Risk assessment and risk decision-making process related to hazardous installation in France

The chemical process industry gathers critical infrastructures since chemical plants represent for the society both an instrument to generate activity and benefits (production of goods, employment, services …), and an instrument that can harm people and the environment. This paper describes the risk assessment approach need in France for licensing hazardous installations, in particular those covered by the Seveso II Directive and the implication for land-use planning. The first part explains why the French risk assessment procedure is based on the quantitative evaluation of major accident scenarios with explicit criteria, and only on qualitative analysis of the risk reducing measures without explicit criteria. The second part shows some on-going evolutions in the risk assessment process in particular for the analysis of the safety barriers. In the third part, the authors share some thoughts on the risk decision-making process.     

RELIABILITY AND REGULATION IN PRICING PUBLIC UTILITY SERVICE

The principal question addressed in this paper concerns the optimal price profile for a regulated public utility where demand is stochastic. Through the introduction of rationing costs and a rate-of-return constraint, marginal revenue will be approximately equated to the cost associated with satisfying the last unit of consumers’demand. This has significant implications for capacity expansion. Namely, capacity is added to keep the risk of failure minimal. As a result, to the extent that the associated costs are higher for the last unit of capacity, a higher marginal revenue and hence price will result. That is, if the marginal unit of capacity has a high operating and delivery cost and low capital cost with high reliability and consequent high total cost (e.g., an internal combustion peaking unit), the indicated result follows. Consequently, there is a direct trade off between the level of risk of failure and marginal revenue. This provides a rationalization for the existence of the price differential between firm and interruptible customers. Finally, if the firm is contrained to earn a fair return on its capital investment, it will set prices to favor the consumers generating the expansion in capacity.     

>Conversion Ratios in Charities in England and Wales: An Investigation of Economies of Scale

This study examines ways in which the scale economies of charities can be measured and investigates the use of conversion ratios as indicators of scale efficiency. Problems and difficulties inherent in the use of these ratios are detailed. The analysis then employs nonparametric tests (Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests), based on the identified conversion ratios, to examine for the existence of scale economies in the operation of the 500 largest fundraising charities in England and Wales. The statistical analysis provides evidence of scale economies and suggests that scale efficiency gains have not as yet been exhausted. The charity sector therefore appears to be characterised by increasing returns to scale with further growth necessary before optimal size, as indicated by constant returns to scale, is achieved.     

The effectiveness of regulation in the electrical energy industry

There is a gap between what federal and state regulatory commissions are authorized to do and what they are doing to regulate the electrical energy industry. It has been argued that a pricing scheme in the industry has evolved akin to the pricing scheme a discriminating monopolist might employ for different classes of consumers that are spatially diffuse. The attention of the paper is focused on the effectiveness of regulation in the industry, given the characteristics of it. The method of analysis chosen is to construct two models which are polar opposites and compare the results with what was actually the situation in 1973. The conclusion indicates that it is justifiable to argue that the electrical energy industry on the whole is not allowed to behave as a spatial monopolist. It is not correct to conclude that monopolistic tendencies are absent. Specifically, the pricing structure does depart from the competitive criterion which requires price to equal marginal cost for each consumer sector and all regions. Further, little electrical energy is transmitted interregionally.     

A reconsideration of the impact of recalls on the market valuation of a product

This paper looks at the problem of determining the effect on the market valuation of a product of recalls due to safety defects when the analytical framework is misspecified. Using the car market, the results show that it is difficult, if not impossible, to distinguish the effect on the price of recalls from the impact of quality differentials among makes and models.     

A spatial model for multivariate lattice data

In this article, we develop Markov random field models for multivariate lattice data. Specific attention is given to building models that incorporate general forms of the spatial correlations and cross-correlations between variables at different sites. The methodology is applied to a problem in environmental equity. Using a Bayesian hierarchical model that is multivariate in form, we examine the racial distribution of residents of southern Louisiana in relation to the location of sites listed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Toxic Release Inventory.     

Knowledge quality,innovation and firm performance: a study of knowledge transfer in SMEs

Small Business Economics - Using structural equation modelling on 291 small and medium enterprises in Australia, we examine the impact of knowledge transfers from supply chain actors on innovation...     

Factors influencing local residents’ intentions to conserve the built heritage in Tanzania

This study used the dominant cognitive-based theory of planned behaviour (TPB) complemented by the affection-based attachment theory (AT) to investigate factors influencing local residents’ conservation intentions. Thus, in addition to TPB’s variables, such as attitudes towards conservation, perceived social pressure and perceived control over conservation, the study considered the effects of heritage affection on conservation intentions. Cross-sectional questionnaire-based data gathered from the three historic towns of Zanzibar Stone Town, Kilwa Kivinje and Pangani in Tanzania were analysed using Structural Equation Modelling. The TPB’s variables and heritage affection all showed a positive and significant correlation with conservation intention. The empirical data therefore supported using the TPB, complemented by the AT, to explain engagement in conservation in the built heritage setting. The study concludes that conservation intention is best viewed as a mixture of cognitive and affective factors. Theoretical and managerial implications as well as suggestions for future studies are provided.     

The Determinants and Consequences of Abandoned Takeovers

Takeover activity has attracted a great deal of academic attention over the past three decades. Much of this interest has focused on the study of completed takeovers with a particular interest in seeking to understand the impact of takeover activity on the wealth of both shareholders in acquired and bidding firms. Unlike their completed counterparts, abandoned takeovers have received relatively little academic attention. This is surprising since a significant proportion of takeover bids are unsuccessful. This paper seeks to address the imbalance by providing a comprehensive survey of the takeover failure literature. The paper focuses on two aspects of the literature: First, we discuss and review the factors likely to influence takeover outcome. Second, we examine the consequences of takeover abandonment from the perspective of targets and bidders. We also identify a number of areas where future research may seek to improve further our understanding of the causes and consequences of takeover abandonment.