Evaluating Environmental Investments: A Real Options Approach
构建模型分析企业在何种产出价格水平下最优投资于环境技术，发现高价格波动和高利率会抑制投资，企业倾向于低产出运营以减少排放。
The paper presents a model that determines when (at which output price level) it is optimum for a firm to invest in environmental technologies and which are the main parameters that affect this decision. Our analysis shows that firms require high output price levels to be induced to invest in environmental technologies, because they optimally would not want to commit to a heavy irreversible investment that could turn out to be unprofitable in the event of a price fall. A comparative static analysis predicts that firms in industries with high output price volatility would be more reluctant to invest in environmental protection technologies and would be more willing to operate at low output levels (thus attaining low emission levels). Increases in the interest rate would also reduce optimal environmental investment levels.