Energy and value

Abstract Energy theories of value are reviewed and a new variant introduced, based on the empirical relationship between price per unit mass and energy requirement per unit mass for a wide range of commodities. The demand pattern of households in the UK and the USA for energy would tend to produce a declining ratio of energy to gross domestic product (GDP). However, the tendency of goods with low energy intensity to be associated with low productivity gains introduces a counteracting effect, and energy/GDP ratios are fairly stable over time. A simple relationship connecting energy intensity, fuel price, and time constant of adjustment is used to forecast (retrospectively) the energy use per dollar of GDP in each of seven countries for the year 1976.