scholarly journals Can the Energy Transition Be Smooth? A General Equilibrium Approach to the EROEI

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 1176 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-François Fagnart ◽  
Marc Germain ◽  
Benjamin Peeters

The concept of energy return (EROEI ratio) is widely used in energy science to describe the interactions between energy and the economic system but it is largely ignored in macroeconomics. In order to contribute to bridging a gap between these fields of research, we incorporate these metrics into an endogenous growth model with two sectors (energy and final goods) and use this model to analyze the macroeconomic implications of a transition to lower EROEI resources. An approach in terms of net energy allows us (1) to explicitly link the EROEI to macroeconomic variables, (2) to show how it is related to the growth rate of GDP and (3) to obtain a closed-form solution for its long-run value at a general equilibrium level. There is furthermore a tight and decreasing long-run relationship between the EROEI value and the share of investment that must be allocated to the energy sector. Hence, a transition to lower EROEI resources intensifies the rival use of capital in the energy and non-energy sectors and leads to major economic changes, both in the inter-sectoral capital allocation and in the allocation of final output between consumption and investment. We show that a protracted economic contraction may occur before the completion of the transition to renewable energy. We analyze how (1) the magnitude of this contraction and (2) the possibility of an ulterior recovery depend on the initial stock of non-renewables, the potentials of technical progress in the energy and non-energy sectors and the substitutability between capital and energy.

2011 ◽  
Vol 101 (4) ◽  
pp. 1436-1466 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierpaolo Benigno ◽  
Luca Antonio Ricci

The macroeconomic implications of downward nominal wage rigidities are analyzed via a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model featuring aggregate and idiosyncratic shocks. A closed-form solution for a long-run Phillips curve relates average output gap to average wage inflation: it is virtually vertical at high inflation and flattens at low inflation. Macroeconomic volatility shifts the curve outwards and reduces output. The results imply that stabilization policies play an important role, and that optimal inflation may be positive and differ across countries with different macroeconomic volatility. Results are robust to relaxing the wage constraint, for example, when large idiosyncratic shocks arise. (JEL E23, E24, E31, E63)


2011 ◽  
Vol 103 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Bucci ◽  
C. Colapinto ◽  
M. Forster ◽  
D. La Torre

2005 ◽  
Vol 08 (07) ◽  
pp. 839-869 ◽  
Author(s):  
SHU WU ◽  
YONG ZENG

This paper develops a general equilibrium model of the term structure of interest rates in the presence of the systematic risk of regime shifts. The model elucidates the economic nature of the regime-shift risk premium and introduces a new source of time-variation in bond returns. A closed-form solution for the term structure of interest rates is obtained under an affine model using log-linear approximation. The model is estimated by Efficient Method of Moments. The regime-switching risk is found to be statistically significant and mostly affect the long-end of the yield curve.


2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 1555-1583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Carlos Parra-Alvarez

This study evaluates the accuracy of a set of techniques that approximate the solution of continuous-time Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium models. Using the neoclassical growth model, I compare linear-quadratic, perturbation, and projection methods. All techniques are applied to the Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman equation and the optimality conditions that define the general equilibrium of the economy. Two cases are studied depending on whether a closed-form solution is available. I also analyze how different degrees of non-linearities affect the approximated solution. The results encourage the use of perturbations for reasonable values of the structural parameters of the model and suggest the use of projection methods when a high degree of accuracy is required.


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