Factors underlying the investment decision in energy-saving systems in Dutch horticulture

In the Netherlands the greenhouse sector is a major user of energy. It accounts for 7% of the total national energy use and for 79% of the total energy use in agriculture. In order to sustain this sector on the long term, it is important that its use of energy is lowered. One way of reducing energy...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Agricultural systems 2007-05, Vol.94 (2), p.520-527
Main Authors: Aramyan, Lusine H., Lansink, Alfons G.J.M. Oude, Verstegen, Jos A.A.M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
demand
energy use and consumption
Energy-saving
greenhouse production
Greenhouse sector
investment
Investments
limited dependent-variables
Management theory
Option value
Two-stage model
uncertainty
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:In the Netherlands the greenhouse sector is a major user of energy. It accounts for 7% of the total national energy use and for 79% of the total energy use in agriculture. In order to sustain this sector on the long term, it is important that its use of energy is lowered. One way of reducing energy use by horticultural producers is investing in energy-saving systems. The purpose of this paper is to provide a better understanding of the investment behavior of firm operators in the adoption of energy-saving systems. Research objectives of the paper are (1) to analyze factors underlying the decision to invest, (2) to explore factors underlying the optimal size of investments. Three investment theories were used to construct an empirical model of investment. Consequently, this model was estimated in a two-stage procedure to analyze the factors influencing the decision of farmers to invest and the level of investments. The paper ends with policy implications.
ISSN:0308-521X
1873-2267
DOI:10.1016/j.agsy.2007.01.005