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Green Energy, Efficiency and Climate Change: An Economic Perspective

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Green Energy and Efficiency

Part of the book series: Green Energy and Technology ((GREEN))

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Abstract

The three core objectives of any sensible energy policy nowadays are (1) security of supply, (2) competitiveness, and (3) sustainability. Renewable energy and energy efficiency investments are crucial if we are to make energy supplies more sustainable, competitive and secure. These goals support each other. More sustainable energy sources, such as renewables, help the energy sector to be more competitive, as well as diversifying and securing its energy supply. Yet implementing policies to promote green energy and efficiency is no easy task. This chapter seeks to discuss the difficulties facing the regulation needed in the energy sector and to analyze the key concepts and the main markets failures that characterize the energy markets. It also reviews the main policies undertaken at EU level in order to deal with the relations between the energy sector and the problem of climate change.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Land was used to include all natural resource inputs to production and played a central role in the classical economic model. However, as its value share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell steadily in the twentieth century [26], it gradually diminished in importance in economic theory and today is usually subsumed as a subcategory of natural capital.

  2. 2.

    See Laffont and Martimort [18] for a survey of this literature.

  3. 3.

    The work by North [23] is also very inspiring.

  4. 4.

    Fortunately, recent advances are being made to provide good energy efficiency indicators by the World Energy Council or the International Energy Agency at the world level and by the ODYSSE-MURE Project and Fundación Repsol at the European level.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Low Carbon Programme, Instituto de Economía Pública/Ekonomia Publikorako Institutoa, UPV/EHU, Zubiria Etxea, Lehendakari Agirre Etorbidea 83, 48015, Bilbao, Spain

    M. C. Gallastegui, M. Escapa & A. Ansuategi

Authors
  1. M. C. Gallastegui
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  2. M. Escapa
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  3. A. Ansuategi
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Correspondence to A. Ansuategi .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

    Alberto Ansuategi

  2. Basque Centre for Climate Change(BC3), Bilbao, Spain

    Juan Delgado

  3. Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3), Bilbao, Spain

    Ibon Galarraga

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Gallastegui, M.C., Escapa, M., Ansuategi, A. (2015). Green Energy, Efficiency and Climate Change: An Economic Perspective. In: Ansuategi, A., Delgado, J., Galarraga, I. (eds) Green Energy and Efficiency. Green Energy and Technology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-03632-8_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-03632-8_1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-03631-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-03632-8

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