2023 H1 Economics A level CSQ 1 answer

H1 2023 CSQ1: Energy Sources Suggested answers (a) With reference to Figure 1, compare the net additions to offshore wind energy capacity in China to those of Germany and the UK over the period 2017 to 2021. (3) China net additions to offshore wind energy capacity overall increase whereas Germany and UK have overall decrease. China’s net additions consistently increased over the period while for Germany and UK, the net addition only went up from 2018 to 2019. In 2021, China has the largest net additions across the period whereas for UK and Germany, they had the smallest net addition across the years. China has the smallest net additions in 2017 as compared to UK and Germany but by 2021, it has the highest net additions. (any 3 points for 3 marks) (b) Explain why renewable energy produced in Singapore is not likely to be a public good. (3)

The renewable energy that Singapore developed is solar energy produced by solar panels. Solar energy produced by Singapore is not a public good because it is excludable in consumption which means that users such as households would have access to such energy only if they pay for it otherwise the energy will not be distributed for their use and solar energy supply can be cut off from their houses. It is also rivalrous in consumption which means that the consumption of one more unit of energy would reduce the amount of energy for others. As stated in the extract, 122,000 solar panels are needed to power 5 water treatment plants. This means that at any point in time there is fixed amount of solar energy produced. If there is an additional unit consumed, there will be less available for others. Alternative: Solar energy is also rivalrous in consumption because when one additional user uses it, it diminishes the quantity of energy that is available for the next user. When solar energy is used to power a household, there will be less solar energy available for another household as the amount of solar energy generated at each point in time is limited by the quantity of solar panel and limited space available to set up the solar panels. Alternative: Consumption is also rejectable. Users can choose not to consume electricity generated by solar power but instead choose to use traditional source of energy. Take note: • Good responses provided clear contextual application of these two characteristics of a public good to renewable solar energy production. • Weaker responses wasted vital time with extended explanations of the characteristics fulfilled by a public good in general. (c) With reference to Extract 2, explain (i) one possible positive externality that could arise from the operation of solar panel energy farm opened in Singapore in July 2021. (2) As stated in extract 2, the solar farm helps to reduce carbon emissions equivalent to 7000 cars. This means producing energy using solar panel generates less