ABSTRACT
This introductory chapter presents an overview of the key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of the book. The book gives the scope of energy economics, some applications, and economic principles of particular value to understanding energy markets. In the United States, the government attempted to moderate the price increase by controlling energy prices at the gas pump. Energy economics, as well as the related fields of environmental and natural resource economics, have established places in the news, in academia, and in government policy. There are a number of concerns associated with the use of oil for transportation, of which we have already discussed air pollution and carbon emissions. Consumers may have little interest in the technology needed to create the power to run and recharge all these devices, but they want electricity when they flip the switch. Economic efficiency means getting the most from our scarce resources. In this text, efficiency is closely aligned with cost-benefit analysis (CBA).
