This innovative book explores the adoption of energy-saving technologies and their impact on energy efficiency improvements. It contains a mix of theoretical and empirical contributions, and combines and compares economic and physical indicators to monitor and analyse trends in energy efficiency.
The authors pay considerable attention to empirical research on the determinants of energy-saving investment including uncertainty, energy-price volatility and subsidies. They also discuss the role of energy modelling in policy design and the potential effect of energy policies on technology diffusion in energy-extensive sectors. Written from a multi-disciplinary perspective, this book will appeal to academics and graduates in the areas of energy-saving technologies, energy economics and natural resource economics, as well as policy makers – particularly those in energy policy.
Preface
INTRODUCTION
1. Energy Efficiency and Technological Change
Raymond J.G.M. Florax, Henri L.F. de Groot and Peter Mulder
PART I: TRENDS IN ENERGY EFFICIENCY
2. A Spatial Perspective on Global Energy Productivity Trends
Peter Mulder, Raymond J.G.M. Florax and Henri L.F. de Groot
3. Energy-Productivity Performance Across 14 OECD Countries: The Role of Energy-Extensive Sectors
Peter Mulder and Henri L.F. de Groot
4. Using Physical Indicators to Monitor Energy Efficiency in Energy-Extensive Sectors
Andrea Ramírez, Martin K. Patel and Kornelis Blok
5. Monitoring Energy Use and Energy Efficiency in the Dutch Service Sector
Andrea Ramírez, Martin K. Patel and Kornelis Blok
PART II: TECHNOLOGY AND INVESTMENT BEHAVIOUR
6. Adoption Criteria, Diffusion and Firm Size: The Role of Learning in Reconciling Theories of Endogenous Technical Change with Empirical Evidence
Greg W. Hunter
7. A Meta-Regression Analysis of the Investment–Uncertainty Relationship
Mark J. Koetse, Henri L.F. de Groot and Raymond J.G.M. Florax
8. The Effects of Uncertainty on Investments: Analysing the Environmental Impact of Energy Market Liberalization
Daan P. van Soest and Henri L.F. de Groot
PART III: ENERGY POLICY DESIGN
9. Energy Investment Behaviour: Firm Heterogeneity and Subsidy Design
Daan P. van Soest and Herman R.J. Vollebergh
10. Effectiveness of Energy Policies in the Service Sector
Kornelis Blok, Suzanne Joosen and Mirjam Harmelink
11. Energy Model and Policy Advice: The Effect of Model Choice
Willem J.H. van Groenendaal
EPILOGUE
12. Conclusions and Future Research
Raymond J.G.M. Florax, Henri L.F. de Groot and Peter Mulder
Index
"Increasing energy-efficiency is important because it offers the prospect of partly solving our climate change and energy security problems without pain. This book sheds further light on the issue, focusing on energy-extensive economic activities which, by sheer volume, collectively use a substantial amount of energy. That simple fact alone makes this book worthwhile, but there are many other gems."
- Richard Tol, the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), Ireland