Monetizing oil imports impacts to incorporate them in a CBA

Abstract

In many European countries social cost-benefit analysis is used to examine and evaluate government projects. One potential benefit is that a country becomes less dependent on oil imports: this can be considered a societal benefit. However, in standard Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) this benefit never appears. This paper aims to gain understanding of the importance of incorporating the costs and benefits which accrue from an augmentation or a reduction in oil imports in a CBA within the transportation sector in the Netherlands. The article uses a method that was applied in the United States and modifies it to apply it in Dutch CBA.