Heterogeneity of intermittent energy sources anc cost-effective renewable policies

This paper analyzes how cost-effective policies for promoting renewable electricity from wind and solar should be designed in light of their heterogeneous environmental values, i.e. avoided carbon dioxide (CO
₂
) emissions. Employing a numerical partial equilibrium analysis, we find that the gains from differentiating the support mechanism between wind and solar can be considerable and depend on (i) the temporal correlation structure between resource availability and demand and (ii) the non-renewable technology mix.