“Real Estate & Planning Research Seminar by Enrico Vanino from the University of Sheffield." "Renewable Energy Transition and the Local Economic Development of Lagging-behind Regions: Evidence from Offshore Wind Energy in the UK"

If you are interested in attending this Seminar please contact our Department School Office at repschooloffice@reading.ac.uk

Abstract: The rapidly growing renewable energy sector could become a key player in the local economic development of peripheral and lagging-behind regions, often characterised by abundant natural resources useful for the generation of green renewable energy. This could allow many peripheral regions across developed countries, once dependent on mature declining industries, to regenerate their local economies by sustainably transitioning towards new higher added-value green industries. This is the first study providing empirically robust analysis at a granular level on this topic. We consider the current impact of this transition on the economic development of places, analysing employment and productivity growth in local industries directly affected, as well as the magnitude of potential externalities along the supply-chain. We develop an instrumental variable approach to address endogeneity, modelling the probability of wind farms’ locations based on offshore natural characteristics, such as water depth, distance to shorelines, and wind speed factors. In this way we identify the causal impact of offshore wind farms on the economic development of local onshore coastal communities in the UK, which are usually deprived left-behind regions. After mapping the location of offshore wind farms and link these to onshore local communities through the location of ports and other infrastructures servicing these farms, we estimate a significant positive effect on local employment and productivity growth in the offshore wind energy sector, as well as the indirect effect along the supply chain

Bio: Enrico is an Associate Professor at the Department of Economics of the University of Sheffield. His research focuses on issues related to urban and regional economics, the economics of innovation, international economics, and firms' productivity. He holds a PhD in economics from the University of Birmingham and he previously worked as a fellow in economic geography at the London School of Economics. He is currently a British Academy Innovation Fellow at the ONS Survey and Economic Indicators division, and part of the Council of Experts of the Innovation and Research Caucus.