Road Freight Transport Cost

The goal of this research was to measure the cost of road freight transport in the 20 European countries with the highest recorded quantity of tonne-kilometres and assess their competitiveness. Cost competitiveness was measured by four main cost categories: fuels, drivers' wages, tyres and tolls, and the results show large cost variances between countries. The countries with the lowest road freight transport cost were Bulgaria, Poland, and Romania, and those with the highest costs were Norway, Austria, and the UK. The largest differences in costs were met in tolls and other road taxes, followed by drivers' wages, fuels, and finally, tyres.

CO2 abatement economics - a practical view

The present studies aim at bridging between sophisticated scientific research and the broader society. The present work examines the economic stimulus required for the intended transition from fossil sources to renewables. To estimate cost competitiveness in energy supply from the various primary sources, a practicable, yet comprehensively levelized and fully described framework is applied. The estimates are compared with previous field reports and projection studies. In result, renewables have principally become cost-competitive to fossil sources in energy production. The overall transition to renewables is found to potentially come cost-neutral. It is argued that no special discounting be necessary if carbon emissions reduction is established in the order of 3 %/year (year-on-year) for about 100 years. Regarding transmission belts, it is advocated to cap plain CO2 pricing at 50 $/tCO2 and moreover, to emphasize distributive and differentiative regulation when considering free-market-based mechanisms such as CO2 pricing and carbon certification/crediting.

International procurement policies influencing renewable energy siting – implications for South Africa

The South African Renewable Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme selects bid winners based on bid tariff (70% weighting) and various economic development criteria (30% weighting). Locating renewable energy (RE) projects in areas with better resources increases their cost competitiveness. As a result, most successful bids for wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) systems to date have been concentrated in the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape provinces, respectively. Studies have shown that a wider geographic distribution of wind and solar PV projects mitigates the impacts of the variability of wind and solar PV resources, eases grid congestion and generally improves the power system’s operation. This paper conducts a literature review to investigate the procurement methods used in different regions of the world to influence the placement of RE plants, the results of which then inform proposals on adjustments to the current REI4P. The study finds that, after congestion incidents due to concentration of RE plants, some regions implement location-based tariff, where high-resource areas receive the lowest tariff and vice versa. Other regions prioritise on building transmission infrastructure in high-resource areas, while others limit the size of RE installations in one area. Given the current generation and transmission constraints in South Africa, it is important to encourage geographical dispersion of RE plants and avoid RE curtailment, since this can escalate the cost of RE integration significantly.

Mobility-on-demand pricing versus private vehicle TCO: how cost structures hinder the dethroning of the car

This study uses a unique dataset on the cost of motoring in Germany to analyse cost competitiveness of emerging mobility-on-demand (MOD) services. Previous studies have focused on comparing current and projected MOD prices with the average cost of private motoring. This study quantifies which proportion of private car travel would actually turn out to be costlier than MOD given that MOD costs drop below certain levels relative to the cost of private motoring. In this context, not the average but the distribution of the costs of motoring are the key issue. These costs are strongly skewed across the cars in private households when including new and old vehicles: a large proportion of private car kilometres are driven at relatively low cost. The study uses simplified scenario settings with MOD price levels ranging from 0.1 €/km to 1.5 €/km to make predictions of hypothetical modal shifts under the assumption that car user switch to the most economic mode of travel. These modal shifts serve as an indicator of MOD cost competitiveness. The results indicate that MOD prices would have to drop to 0.5 €/km or lower to have a notable impact on use of the private car if cost was the key mode choice criterion. Only if MOD prices drop down to a level of about 0.3 €/km—quite possibly a lower boundary for automated MOD—MOD-enabled mobility packages would be the less costly alternative to the private car for a substantial proportion of mileage. However, even at that MOD price level, the private car would still be the most economic option for the majority of today’s car user kilometres. Our findings illustrate that the skewed distribution of the cost of owning and running private cars—where many of those who drive much drive inexpensively—substantially dampens the disruptive potential of MOD. While we use data from Germany to illustrate this, many of our findings are more widely applicable.

Infrastructure development in the Sahel will be slow

Significance With populations growing by 3-4% annually, physical infrastructure requires significant expansion. Mobile telephony has been a major success, but there is much to be done to improve urban transport, long-distance roads and electricity generation. Rising insecurity compounds these challenges. Impacts With populations rising fast, there is a continual need to build more schools, health clinics and other key service premises. Efficient ports and modern transport links can bolster the cost-competitiveness and economic viability of industrial activity inland. Rising insecurity will prevent maintenance of infrastructure in affected areas.

Investigation of Functionally Graded Adherents on Failure of Socket Joint of FRP Composite Tubes

Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) matrix materials are quickly being investigated for application in concrete construction repair, reinforcement, and refurbishment. The technology has progressed to the point that its future acceptance is mainly reliant on the availability of established design guidelines based on recognized performance criteria, as well as the cost competitiveness of these technologies in contrast to conventional rehabilitation methods. The goal of this study is to evaluate the different functional grades of adhesives throughout bond length for bonded socket joints of laminated FRP composite pipes. Damage development resistance is high with a functionally graded FRP composite socket joint, as shown. To extend the service life of the structure, the joint designer should use an FRP composite socket joint with a functionally graded adhesive (FGA).

Solar Simulation Model to Find Optimal Solution for Domestic Load

Looking at the energy sector of India, it is the 3rd largest producer in the world and holds the largest grid in the world. Despite the presence of largest grid, still frequent power outage, delivery of low quality of power and unreliability of supply persistent in some areas. This unreliable power supply creates hindrance in the overall development of the region. On the other hand solar power is most widely used source of renewable energy, can be able to provide feasible solution. By installation of solar PV array in the premises of the load center the reliability will be increased. The power production from the PV is also cost competitive and environment friendly. As solar PV power is intermittent in nature, the most old and mature storage technology ,i.e. battery can be integrated to mitigate this intermittency nature. The present study examines the feasibility and optimizes the size of such system, while the cost competitiveness is kept at the center.