercialize electric cars. Germany, instead, adopted a wait-and-see policy based on coordination with automakers.

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February 10, 2017

Anticipation and Environmental Regulation

Environmental standards can affect new-equipment sales and used-equipment retirements. We identify two additional effects, of anticipation, on the flow and stock of regulated equipment, and discuss the implications for policy design and program evaluation.

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