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The Next Wave of Energy Innovation: Which Technologies? Which Skills?

Author

Listed:
  • David Popp
  • Francesco Vona
  • Myriam Grégoire-Zawilski
  • Giovanni Marin
Abstract
The costs of low-carbon energy fell dramatically over the past decade, leading to rapid growth in its deployment. However, many challenges remain to deploy low-carbon energy at a scale necessary to meet net zero carbon emission targets. We argue that developing complementary technologies and skills must feature prominently in the next wave of low-carbon energy innovation. These include both improvements in physical capital, such as smart grids to aid integration of intermittent renewables, and human capital, to develop the skills workers need for a low-carbon economy. We document recent trends in energy innovation and discuss the lessons learnt for policy. We then discuss the need for complementary innovation in both physical capital—using smart grids as an example of how policy can help—and human capital, where we show how a task approach to labor informs policy and research on the worker skills needed for the energy transition.

Suggested Citation

  • David Popp & Francesco Vona & Myriam Grégoire-Zawilski & Giovanni Marin, 2022. "The Next Wave of Energy Innovation: Which Technologies? Which Skills?," CESifo Working Paper Series 9878, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_9878
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    File URL: https://www.cesifo.org/DocDL/cesifo1_wp9878.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    3. Antonio Accetturo & Elisabetta Olivieri & Fabrizio Renzi, 2024. "Incentives for dwelling renovations: evidence from a large fiscal programme," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 860, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    4. Sirin, Selahattin Murat & Yilmaz, Berna N., 2024. "Energy transition and non-energy firms’ financial performance: Do markets value capability-based energy transition strategies?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    low-carbon energy; innovation; patents; human capital; skills;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
    • O38 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Government Policy
    • Q42 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Alternative Energy Sources
    • Q55 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Technological Innovation

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