We analyze the causal impact of the U.S. shale gas revolution on technological innovation in the electricity generation sector. Using a country-level data set of electricity patents from 1978-2018, we find that the U.S. shale gas revolution led to a 1.60 decrease in the ratio of green to fossil-fuel electricity patents and a 0.93 decrease…
Tag: Innovation
Do auctions promote innovation in renewable energy technologies? An empirical analysis of solar PV
Innovation in low-carbon technologies and, particularly, renewable electricity technologies (RETs) will be a critical component of the decarbonised energy transition. RET innovation requires a wise combination of supply-push (R&D support) and demand-pull policies (support for deployment). Renewable energy auctions are currently the main instrument to support the deployment of renewable electricity capacity worldwide. Thus, auctions…
The Economics of Sustainability: Causes and Consequences of Energy Market Transformation
The paper deals with the economics of sustainability associated with the transformation of energy markets. It emphasizes the interrelations between technical changes and energy markets and how in turn the resulting transformations alter the sustainability of economic systems that are dependent on these markets. It also explores how innovation (or the lack thereof) is intimately…
Technological Advance in Cooling Systems at U.S. Power Plants
Prior to adoption of the 1972 Clean Water Act (CWA) most U.S. power plants used once-through cooling water systems that discharged large quantities of warm water. This resulted in significant amounts of thermal pollution in neighboring bodies of water. The CWA essentially mandated recirculating systems for new facilities. This paper investigates whether there was technological…
How a “Low Carbon” Innovation Can Fail–Tales from a “Lost Decade” for Carbon Capture, Transport, and Sequestration (CCTS)
This paper analyzes the discrepancy between the high hopes placed in Carbon Capture, Transport, and Storage (CCTS) and the meager results that have been observed in reality, and advances several explanations for what we call a “lost decade” for CCTS. We trace the origins of the high hopes placed in this technology by industry and…