Research On Optimal Exhaustible Resource Depletion

From Gray, L.C. and Hotelling, H.'s research, exhaustible resource economics has been a branch of economics. The optimal exhaustible resource depletion has been the core of the discipline. The institution on exhaustible resource use must be studied to beat out the constraint condition on optimal exhaustible resource depletion. From Hotelling, H.'s model, the models on optimal exhaustible resource depletion has always been fettered by stock constraint, which could not reflect exhaustible resource's character. In the paper, exhaustible resource's character was reflected from a new point of view and new model was constructed. In china, the research about the institution on exhaustible resource use is jumbled, so a normative analytical framework based on contract theory was finished to analyze the institution on exhaustible resource use.The whole paper was written with the economic basic norm. Resource, exhaustible resource, and environmental resource are defined from a view point of property rights. The basic attribute of exhaustible resource include the increasing of the exploitation cost with the depletion taking no account of technology advancement, rigid dependence on special zone, innate coupling with the earth's surface and high risk.Most economists' work was generalized after Hotelling, H.'s paper in1931. The paradox of stock constraint was pointed out, and new model was constructed by giving up stock constraint. Based on new model, the rent and the resource scarcity were discussed. Environmental cost as a special part of the whole exploitation cost was analyzed.In the paper, the role of natural resource, especial exhaustible resource, played in the whole economic framework was reviewed from the beginning of economics, and progress in the economics of sustainability was summarized. The research was focused on Measurement of Green GDP, and overrating user cost on measurement of exhaustible resource taking no account market structure was pointed out.By investigation on crude oil, the complexity of crude oil market structure waspointed out, and petroleum economics was simply reviewed. Technology progress in crude oil industry and substitute energy's application was qualitative discussed. The qualitative prediction of crude oil market was put up according to the transformation of restrict conditions.The institution on exhaustible resource use is a contract between the government and the firms according to contract theory. How the contract come into being and the contract structure were investigated. The government receives rent by fixed rent and share-cropping rent. In the paper, the attribute and object of mining right in law was defined, and the conflict between mining right and the right to earth's surface was analyzed and solved. Tax system should be reduced by analysis the structure of current mining tax system in china.At last, the writer commented on his own work, prospected the development of exhaustible resource, and expressed the writer's own opinion on sustainable development.