Publication Details

Category Text Publication
Reference Category Journals
DOI 10.1007/s42524-019-0009-4
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Title (Primary) Financing climate-resilient infrastructure: Determining risk, reward, and return on investment
Author Meyer, P.B.; Schwarze, R.
Source Titel Frontiers of Engineering Management
Year 2019
Department OEKON
Volume 6
Issue 1
Page From 117
Page To 127
Language englisch
Keywords infrastructure; urban finance; climate; low carbon economy
Abstract Urban infrastructure investment is needed for both, mitigation of climate risks and improved urban resiliency. Financing them requires the translation of those benefits into measurable returns on investment in the context of emerging risks that capital markets can understand and appreciate. This paper develops a generic framework to identify what are the necessary and sufficient factors to economically favor climate-change resilient infrastructure in private investment decisions. We specifically demonstrate that carbon pricing alone will not generate the needed will, because market prices at present systematically fail to account for climate change risks such as the costs of stranded assets and the national and local cobenefits of investments in climate resiliency. Carbon pricing is necessary, but not sufficient for an enhanced private financing of climate-resilient infrastructure. The Paris Agreement and other supra-local policies and actors including city networks can concretely help to generate the sufficient social and political will for investments into climate change mitigation and resiliency at the city level.
Persistent UFZ Identifier https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=21604
Meyer, P.B., Schwarze, R. (2019):
Financing climate-resilient infrastructure: Determining risk, reward, and return on investment
Front. Eng. Manag. 6 (1), 117 - 127 10.1007/s42524-019-0009-4