Djamel KIRAT

This paper examines the determinants of residential CO 2 emissions, which are not covered by the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), in 19 European countries between 2000-2017. Using both static and dynamic panel models, we found strong relationships between CO 2 emissions per capita, GDP per capita, energy prices and heating needs. We then assessed the impact of European carbon taxation and show that a e20/tonne CO 2 tax lowers emissions by 1% on average. We found that this tax affects countries differently in terms of tax revenue-to-GDP ratio. Poland and the Czech Republic would have to pay the highest contribution, and Portugal and Denmark the lowest. Finally, we propose a scenario that equalizes countries' tax burdens. We show that, were Europe to redistribute all tax revenues, the main beneficiaries would be Poland and Belgium, while Denmark and Luxembourg would have to pay a surtax.

This paper analyzes the behavior of cross-country growth rates with respect to resource abundance and dependence. We reject the linear model that is commonly used in growth regressions in favor of a multiple-regime alternative. Using a formal sample-splitting method, we find that countries exhibit different behaviors with respect to natural resources depending on their initial level of development. In high-income countries, natural resources play only a minor role in explaining the differences in national growth rates. On the contrary, in low-income countries, abundance seems to be a blessing but dependence restricts growth.

The Paris Agreement establishes a mechanism which allows a Party to benefit from greenhouse gas emissions reductions conducted in a host Party to fulfil its nationally determined contribution. In this context, the objective of this paper is to improve the understanding of carbon offset price dynamics in comparison with regular carbon market allowances. We combine a cointegration approach with risk premium considerations to compare the price dynamics of European Union Allowances (EUA) and Certified Emission Reductions (CER) in the second phase of the European carbon market. By taking account of breaks identified in the series, we find that, while the EUA and CER returns present comparable dynamics mainly driven by fuel switching, the long-term relationships between the price of these two types of permits and their drivers differ significantly. Whereas the price of EUA is well explained by a demand effect, the impact of energy prices on the CER price suggests the existence of a supply-side effect for credits. We find that the price elasticity of allowances with regard to the coal and gas prices is negative in time periods of low economic activity and positive during the remaining time. We explain the former with the fact that the market is not tight and the latter with the effect of the economic activity on the price of commodities and energy.

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This paper investigates empirically the determinants of the CO2 emissions from the residential and commercial sectors in France. We use panel data on the 22 French administrative regions over the 1995-2009 period. We estimate the relationship between regional CO2 emissions per capita, regional GDP, temperature, the annual number of frost days, heating technology and energy prices. We use these results to assess the regional consequences of implementing a carbon tax of 22€ per metric ton of CO2, and conclude that this policy would increase inequalities between regions. We show that a region-specific carbon tax that equalizes the tax burden among regions, instead of a homogenous national tax, may compensate these inequalities and reduce total CO2 emissions. Last, we show that taking regional specific effects into account in the design of the environmental tax reform may help make this policy more acceptable.

We here provide some evidence that the growth regression models used to test the resource curse should correctly account for heterogeneities between countries. We reproduce the results in a well-known article by Brunnschweiler and Bulte (2008) and then test their robustness. We show that the impact of resource dependence on growth strongly depends on the way in which we model heterogeneity. We find evidence of the resource curse in low-income countries.

This paper investigates empirically the determinants of the CO2 emissions from the residential and commercial sectors in France. We use panel data on the 22 French administrative regions over the 1995-2009 period. We estimate the relationship between regional CO2 emissions per capita, regional GDP, temperature, the annual number of frost days, heating technology and energy prices. We use these results to assess the regional consequences of implementing a carbon tax of 225 per metric ton of CO2, and conclude that this policy would increase inequalities between regions. We show that a region-specific carbon tax that equalizes the tax burden among regions, instead of a homogenous national tax, may compensate these inequalities and reduce total CO2 emissions. Last, we show that taking regional specific effects into account in the design of the environmental tax reform may help make this policy more acceptable.

This article considers the evidence for threshold effects in the relationship between electricity and emission permit prices in France and Germany during the second phase of the EU ETS. Specifically, we compare linear and nonlinear threshold models of electricity prices using Hansen's (2000) approach of sample splitting and threshold estimation. We find evidence of nonlinear threshold effects in both countries. The estimated carbon price thresholds are 14.94 and 12.57 euros in France and Germany, respectively. The carbon price threshold in France perfectly coincides with the well-known carbon spot price structural break occurred on October 2008. This is not the case for the carbon price threshold in Germany. An in-depth analysis reveals that during the period before October 2008, carbon prices were not reflected in electricity prices in either countries. This is mainly due to uncertainties about the future of the EU ETS that have led electricity producers to adopt a wait and see behavior. After October 2008, French electricity producers passthrough the price of emission permits into electricity prices in a linear way, while their German counterparts do so nonlinearly.

This paper addresses the economic impact of the European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS) for carbon on wholesale electricity prices in France and Germany during the Kyoto commitment period (2008-2012). We identify a structural break occurred on the carbon spot price series in October 2008, which is mainly resulting from the financial and economic crisis. We find that the price of carbon does not matter for electricity prices in either countries before October 2008. Electricity producers in both countries were facing uncertainties regarding the future of the EU ETS and thus adopted a wait and see attitude until the end of 2008. The communication of national allocation plans (NAPs) in late October 2008, and the definitive adoption of the European Union climate and energy package by the European Parliament in December 2008 puts an end to these uncertainties. We find also that after October 2008, electricity producers in both countries were constrained to include the carbon price in their cost functions. During that period, French electricity producers were more constrained than their German counterparts, the elasticity of the electricity price relative to the price of carbon being higher in France than in Germany. By comparing the results with those in Kirat and Ahamada [2011] concerning the first phase of the EU ETS we conclude that the changes in the EU ETS introduced in phase II (banking and lower allowances in NAPs) have rendered the carbon market more efficient. Finally, we find a higher conditional correlation between wholesale electricity prices in France and Germany during the second phase of the EU ETS reflecting more integrated French and German electricity markets

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This paper analyzes the behavior of cross-country growth rates with respect to resource abundance and dependence. We reject the linear model that is commonly-used in growth regressions in favor of a multiple-regime alternative. Using a formal sample-splitting method, we find that countries exhibit different behaviors with respect to natural resources depending on their initial level of development. In high-income countries, natural resources play only a minor role in explaining the differences in national growth rates. On the contrary, in low-income countries abundance seems to be a blessing but dependence restricts growth.

This article considers the evidence for threshold effects in the relationship between electricity and emission permit prices in France and Germany during the second phase of the EU ETS. Specifically, we compare linear and nonlinear threshold models of electricity prices using Hansen's (2000) approach of sample splitting and threshold estimation. We find evidence of nonlinear threshold effects in both countries. The estimated carbon price thresholds are 14.94 € and 12.57 € in France and Germany, respectively. In Germany, the carbon price does not affect the electricity price below this threshold. In France, the price of emission allowances affects the cost of electricity generation only below the carbon-price threshold, thus revealing speculative behavior by French electricity producers on the carbon-allowance market. This is not the case for German electricity producers.

This paper addresses the economic impact of the European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS) for carbon on wholesale electricity prices in France and Germany during the Kyoto commitment period (2008-2012). Specifically, we use first identify a structural break occurred on the carbon spot price series on October 2008, which is mainly resulting from the financial and economic crisis. Then, we model the prices of day-ahead electricity contracts. We look at the volatilities around their fundamentals and simultaneously evaluate the correlation between electricity prices in both countries. We find that the price of carbon does not matter for electricity prices in either countries before October 2008. After October 2008, electricity producers in both countries were constrained to include the carbon price in their cost functions. During that period, French electricity producers were more constrained than their German counterparts. Comparing the results with those reported in Kirat and Ahamada (2011) reveals improvements in the response of electricity generation sector to carbon constraints. The impact of carbon constraint increased significantly by 300% and 150% in France and Germany, respectively, between the pilot phase and the second phase of the EU ETS. This is a consequence of the possibility of "banking" for subsequent periods and the reduction of allowance caps introduced in the second phase. We also find evidence of a trade off between gas and coal in electricity generation in Germany. Furthermore, the conditional correlation of electricity prices in both countries is highly significant and greater than during the pilot phase of the EU ETS.

In order to comply with their commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, France and Germany participate to the European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS) which concerns predominantly electricity generation sectors. In this paper we seek to know if the EU ETS gives appropriate economic incentives for an e¢ cient and strong system in line with Kyoto commitments. Because if so electricity producers in these countries should include the price of carbon in their costs functions. After identifying the di¤erent sub periods of the EU ETS during its pilot phase (2005-2007), we model the prices of various electricity contracts and look at their volatilities around their fundamentals while evaluating the correlation between the electricity prices in the two countries. We finnd that electricity producers in both countries were constrained to include the carbon price in their cost functions during the rst two years of operation of the EU ETS. During this period, German electricity producers were more constrained than their French counterparts and the inclusion of the carbon price in the cost function of electricity generation has been so much more stable in Germany than in France. Furthermore, the European market for emission allowances has increased the market power of the historical French electricity producer and has greatly contributed to the partial alignment of the wholesale price of electricity in France with those of Germany. .

In order to comply with their commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, France and Germany participate to the European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS) which concerns predominantly electricity generation sectors. In this paper we seek to know if the EU ETS gives appropriate economic incentives for an efficient and strong system in line with Kyoto commitments. Because if so electricity producers in these countries should include the price of carbon in their costs functions. After identifying the different sub periods of the EU ETS during its pilot phase (2005-2007), we model the prices of various electricity contracts and look at their volatilities around their fundamentals while evaluating the correlation between the electricity prices in the two countries. We find that electricity producers in both countries were constrained to include the carbon price in their cost functions during the first two years of operation of the EU ETS. During this period, German electricity producers were more constrained than their French conterparts and the inclusion of the carbon price in the cost function of electricity generation has been so much more stable in Germany than in France. Furthermore, the European market for emission allowances has increased the market power of the historical French electricity producer and has greatly contributed to the partial alignment of the wholesale price of electricity in France with those of Germany.

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