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Studies have argued that water risk affects corporate sustainability, but few of them have fully explored whether or not and how water resources have a direct impact on corporate finance and strategy. This study takes the listed companies in the Chinese A-share market from 2019 to 2023 as a sample to understand the threat of water vulnerability to corporate sustainability from the perspective of capital cost. This study argues that water vulnerability positively relates to corporate capital cost by increasing corporate financing constraints. Meanwhile, this study also examines the role of water regulation and water investment in the relationship between water vulnerability and corporate capital cost. Water regulation brings legitimate pressure to corporations and increases the transformation risks faced by them, so it has a positive moderating effect. Water investment can alleviate the vulnerability of local water resources and reduce the physical water risk faced by corporations, so it has a negative moderating effect. The study finds that the two measures mainly play a significant moderating effect on the cost of debt. In addition, the study finds that the positive relationship between water vulnerability and capital cost has industrial and firm-level heterogeneity, while the moderating effect of government water governance has only industrial heterogeneity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing development of wind and solar generation in the power sector can create economic opportunities for the deployment of water electrolyzers that produce hydrogen. Temporal variation in the marginal cost of energy in future decarbonized grids can make it favorable for electrolyzers to dispatchably ramp hydrogen production up and down in response to low‐ and high‐cost times. Using this strategy, low‐cost hydrogen production is enabled by electrolyzers that are low‐capital cost and tolerant to frequent on/off cycling. Ramping down hydrogen production to a designated turndown ratio can avoid performance degradation caused by on/off cycling by not shutting the electrolyzer completely off. This comes with a slight cost penalty which can be minimized if the turndown ratio is low (i.e., the system ramps down hydrogen production to close to zero). These results suggest that electrolyzers integrated into future power systems are likely to benefit from the ability to ramp operation up and down quickly and operate in a standby mode. This analysis forms a basis for comparative tradeoffs between electrolyzer capital cost, operating strategy, and system durability and demonstrates the importance of considering all three factors in technoeconomic analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal energy storage (TES) systems have been verified to be a promising solution for reducing the imbalance between energy supply and demand; however, sensible and latent thermal storage systems have certain limitations. To minimize the issues of rapid drop of temperature in sensible storage and poor heat transfer in latent storage, novel thermal energy storage should be designed. Considering this, combined sensible-latent TES system was developed to mitigate the drawbacks of individual sensible and latent storage. This study aims to investigate experimentally the impact of various volume fractions of phase change material (PCM) in the proposed system on thermal performance and also in terms of economics. The results demonstrated that 60% PCM volume fraction had 50.03% lower capacity cost, 165.4% higher storage capacity, 168.8% higher storage density, and 26.47% efficiency than the sensible TES. Furthermore, 60% volume fraction of PCM had a 13.09% lower installation cost, 4.77% and 11.69% lower charging/discharging time, and 12.64% higher efficiency than the latent storage system. This concludes that under the assumptions of the current study, a 60% volume fraction of PCM is the optimal design parameter for a combined sensible-latent TES system for achieving the best performance in terms of cost and thermal performance.

Thermal energy storage (TES) systems have been verified to be a promising solution for reducing the imbalance between energy supply and demand; however, sensible and latent thermal storage systems have certain limitations. To minimize the issues of rapid drop of temperature in sensible storage and poor heat transfer in latent storage, novel thermal energy storage should be designed. Considering this, combined sensible-latent TES system was developed to mitigate the drawbacks of individual sensible and latent storage. This study aims to investigate experimentally the impact of various volume fractions of phase change material (PCM) in the proposed system on thermal performance and also in terms of economics. The results demonstrated that 60% PCM volume fraction had 50.03% lower capacity cost, 165.4% higher storage capacity, 168.8% higher storage density, and 26.47% efficiency than the sensible TES. Furthermore, 60% volume fraction of PCM had a 13.09% lower installation cost, 4.77% and 11.69% lower charging/discharging time, and 12.64% higher efficiency than the latent storage system. This concludes that under the assumptions of the current study, a 60% volume fraction of PCM is the optimal design parameter for a combined sensible-latent TES system for achieving the best performance in terms of cost and thermal performance. • A novel hybrid combined sensible-latent thermal energy storage system proposed • Effect of different volume fractions of PCM on thermal performance is presented. • Assessed the economic viability of different volume fractions of PCM. • 60% volume fraction of PCM is the optimal design parameter for proposed system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractSuccessful businesses use a variety of tactics to accomplish their objectives, one of which is relationship management with investors and shareholders. Their best application in today’s business world is a long-term competitive advantage. One of the ways to create and retain this relationship is to use relationship marketing (RM). Various dimensions shape RM, which can be different in industries and markets. This paper aims to identify the effective RM dimensions in the capital market and examine the impact of these dimensions on the financial indicators of the capital market, which are important from both the perspectives of companies and investors, including stock liquidity, stock return, and capital cost. To identify the key dimensions, ranking based on their importance has been done using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method. A multivariable linear regression model has been employed to test the research hypotheses. Stock companies have been selected based on the screening method from the companies admitted to the Tehran Stock Exchange from 2019 to 2022. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that the coordinated management of various aspects of RM has the potential to enhance liquidity and stock returns while simultaneously reducing the cost of capital. Given the significance of these indicators, particularly in developing economies like the Iranian capital market, companies can leverage RM strategies in their interactions with shareholders to improve market conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our purpose in this research is to investigate the impact of the auditor's partner's busyness on audit quality, auditor's report delay, and capital cost. There are two views in this regard. A group believes that the workload of the auditor's partner increases the experience and knowledge of the auditor and the effectiveness of the audit increases (Gol et al., 2017). Another group believes that the busyness of the auditor's partner causes the delay of the audit and a reduction in the quality of the audit (De Fond and Zhang, 2014). On the other hand, the workload of the auditor's partner increases the cost of capital (Habib et al., 2018). In this research, we intend to examine the stated cases. To check the hypotheses, we used the data of 165 companies during the period from 2011 to 2014. The regression method used is multivariate regression. To measure the busyness of the auditor's partner, alternative measures are the ratio of the number of audit work of the institution to the number of partners of the institution, the ratio of the logarithm of the income of the audit institution to the number of partners of the audit institution, and the ratio of the market share, for audit quality from the adjusted model of Jones (1991) and the cost of capital. We used the relation of Stone (2004). To according the findings, the first, second, and third hypotheses were confirmed and the preoccupation of the auditor's partner has a positive and significant relationship with the delay of the auditor's report and the cost of capital, and a negative and significant relationship with audit quality. The preoccupation of the audit partners causes the auditor's report to be delayed, reduces the quality of the audit, and increases the cost of capital

Abstract The potential of solid waste as an energy source is clear, owing to its wide availability and renewable properties, which provide a critical answer for energy security. This can be especially effective in reducing the environmental impact of fossil fuels. Countries that rely heavily on coal should examine alternatives such as electricity from solid waste to provide a constant energy supply while also contributing to atmospheric restoration. In this regards, Low Emissions Analysis Platform (LEAP) is used for simulation the entire energy system in Pakistan and forecasted its capital cost and future CO2 emissions in relation to the use of renewable and fossil fuel resources under the different growth rates of solid waste projects like 20%, 30% and 40% for the study period 2023–2053. The results revealed that, 1402.97 TWh units of energy are generated to meet the total energy demand of 1193.93 TWh until 2053. The share of solid waste based electricity in total energy mix is increasing from a mere 0.81% in 2023 to around 9.44% by 2053 under the 20% growth rate, which then increase to 39.67% by 2053 under the 30% growth rate and further increases to 78.33% by 2053 under the 40% growth rate. It is suggested that 40% growth rate for solid waste based electricity projects is suitable for Pakistan until 2053 because under this condition, renewable sources contributes 95.2% and fossil fuels contributed 4.47% in the total energy mix of Pakistan. Hence, CO2 emissions are reduced from 148.26 million metric tons to 35.46 million metric tons until 2053 but capital cost is increased from 13.23 b$ in 2023 to 363.11 b$ by 2053.

The purpose of the research is to determine the specific capital costs of carrying out agricultural work with the farmers'own agricultural machines compared to the costs of agricultural services. A stratified sample based on economic size was used, consisting of 60 farms specialised in large crops from the NE and SE development regions of Romania. The novelty elements of this research consist in the fact that the analysis of the efficiency of the use of agricultural machinery uses a shadow cost--the opportunity cost--to determine the specific income of the use of agricultural machinery. The results show that small farms spend more than twice as much to carry out agricultural work with their own agricultural machinery. The average expenses per ha specific to the agricultural works carried out by farmers with their own agricultural machines recorded an average of 376.3 euro/ha for farms with a size smaller than 100 thousand SO and 186.5 euro/ha for farms with a size greater than 700 thousand SO. For a representativeness level of 69.3%, farms with a size smaller than approx. 578 thousand SO register losses if they carry out agricultural work with their own agricultural machines. This threshold can be appreciated on an area of approx. 854 ha cultivated with grain corn, common wheat, and rapeseed in equal proportions. Using the rationales and cost analysis models presented can help farmers make rational investments and strengthen informed demand in the agricultural services market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential of solid waste as an energy source is clear, owing to its wide availability and renewable properties, which provide a critical answer for energy security. This can be especially effective in reducing the environmental impact of fossil fuels. Countries that rely heavily on coal should examine alternatives such as electricity from solid waste to provide a constant energy supply while also contributing to atmospheric restoration. In this regards, Low Emissions Analysis Platform (LEAP) is used for simulation the entire energy system in Pakistan and forecasted its capital cost and future CO2 emissions in relation to the use of renewable and fossil fuel resources under the different growth rates of solid waste projects like 20%, 30% and 40% for the study period 2023–2053. The results revealed that, 1402.97 TWh units of energy are generated to meet the total energy demand of 1193.93 TWh until 2053. The share of solid waste based electricity in total energy mix is increasing from a mere 0.81% in 2023 to around 9.44% by 2053 under the 20% growth rate, which then increase to 39.67% by 2053 under the 30% growth rate and further increases to 78.33% by 2053 under the 40% growth rate. It is suggested that 40% growth rate for solid waste based electricity projects is suitable for Pakistan until 2053 because under this condition, renewable sources contributes 95.2% and fossil fuels contributed 4.47% in the total energy mix of Pakistan. Hence, CO2 emissions are reduced from 148.26 million metric tons to 35.46 million metric tons until 2053 but capital cost is increased from 13.23 b$ in 2023 to 363.11 b$ by 2053. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Commodity inventories are the key state variable determining the magnitude of commodity price responses to supply and demand shocks. Many firms in commodity supply chains use storage, but we know little about which firms and why. The economic theory of storage asserts that firms in a competitive market for inventories will store based on current and expected market prices and the per‐unit cost of storing. We empirically test at the firm‐level the importance of one major cost of storage: the opportunity cost of capital used to value foregone revenue from deferred commodity sales. To do so, we use panel data from thousands of Illinois farms who hold inventories of corn and soybeans. Although interest rates as a measure of capital costs are unlikely to vary widely across firms in this context, we exploit variation in the weighted average cost of capital due to cross‐firm differences in capital structure. Using two‐way fixed effects regressions, we find a statistically significant average effect of capital costs on inventory that masks notable heterogeneity across firms. Panel quantile regressions reveal two groups of firms: one whose inventory holdings are responsive to changes in the opportunity cost of storage and another whose are not. Our results suggest some farms behave like the profit‐maximizing ones from theory but substantial inframarginal commodity inventories are held by farms for other reasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The view of informal employment as a last resort in the labour market has recently been challenged by numerous studies documenting the existence of a high degree of heterogeneity within the formal and informal sectors. In particular, informal self‐employment/employment may be voluntary or forced. There is currently not much theoretical support for these observations. We develop a theoretical model of the labour market with both formal and informal firms and a distribution of managerial skills in the population. Consistent with existing empirical evidence, this setup reconciles the undesirable and productive forms of self‐employment that coexist in the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CO2 emissions from building operations have increased to their highest level, moving away from the Paris Agreement goal of below 2 °C. Zero carbon housing (ZCH) has been identified as a viable solution to realise carbon neutrality. However, ZCHs are barely recognised by the mainstream market due to the misconception of high up-front cost. This research aims to identify affordable solutions for ZCH by synergising building design, mechanical services, and renewable energy, and to balance capital cost and environmental benefits. An integrated framework of energy simulation, sensitivity analysis, and multi-objective optimisation is employed to achieve the goals. A representative house design is selected to demonstrate the proposed methodology, and a national energy rating scheme in Australia, NatHERS, is used for validation. The optimisation identified eight optimal solutions, resulting in a CO2 emission reduction between 1.894 tCO2 to 2.259 tCO2 with increased indoor comfort of 1.3%–2.6%. This research also finds that given the policy incentives, the actual incremental cost is marginal after the government rebate. This research addresses the major barriers of the high up-front cost associated with ZCH through an integrated approach. The research facilitates the paradigm shift in the mainstream market, promoting the development and market expansion of ZCH.

Under financing difficulties, asset securitization has the advantages of activating stock assets, enhancing credit, and isolating risk and is therefore a potential financing mode for renewable energy enterprises. This paper provides a systematical overview of asset securitization financing as it applies to renewable energy enterprises. The feasibility of such financing is first analyzed from the perspectives of the typical financing difficulties experienced by renewable energy enterprises, the underlying assets available for securitization, the legal and policy basis for such financing, as well as the history and current state of the practice in China and internationally. On this basis, three asset securitization mechanisms are proposed. Two case studies are conducted, which use a financing cost measurement model to show that asset securitization offers no cost advantage and that its main advantage lies in its high accessibility. Currently, asset securitization financing for China’s renewable energy enterprises faces many difficulties, including the inadequacy of government subsidies as underlying assets, the high risks and cost of asset securitization financing, the challenges of patent securitization, and imperfections of institutions and mechanisms. It is suggested for Chinese government that to ensure adequate revenue for renewable energy projects and reduce risks and cost, promote patent securitization and improve the basic institutions and mechanisms of securitization.

Studies have argued that water risk affects corporate sustainability, but few of them have fully explored whether or not and how water resources have a direct impact on corporate finance and strategy. This study takes the listed companies in the Chinese A-share market from 2019 to 2023 as a sample to understand the threat of water vulnerability to corporate sustainability from the perspective of capital cost. This study argues that water vulnerability positively relates to corporate capital cost by increasing corporate financing constraints. Meanwhile, this study also examines the role of water regulation and water investment in the relationship between water vulnerability and corporate capital cost. Water regulation brings legitimate pressure to corporations and increases the transformation risks faced by them, so it has a positive moderating effect. Water investment can alleviate the vulnerability of local water resources and reduce the physical water risk faced by corporations, so it has a negative moderating effect. The study finds that the two measures mainly play a significant moderating effect on the cost of debt. In addition, the study finds that the positive relationship between water vulnerability and capital cost has industrial and firm-level heterogeneity, while the moderating effect of government water governance has only industrial heterogeneity.

The study focuses on the selected aspects of investment measurement and management for the support of financial and economic decision-making of investors in wood-processing sectors. The aim of the study was to analyze the indicators for the structure and cost of capital of furniture and paper/forest branches in Slovakia, quantify the actual expected return on investment based on the selected methodology, and consequently find out the fundamental differences resulting from the specific conditions of given sectors. Methodologically, the study uses procedures for the weighted average cost of capital (WACC), capital asset pricing model (CAPM) for determining the cost of equity, and calculation of the beta coefficient considering the risk premium. The results of the study demonstrated a similar levered beta in both analyzed sectors (1.17 in furniture, 1.20 in paper/forest), but in each sector for a different reason. The expected rate of return is higher in furniture (7.84%) compared to paper/forest products at the level of 6.04%. The findings provide the possibility of comparing the required and expected rate of return on invested capital and making the appropriate long-term investment decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary goal of the research is to determine how the emotional inclinations of investors affect the link between capital cost and systematic risk for businesses listed between 2014 and 2018 on the Tehran Stock Exchange. They work for themselves. The mood of investors is likewise erratic. There are 112 firms in the research's statistical sample. A descriptive-correlation study with an applied approach is the methodology used. The library technique was used to get the data for the theoretical foundations segment, and the financial document documenting method was used to gather the data for the hypothetical testing section. The multiple correlation and regression approach is typically used for hypothesis testing. As demonstrated by the findings, systemic risk and capital cost have a clear and substantial link, but this relationship is also weakened by investors' emotional biases. The financial leverage and the ratio of accruals to the cost of capital are directly and significantly correlated, according to the results of the control variables, and the size of the firm and the cost of capital are significantly correlated as well. The ratio of operational cash flows to capital costs was also not shown to be significantly correlated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study analyzed a potential relationship between accounting asset informativeness and Brazilian companies' systematic risk. The research hypothesis assumes that factors restricting uncertainty, including better-quality information, decrease investors' risk perception. Method: Regressions were estimated with panel data, using data concerning 2010 to 2021 from 186 companies. In addition to overall asset informativeness, the analysis included informativeness resulting from the companies' choices (discretionary portion) and informativeness inferred from related companies in the same sector (non-discretionary portion). Results: Asset informativeness proved relevant and negatively associated with the Brazilian companies' systematic risk, with its non-discretionary portion having a more intense effect on systematic risk than the discretionary portion. Contributions: This study's results are relevant for users of accounting information, those who prepare accounting reports, and regulators as it contributes to the discussion on the quality of accounting information, highlighting its relationship with the systematic risk of companies through a measure focused on assets, and suggesting metrics that can assist in the estimation of the companies' value, besides providing evidence of the economic consequences of accounting choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Przegląd Elektrotechniczny is the property of Przeglad Elektrotechniczny and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Water Distribution Networks represent a major economic investment of the total cost of water supply systems. Pipe cost optimization is usually considered as a prime objective. However, minimizing the capital cost of the pipeline alone may result in increasing the cost of pumping, so the balance between pipe cost and pumping cost is a vital issue. In this study, an empirical model is formulated to select the economic pipe diameter based on capital and operation costs. A new Diameter Optimization Ratio DOR is developed to evaluate the economic optimality, which equals to 1.0 at optimal design, when rate of increase/decrease of pipe cost equals rate of decrease/increase of pumping cost. A new mathematical models are developed to calculate optimum diameter, velocity, hydraulic gradient slope for a given flow rate under given cost data assumptions. Optimum diameter does not depend on pipe length. After applying the mathematical model on this case study, the economic optimality indicator can be raised from 57.2 % to 90.6 %, and the total cost decreased by 38.8% by selecting optimum pipe diameter. After applying the mathematical model on this case study, the economic optimality indicator can be raised from 57.2 % to 93.6 %, and the total cost decreased by 36.4% by selecting optimum pipe diameter. A new Cost Optimality Factor R for each pipe and for the whole network can be defined. A case study is considered to illustrate the application of proposed methodology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hermetic bag storage is a growing innovative technology that can effectively mitigate insect activity in stored grain and preserve quality without pesticides. This study aimed to estimate the environmental and economic impacts of hermetic storage bags as the basis for the sustainable adoption of the technology. This study demonstrated an approach to estimate the environmental impact of using hermetic bags and their superior economic benefits for storing maize at the 1-ton scale over three years. The life cycle assessment (LCA) of six commercially available hermetic bags (AgroZ®, GrainPro, Storezo, ZeroFly®, Elite, and PICS™) from cradle to grave was evaluated and compared using the Sustainable Minds LCA software. The gas barrier liners were analyzed for structure and polymer composition using confocal microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The results showed that bag manufacturing had the highest environmental impact contribution, with 84.6% to 90.8% of the total impacts (mPt). The carbon footprint contribution of the total service life delivered for one hermetic bag ranged from 1.1 to 1.7 kg CO2eq. The economic benefits of using hermetic bags were calculated and compared with traditional storage bag methods for one smallholder farmer using ten (10) hermetic bags storing 100 kg/bag (1 ton) of maize. The results found that using hermetic bags exhibited the highest profit of 1130 USD when used for nine months over three years, while storage loss was maintained at less than 1%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis aims to determine the most efficient and cost-effective way of providing power to a remote site. The two primary sources of power being considered are photovoltaics and small wind turbines, while the two potential storage media are a battery bank and a hydrogen storage fuel cell system. Subsequently, the hydrogen is stored within a reservoir and employed as required by the fuel cell. This strategy offers a solution for retaining surplus power generated during peak production phases, subsequently utilizing it during periods when the renewable power sources are generating less power. To evaluate the performance of the hydrogen storage system, the analysis included a sensitivity analysis of the wind speed and the cost of the hydrogen subsystem. In this analysis, the capital and replacement costs of the electrolyzer and hydrogen storage tank were linked to the fuel cell capital cost. As the fuel cell cost decreases, the cost of the electrolyzer and hydrogen tank also decreases. The optimal system type graph showed that the hydrogen subsystem must significantly decrease in price to become competitive with the battery bank. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Contabilidade do Mestrado em Ciências Contábeis da UERJ is the property of Editora da Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (EdUERJ) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study develops and presents a methodology for determining the optimal geographic distribution and size of asphalt concrete plants in Karbala, Iraq, in order to minimize the cost of asphalt concrete produced. The purpose of this study is to discuss these points. The methodology can identify potential locations for asphalt concrete plants within a study area, considering the plants' operation and capital costs and the costs of transporting raw materials to the plants and asphalt concrete to demand centers. Matrix Laboratory (MATLAB) software have been used to program the methodology. This methodology has been applied to Karbala using actual data. The methodology's output identifies the optimal locations and sizes of asphalt concrete plants in Karbala. There are two optimal locations for asphalt concrete plants B and D; their total size is 80 tons per hour and 800 tons per hour, respectively. This is adequate to supply Karbala's asphalt concrete demand to 2032. The methodology effectively determines the optimal geographic locations and sizes of asphalt concrete plants in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine consequences of choice: cash flow or economic value-added method on the net present value of investment project, further on company value. Design/methodology/approach: The article introduces three main methods to measure the net present value of investment project: free cash flow to firm, free cash flow to equity, and economical value added. Paper examines the challenge of using these three-methods in determining what constitutes cash flow and what is the source of the investment value. Findings: The cost of capital should be calculated in different ways to ensure the validity of the calculation. Estimation should be explored by other influencing factors, such as expected rate of return, market value of cost, rather than accounting/historical value. Implementing these factors is necessary to evaluate business value. According to the presented approach the use of the FCFF technique creates fewer risks of acting against the interests of the owners than the use of the FCFE or EVA techniques. Practical implications: As one of the main implications in business, valuation is cost of capital. According to the financing priority theory, when a firm needs financing, the first consideration is internal financing, while equity financing is secondary. Both types of financing sources determine the financing structure and ultimately affect the value of the company. Originality/value: The paper provided and insight in the different investment project valuation methods that are used in the nowadays practice. This was done in an attempt to answer the question: What method should not be used in the assessment of investment projects? The paper provides evidence that most appropriate method in estimating NPV value of investment project is FCFF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study focuses on the selected aspects of investment measurement and management for the support of financial and economic decision-making of investors in wood-processing sectors. The aim of the study was to analyze the indicators for the structure and cost of capital of furniture and paper/forest branches in Slovakia, quantify the actual expected return on investment based on the selected methodology, and consequently find out the fundamental differences resulting from the specific conditions of given sectors. Methodologically, the study uses procedures for the weighted average cost of capital (WACC), capital asset pricing model (CAPM) for determining the cost of equity, and calculation of the beta coefficient considering the risk premium. The results of the study demonstrated a similar levered beta in both analyzed sectors (1.17 in furniture, 1.20 in paper/forest), but in each sector for a different reason. The expected rate of return is higher in furniture (7.84%) compared to paper/forest products at the level of 6.04%. The findings provide the possibility of comparing the required and expected rate of return on invested capital and making the appropriate long-term investment decisions.

The conventional vehicles are a major cause of the greenhouse gases emissions in the global environment. Electric vehicles are a sustainable alternative to the conventional vehicles due to the negligible emissions and the possibility of the renewable energy integration. However, the electric vehicles require the separate storage systems and the selection of the proper storage system is a major concern in the electric vehicles markets. The storage system should be selected in a systematic and rational way. Hence, this paper evaluates the existing storage technologies for electric vehicles based on a multi-criteria decision making model. For this purpose, this paper performs a comprehensive literature review of the existing storage technologies for electric vehicles. Then, this paper evaluates the key storage technologies for electric vehicles based on the five criteria including cost, technical features, compatibility, technological maturity, and environment, health, and safety. These criteria and their sub-criteria were used in the development of an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model. The proposed AHP model was solved using Super Decisions software. Results offer the various insights for the selection of a proper storage system for electric vehicles. In most of the cases, AHP model suggested the utilization of hybrid sodium-nickel chloride battery (SNCB) and supercapacitors (SC) for electric vehicles. Besides, the higher capital cost has been identified as the key barrier in the adoption several storage technologies such as lithium ion battery (LIB) and hydrogen fuel cells (HFC) storage.

In this paper, we describe a case-study exploring the use of 600 MW of power from New Zealand's Manapouri Power Station to produce hydrogen for export via water electrolysis. Three H 2 carriers were considered: liquid H 2 , ammonia, and toluene hydrogenation/methylcyclohexane dehydrogenation. Processes were simulated in Aspen's HYSYS for each of the carriers to determine their associated energy and annualised capital expenditure costs. We found that the total capital investment for all carriers was surprisingly consistent, but with quite different splits between the electrolysis and carrier formation plants. Based on our analysis the energy availability for liquid H 2 ranged from 53.9 to 60.7% depending on the energy cost associated with cryogenic H 2 liquefaction. The energy availability for liquid ammonia was 37.5% after conversion back to H 2 , or 53.6% if the ammonia can be used directly as a fuel. For toluene/methylcyclohexane the energy availability was 41.2%. The total of the electricity and annualised capital costs per kg of H 2 ranged from NZ$5.63 to NZ$6.43 for liquid H 2 , NZ$6.24 to NZ$8.91 for ammonia and was NZ$7.86 for toluene/methylcyclohexane, using a net electricity cost of NZ$70/MWh. The cost of hydrogen (or energy in the case of direct use ammonia) was more strongly influenced by the efficiency of energy retention than on capital investment, as the electricity costs contributed approximately two thirds of total costs. In the long-term, liquid hydrogen looks to be the most versatile H 2 carrier, but significant infrastructure investment is required. • Capital costs of large-scale hydrogen carrier formation plants estimated. • Liquid hydrogen, ammonia and methylcyclohexane carrier systems compared. • Combined cost of electrolysis and carrier formation plants similar: from NZ$1.85 to $2.04 billion for a power envelope of 600 MW. • Energy efficiency of carrier system determines final cost of hydrogen energy. • Efficiency of ammonia comparable to liquid hydrogen, but only for direct use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An optical circuit-switched network core has the potential to overcome the inherent challenges of a conventional electrical packet-switched core of today’s compute clusters. As optical circuit switches (OCS) directly handle the photon beams without any optical-electrical-optical (O/E/O) conversion and packet processing, OCS-based network cores have the following desirable properties: a) agnostic to data-rate, b) negligible/zero power consumption, c) no need of transceivers, d) negligible forwarding latency, and e) no need for frequent upgrade. Unfortunately, OCS can only provide point-to-point (unicast) circuits. They do not have built-in support for one-to-many (multicast) communication, yet multicast is fundamental to a plethora of data-intensive applications running on compute clusters nowadays. In this paper, we propose Shufflecast, a novel optical network architecture for next-generation compute clusters that can support high-performance multicast satisfying all the properties of an OCS-based network core. Shufflecast leverages small fanout, inexpensive, passive optical splitters to connect the Top-of-rack (ToR) switch ports, ensuring data-rate agnostic, low-power, physical-layer multicast. We thoroughly analyze Shufflecast’s highly scalable data plane, light-weight control plane, and graceful failure handling. Further, we implement a complete prototype of Shufflecast in our testbed and extensively evaluate the network. Shufflecast is more power-efficient than the state-of-the-art multicast mechanisms. Also, Shufflecast is more cost-efficient than a conventional packet-switched network. By adding Shufflecast alongside an OCS-based unicast network, an all-optical network core with the aforementioned desirable properties supporting both unicast and multicast can be realized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Countries around the world are rapidly deploying renewable energy generation to reduce carbon emissions. Countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are investing heavily in PV generation due to their rich solar resources. As PV technology becomes more mature, future PV developments will largely depend on the cost of the PV generation but there is currently very limited published work that shows a detailed design and in particular the economic analysis of large-scale PV farms. Therefore, this paper uses the Qatar’s first PV farm, the 800MWp Alkarsaah PV farm as a case study to explain the design considerations and especially the economic benefits of large-scale PV farms. Economic comparisons will be made with the most efficient CCGT (combined cycle gas turbine) plants in the network to highlight the economic benefits of PV farms. The results show that the Levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for this PV farm is 14.03$/MWh, much lower than the LCOE of 39.18$/MWh and 24.6$/MWh from the most efficient CCGTs in the network, highlighting the significant economic benefits of developing PV farms in a low carbon power networks in the future.

The article discusses the basic principles of optimizing the status of subsystems of the marine transport industry. Since the positioning of stability management in any segment of transport activities reflects a system of principles, a system of the interdependence of structural elements of merchant shipping was identified. Taking into account the most important provisions for managing the economic stability of shipping and the principles of repayable financing, urgent problems of improving the assessment of business decisions by criteria and indicators reflecting the functioning of shipping companies and trading ports are considered in the article. The structure of the problems and advantages of the formation of an active marine transport strategy is presented. Some factors of the development of specialized segments of the global maritime trade market are disclosed. The regularity and conditions for the formation of the parameters of the marine transport cluster are formulated. The article discusses measures to balance the economic interests of maritime transport and the consumers of its products. On this basis, the economic stimulation of optimal economic results is intensified. The necessity of using a wider range of economic regulation in comparison with the concentration of efforts on one model in optimizing the basic state of the regional complex of maritime transport is considered. The article also takes into account the analysis of factors that contribute to the optimization of the final indicators with the parameters of the maritime trade market. Features of innovative approaches that are of fundamental importance in the transport business and reflect the intellectual property of the company's management or its consultants are highlighted. It is on the life cycle ideas of the fleet that functional and financial stability of positioning can be achieved, despite the fact that new competitors appear at regular intervals. It is recommended to systematize the conditions for achieving the parameters of transport independence in the development of international transport integration, special attention is paid to the choice of mission based on the formation of a merchant shipping system that provides standardized efficiency. This, in turn, should be achieved through the benefits of innovative freight technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a techno-economic approach to readily assess the profitability or otherwise of combined cycle power plants (CCPPs) for increased electricity production in Nigeria. As a case study for this analysis, a combined cycle gas turbine plant with 650MW installed capacity at Afam VI power station is used to evaluate the installation of a 1000MW and 1500MW CCPP economically. The results and analysis determined a Levelized cost of electricity of N41.57k/KWh and N34.09k/KWh for the 1500MW and 1000MW CCPP, respectively. It signifies an increase of 33.33% and 66.67% in the cost of electricity per kWh between the 1000MW and 1500MW plant capacities respectively, relative to the 650MW CCPP. Therefore, the low LCOE makes it economically viable to install the 1000MW CCPP for electricity production in the country. The paper also proposes upgrading existing gas-fired power plants in the country into combined cycle power plants for improved electricity supply. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the widespread adoption of renewable energy, the role of battery energy storage systems (BESs) in ensuring the reliable operation of BES-integrated power systems has become prominent. Due to the high costs of BESs, current research focuses on spreading out BES costs by energy sharing between multi-entities, emphasizing the averaged economic performance. However, BES's average economic performance does not ensure operational profitability, due to several outstanding considerations on interplays between BES use scenarios, operational costs, capital costs, storage utilization, and sharing rate. Here we show that a consistent evaluation framework across use scenarios which can optimize the BES operational efficiency and profitability, validated by representative use scenarios, i.e., Community Energy Storage Sharing (CESS), Personal Energy Storage (PES), and Personal Energy Storage Sharing (PESS). Incorporating real-world operational data, CESS stands out with the lowest operational cost at 48,063 euros, and the highest discharge capacity at 3552 kWh, facilitated by inter-user resource sharing with a sharing rate of 17.30%. CESS incurs the lowest capital cost at 518,887 euros, 32% economically efficient compared to PES and PESS, boosting immediate BES integration. By consistently evaluating heterogeneous BES use scenarios, particularly for distributed BES sharing in residential communities characterized by controllable loads, this work presents new possibilities for system operators that one can regulate inter-user sharing capability, i.e., the sharing rate, for optimized operational efficiency and profitability. • A consistent evaluation framework is proposed for diversified battery energy storage use scenarios. • The operational cost of a community with various controllable loads is optimized to find the optimal storage solution. • The sharing rate is proposed to quantify inter-user resource-sharing capability. • The Community Energy Storage Sharing scheme outperforms other Energy Sharing paradigms profitably and efficiently. • Optimal scheduling of storage is analyzed to provide insights into energy-sharing strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the basic principles of optimizing the status of subsystems of the marine transport industry. Since the positioning of stability management in any segment of transport activities reflects a system of principles, a system of the interdependence of structural elements of merchant shipping was identified. Taking into account the most important provisions for managing the economic stability of shipping and the principles of repayable financing, urgent problems of improving the assessment of business decisions by criteria and indicators reflecting the functioning of shipping companies and trading ports are considered in the article. The structure of the problems and advantages of the formation of an active marine transport strategy is presented. Some factors of the development of specialized segments of the global maritime trade market are disclosed. The regularity and conditions for the formation of the parameters of the marine transport cluster are formulated. The article discusses measures to balance the economic interests of maritime transport and the consumers of its products. On this basis, the economic stimulation of optimal economic results is intensified. The necessity of using a wider range of economic regulation in comparison with the concentration of efforts on one model in optimizing the basic state of the regional complex of maritime transport is considered. The article also takes into account the analysis of factors that contribute to the optimization of the final indicators with the parameters of the maritime trade market. Features of innovative approaches that are of fundamental importance in the transport business and reflect the intellectual property of the company's management or its consultants are highlighted. It is on the life cycle ideas of the fleet that functional and financial stability of positioning can be achieved, despite the fact that new competitors appear at regular intervals. It is recommended to systematize the conditions for achieving the parameters of transport independence in the development of international transport integration, special attention is paid to the choice of mission based on the formation of a merchant shipping system that provides standardized efficiency. This, in turn, should be achieved through the benefits of innovative freight technologies.

IntroductionMillions of hectares of the world's irrigated lands need subsurface drainage, but lack of funding is hindering the timely development of these systems, so a solution is required to minimize construction costs (Ritzema and Braun, 2006; Sharifipour et al., 2015). The purpose of this paper is to provide a way to find the "lowest cost depth" for installing subsurface drains.Materials and MethodsThe costs can be divided into three groups. The first group is the costs that do not depend on the digging time and the depth of the drainage installation; if the drains are installed at any depth, these costs do not change per unit length of subsurface drains. These include the cost of purchasing the filtered pipe, the cost of constructing lateral outlets to collectors, etc. The second group is the costs that depend on the depth of drainage installation and the digging time, such as the cost of capital depreciation to purchase a trencher. By increasing the installation depth of the drain, the digging speed will be reduced, thus reducing the total length of the digging. The third group is the costs that are a function of the drainage installation depth but are not a function of the digging speed, including the cost of constructing of collector drain, which increases with the installation depth of the drain. This paper developed a method for converting these costs into cost per unit area :CA = C′I + C′V + C′C (1)CA is the total cost of constructing a subsurface drainage system; C′I, C′V, and C′C represent first, second and third groups of construction costs, all in Rial per unit area (ha).Results and DiscussionAccording to the drainage equations, the distance between the drains will increase with increasing depth, so increasing drainage depth decreases the first group of costs per unit area. As the drainage depth increases, the volume of soil displacement increases. The trench digging speed decreases, so the second group of costs, including the depreciation costs of the trencher, fuel, and wages increase per unit length of lateralization. C′C cost, which includes the cost of collector drainage, increases by the depth of drainage installation.ConclusionAlgebraic operations are possible by converting costs to costs per unit area. Since the drainage density in deep drains is lower and by determining the density of drainage per unit area at each installation depth, the depth that has the lowest cost can be selected as the optimal depth. The raw data for each project may be different; so this data must be collected and used with acceptable accuracy. The cost model is general, but special conditions in some drainage projects may lead to extraordinary costs. In that case, those costs should be converted into costs per unit area similarly and considered as well.