Willingness to pay estimates for carbon capture and management: Evidence from a pilot choice experiment

Abstract

Utilizing a discrete choice experiment with 250 US electricity consumers, this study estimates willingness to pay (WTP) for each percentage increase in carbon dioxide captured and the preferred carbon management technique—permanent storage or industrial utilization. Results from an alternative-specific conditional logit model suggest a WTP of $0.13 for each percent increase in carbon capture, and an additional $5-$6 per month for industrial utilization over storage. In contrast, the estimated WTP for each percent increase in renewable energy is $0.25, suggesting that consumers value renewable energy nearly twice as much as carbon capture. These preliminary results indicate some preference for carbon capture, though not as strong as for cleaner energy, with a clearer preference for carbon utilization than storage. Further research is recommended to investigate variations in these preferences based on individual characteristics.