The Social Cost of Electricity: Do the Numbers Add Up?

View Working Paper

Date

Nov. 30, 1997

Authors

Alan Krupnick and Dallas Burtraw

Publication

Working Paper

Reading time

1 minute

Several recent studies have mounted major efforts to estimate the social cost of electricity generation. This paper provides an overview of this literature and a focused qualitative and quantitative comparison of the most comprehensive and rigorous of these studies. The paper also provides a synthesis that can help reduce the cost of future applications of these methods.

Download

The Social Cost of Electricity: Do the Numbers Add Up?

PDF — 0 bytes

View Working Paper

Topics

Authors

Alan Krupnick

Senior Fellow; Director, Industry and Fuels Program

Alan Krupnick is a senior fellow at RFF.

Dallas Burtraw

Darius Gaskins Senior Fellow

Dallas Burtraw is the Darius Gaskins Senior Fellow at RFF. Burtraw’s research includes analysis of the distributional and regional consequences of climate policy and the evolution of electricity markets, including renewables integration.

Related Content

Working Paper — May 12, 2025

Clean Power Delayed: Effects of Infrastructure Delays on Health, Environment, and US Households

This paper assesses how preventing power delays can reduce pollution and prevent premature deaths, providing major health benefits for low-income, Black, and Hispanic households.

Press Release — May 12, 2025

Delaying Grid Buildout Could Cost Americans Billions, Endanger Health

Two reports estimate that preventing delays in new transmission and generation infrastructure could save energy customers tens of billions of dollars per year, considerably increase grid reliability, and prevent premature deaths by reducing air pollution.

shutterstock_2149061413_electricity pylons flowers.png

RFF Live — Jun 3, 2025

RFF x Canary Media: Conversations on Electricity Affordability

Working Paper — May 12, 2025

Power Delayed: Economic Effects of Electricity Transmission and Generation Development Delays

This report considers the economic benefits of mitigating delays in transmission and generation infrastructure, estimating potential annual savings for energy consumers and significant improvements in grid reliability.