An approach to evaluate incentive policies for energy development

The federal energy agencies are continuously seeking new energy resources to make the U.S. self-sufficient in its energy requirements. Geopressured resources have been identified for quite some time as possible candidates. However, the fundamental barriers to commercializing this source of energy are the excessive capital investments necessary and high uncertainty. This study proposes a methodology for exploring the use of economic incentives as instruments to stimulate the growth of geopressured resource development in the United States. It also identifies how incentive policy options are related to the fundamental barriers against a U.S. geopressured gas capability. The study models the geopressured development project as a Monte Carlo simulation. The geopressured system model simulates the production from a known geopressured resource. The profitability of the geopressured resource development project under alternate incentive policy options is evaluated as to their impact on two base case scenarios of potential investors in such development projects. The evaluations concern the policy impacts on improving project economics and risks. Results indicate that economic incentive policies are effective tools for improving the profitability of geopressured resource development projects. Each incentive serves different purposes with regard to inherent economics, project risks, marketplace uncertainties, and developers' access to capital. The effectiveness of the incentive policies depends on the developer's attitudes and attributes.     

The path to renewable energy consumption in the European Union through drivers and barriers: A panel vector autoregressive approach

Renewable energy consumption brings sustainable economic growth and pollution reduction. Despite the worldwide increase in renewable energy consumption, global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions are rising and there are still considerable differences in the share of renewable energy consumption in national energy portfolios. These concerns require further effort at the policy level, especially by countries that make extensive use of energy imports. These countries could improve their lack of energy independence by using renewable energy sources and leveraging a few factors to facilitate their transition. This study aims to investigate renewable energy consumption drivers, focusing on the role of socio-technical (rather than economic) aspects such as policy stringency, lobbying, public awareness, and education. We employ a panel vector autoregressive model in first differences to test the complex dynamic relationships among renewable energy consumption, policy stringency, lobbying, public awareness, and education, controlling for variables such as per capita income and import levels, for 12 European Union net energy importing countries. Results show that the positive income effect prevails in the influence of the level of carbon dioxide emissions (negative) on renewable energy consumption, despite the latter being more significant in countries with higher levels of education. Increasing energy needs push traditional sources towards complementarity with renewable energy consumption, implying a positive lobbying effect. Public awareness is not enough to facilitate the transition to renewable energy consumption. By contrast, policy stringency has positive direct and indirect effects on renewable energy consumption, suggesting that the approach adopted by the European Commission in the recent Green Deal is a step in the right direction. Moreover, as shown, policymakers are able, through renewable energy consumption, to generate a decrease in carbon dioxide emissions and electricity production from oil, gas, coal, and nuclear sources in the first instance, but also in net energy imports, even if at a later stage.     

浅谈政府采购信息系统项目风险管理

随着政府采购信息化的加速推广,政府采购信息系统项目建设得到各地政府的大力支持,随之而来,风险管理也变得越来越重要,科学合理的动态监控可以保证风险管理的顺利进行。本文主要分析了政府采购信息系统项目风险管理的相关内容,并对风险管理提供了政策性的建议。     

A Study of Effective Financial Support for SMEs to Improve Economic and Employment Conditions: Evidence from OECD Countries

Using a panel logit regression model, this study analyzes whether or not five categorized financial supports for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from the governments of 11 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries facilitate economic and employment growth: (1) direct government loans to SMEs; (2) government‐guaranteed loans to SMEs; (3) the reinforcement of relationship banking; (4) financial stability steps to ease pro‐cyclicality; and (5) equity‐linked financing. The academic contribution of this research is in identifying the optimal type of government financial support to SMEs given a country's level of financial crisis and market‐rate level. The main empirical test results are as follows. First, the type of financial support that contributes most to economic and employment growth is the set of steps that governments take to ease pro‐cyclicality. Second, the reinforcement of relationship banking can also contribute to improved economic and employment conditions. Third, in less capital‐intensive countries, the results confirm that economic and employment improvement occurs more often if equity‐linked financing is used. Fourth, the adoption of dynamic loan‐loss provisions to prepare for periods of economic recession is necessary to reduce the pro‐cyclicality of SME loans within the 11 OECD countries studied in this paper; it is also necessary to transition from a persistent monetary‐easing policy stance to a flexible monetary stance within a country's fiscal policy in order to make commercial banks benefit from an incentive‐like risk premium for SME loans despite the existence of economic recessions. Finally, the study finds that the need to apply equity‐linked financing methods through the stock market is especially urgent in developing countries. As the managerial perspectives, it is confirmed that easing pro‐cyclicality of SME loan and enhancing banking relationship can contribute to SMEs fund management. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Holistic investment assessment: optimization,risk appraisal and decision making

On deciding for the most appropriate investment when capital restrictions exist, investors define their alternatives and analyze each one of them. Traditionally, the definition, appraisal and analysis stages are treated separately. Herein, an innovative holistic method is proposed for bridging these stages. Within this method, investment attributes definition occurs by genetic algorithm optimization, while the analysis of the investment is realized through simulation. The method also proposes the NPV Expected Shortfall and the NPV Risk Preference Index as investment evaluation criteria. An illustrative case study of two mutually exclusive renewable energy investment scenarios is also used for demonstration purposes. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

寻求建筑结构节能和可再生能源节能的结合

我国建筑节能问题有可能获得技术上的突破,短期内可大幅度降低太阳能供电、供热成本.采用太阳能光伏电池方面的技术已处在领先水平.如何加强这方面工作,从政策上给予强有力的支持急需政府作出政策性规定.积极推进建筑结构节能和再生能源节能的结合.     

Bankruptcy risk and impaired investment decisions

This paper examines situations where the firm's investment decisions are impaired due to the presence of bankruptcy risk. Two situations are examined, one in which the firm is motivated to reject a positive NPV project and another in which the firm is motivated to accept a negative NPV project.     

Panel data and descriptor for energy econometrics – an efficiency,resilience and innovation analysis

Quality & Quantity - The work at hand presents a new extensive panel dataset for energy economics, econometrics and policy. The referred dataset is made of 5000 observations circa, including 6...     

Challenges of green consumption in China: a household energy use perspective

To encourage economic progress, China's government has been pushing domestic consumption as a substitute for its waning growth in investment and exports. It has also been promoting greener policies for growth, of which green consumerism is a prime component. By examining the economy through the lens of household energy consumption, this paper lays out the challenges the nation must overcome through green consumption. We explore the trends in household energy use and decompose energy used indirectly by households into six factors: changes in total population, urbanization rate, energy efficiency, interindustry input mix, household consumption preferences, and per capita household consumption level. Doing so yields insights into how progress in industrial technology, household income, urbanization, and lifestyles has affected energy use in the production of goods and services used by households. It also offers policy suggestions on how China might guide lifestyle changes to effect green consumption.     

Exploring external and internal pressures on the environmental behavior of paper enterprises in China: A qualitative study

As one of the typical high‐polluting and high‐energy‐consuming industries in China, the paper industry's environmental behavior has become the focus of a range of stakeholders, policy makers, and the whole society because the industry's business activities are a main source of environmental pollution and contribute to massive energy consumption. This study used a qualitative approach to examine the relative importance of external and internal pressures (EP and IP) in driving the environmental behavior of paper enterprises in China. Based on grounded theory, this study aimed to examine the EP and IP on the environmental behavior of paper enterprises to create a comprehensive theoretical model based on grounded theory code analysis. It was found that government pressure, economic pressure, social pressure, and IP have direct and significant positive effects on the corporate environmental behavior (CEB) of paper enterprises in China. Furthermore, government, economic, and social pressures have indirect and significant positive effects on CEB through other pressures. Finally, the paper concludes with a discussion of these four pressures and provides policy implications.     

城市化与能源消耗间关系实证研究

通过利用2000—2009年我国的省级面板数据,建立时间和空间双固定效应的面板空间杜宾模型,发现我国存在一条U形的城市化能耗库兹涅茨曲线,该曲线的转折点出现在城市化率约为24%的阶段。现阶段我国的城市化水平已经处在该曲线的右侧部分,表明如果我国的城市化率在今后仍不断提高的话,由城市化所导致的能耗将迅速增长。同时还发现城市化在我国能耗增长中的贡献比重较大,但对于在2003年出现的我国能耗迅速增加的拐点,从城市化的角度找不到解释。最后提出如果今后我国城市化率进一步提高,由能耗迅速增加所导致的城市发展的离心力达到一定程度,将会对我国的城市化格局产生重要的影响。     

Antitrust Compliance: Managerial Incentives and Collusive Behavior

This article analyzes a manager's incentives to establish and sustain an illegal collusive agreement if her firm is subject to profit shocks, if her utility function is concave in profits (e.g., because of risk aversion), and if she incurs opportunity costs (e.g., by violating a social norm). The model supports the empirical observation that if collusion is to be established and sustained in a state with low profits, then this state must be quite persistent. It also indicates that compliance with antitrust laws can be ensured best by combining a zero tolerance policy with a strategy of forgiveness. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Re-thinking employment quotas in the UAE

Emiratization is a government policy aimed at increasing the share of native workers in the UAE private sector. A distinguishing feature of Emiratization is the use of employment quotas for native workers so that the policy objective is met. We study the impact of the labor quota and find that its effect on native employment is ambiguous. While an increase in the employment quota for native workers increases the share of native workers, it also reduces the industry's production and employment of labor. The policy implications of the employment quota are significant, and ways to mitigate its negative impact include calibrating an optimal quota to maximize native employment, implementing the quota in industries facing less elastic demand for outputs and in industries where native and expatriate labor are closer substitutes.     

Hybrid decision model for information project selection

Information project selection is an important and recurring activity in many organizations. Establishing a systematic project selection model thus is important for organizations. However, information system project selection is made difficult by the need to consider numerous quantitative and qualitative factors, such as business goals, benefits, project risks and limitations in available resources. This study proposes a hybrid measurement model for evaluating the overall effects of information projects. The selection model generates critical, quantitative and qualitative indicators to help managers realize the advantages/disadvantages of operational conditions. This hybrid selection model not only accelerates project evaluation and selection, but also helps organizations optimize project selection and thus achieve sustainable development.     

Measuring location selection factors for international resort parks

This study presents a framework of issues to analyze Porter’s (The Competitive Advantage of Nations, 1990) Diamond model, and develops factors for determining the optimality of an international resort park location using the modified Delphi model. A panel of 16 experts from various backgrounds, including academia, government and business, provided input for the selection of location factors. Following three discussions, panel members reached consensus and selected the following set of 26 factors for optimizing location selection for international resort parks. This study also provides direction for applying the proposed model and suggestions for future research.     

行政审批改革与制度性交易成本——基于效率评价的视角

制度性交易成本是经济主体为遵守制度规定而产生的非生产性成本,行政审批改革通过提高经营效率、节约时间成本、降低资金成本和促进行业竞争四种途径降低制度性交易成本。本文通过对我国地市级面板数据的实证分析后发现,行政审批改革可以有效降低地区制度性交易成本;当行政审批改革发生在营商环境相对较差的中西部城市、距离省会城市较近的城市以及当城市获得法律支撑时,能够更显著地降低当地制度性交易成本。本文据此提出如下政策建议:深化行政审批改革,减少不必要的审批事项;健全改革激励机制,确保政策的贯彻与落实;通过机构设置、法律规定、权责划分等进行配套措施改革。     

Corporates' strategic responses to economic policy uncertainty in China

Using a novel news‐based index of economic policy uncertainty, this paper studies the impact of economic policy uncertainty on corporate strategic positioning and corporate risk in China from 2009 to 2015. The study also investigates the impact of corporate strategic positioning on corporate risk. The results show that corporate strategic positioning and economic policy uncertainty have a significant positive impact on corporate risk. The results also explain that economic policy uncertainty increases the market risk of the firms irrespective of their corporate strategy. However, it increases the business risk of prospector firms and decreases the business risk of defensive firms. The study may help the firms to formulate and improve their strategic positioning while considering economic policy uncertainty. Our results are robust to alternate proxies of economic policy uncertainty and corporate risk.     

BOT项目风险转移的悖论——以日本-BOT失败项目为研究对象

BOT项目通过将风险转移给民间企业以激励其有效运用Know—how、提高项目效率,从而实现VFM（Value for Money）最大化的目标,然而利益相关者之间不适当的风险转移可能会引起相反的效果。本文以日本一失败的BOT项目为研究对象,通过对项目失败的主要原因进行剖析,发现风险分担不明确容易引起招投标中赢者诅咒现象的发生从而引发风险转移的悖论问题,并最终通过演绎该问题的发生机制,提出了抑制其发生的最优风险分担条件。     

Sustainable environmental practices and financial performance: Evidence from listed small and medium‐sized enterprise in the United Kingdom

In this article, we investigate the financial implication of sustainable environmental practices on UK small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs)–traded firms. Existing literature indicates that there is a direct relationship between sustainable environmental practices and financial performance. However, studies looking at this relationship have focused mainly on large firms with little attention paid to SMEs. Further, those looking at environmental and financial performance relationships have often used a single measure of performance in their studies. This study bridges these research gaps by focusing on listed SMEs in the United Kingdom using multiple measures of sustainable environmental policy indices on a panel of 201 SMEs on the Alternative Investment Market from 2011 to 2016. Evidence from our panel data analysis suggests significant and a nonlinear (concave) relationship between sustainable environmental practices and firms' financial performance. Specifically, energy efficiency practices, greenhouse gases, material, and resource efficiency revealed an inverted U‐shaped relationship with financial performance. The results will offer guidance to management in terms of allocating resources to sustainable environmental practices investment.     

Business cycles and redistribution: The role of government quality

We study how government quality mediates the relationship between business cycles and redistribution. Our key hypothesis is that the potential of income redistribution to reduce rising inequality levels after an economic crisis depends on government quality. The empirical evidence based on a panel of 46 countries over the period 1996–2016 lends strong support to this hypothesis. We find that macroeconomic recessions promote redistribution of income in high government quality contexts, but they lead to wider economic inequalities in countries with poor quality of government.