Comment & Debate
“Energy crisis cannot be solved by renewables, oil chiefs say”. Times Online. 25 June 2007: “The ExxonMobil chief criticised the EU’s carbon trading system, calling it an administratively complex system that lacked transparency and failed to deliver a uniform and predictable cost of carbon. ‘It’s all about moving the money around,’ he said. Mr Tillerson said he would prefer a carbon tax that would enable the cost of carbon to spread through the economy in a uniform way, letting governments use the revenues to mitigate its effect by reducing employment or income taxes.”
Bailey. “Carbon Taxes Versus Carbon Markets”. 18 May 2007: “Is there an objective, scientific way to allocate emissions permits? Not really. The process is inherently political. Chuck Chakravarthy and John Rhoads, energy consultants for Accenture, are blunt in a January article in Public Utilities Fortnightly. ‘Early winners will be the companies best able to shape regulations,’ they warn. They urge utility executives to lobby now for emission allocations that will position them ‘for maximum economic value as compared with competitors.'”
“Carbon Taxes vs. Cap-and-Trade”. Carbon Tax Center: “Carbon taxes can be implemented with far less opportunity for manipulation by special interests, while a cap-and-trade system’s complexity opens it to exploitation by special interests and perverse incentives that can undermine public confidence and undercut its effectiveness.”