...ENERGY ANALYSIS (EA) Introduction Energy analysis basically determines the energy implications of actions so that alternatives can be compared in term of their energy consequences. Since many impacts can be interpreted in energy terms and since measurements can be made in uniform energy units, the method can viewed as grand index approach to evaluation. The term energy approach was adopted in 1970s by an international group to refer to work previously call energy accounting, energy budgeting, energy costing and energy system analysis. Three roles that EA can play in evaluation * EA is a comprehensive method which can be used instead of the CBA for evaluating public actions, especially those having significant environmental consequences. * EA should be used as a comprehensive method to evaluate alternative plans for energy conservation and development.’ * EA as an evaluation tool for assessing energy resource implications of energy conservation and development programs and projects. Therefore the three methods can be reduced to EA as a comprehensive evaluation method versus EA as a tool of for measuring limited set of impacts EA as A Comprehensive Methodology The importance of energy as a measure of value is underscored by the view that energy is the most fundamental limiting factor on all human action. NOTHING CAN HAPPEN WITHOUT ENERGY. All work requires it as a driving force. Odum- in the affair of forests, seas, cities and human beings, the potential energy...
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...of Texas, although they extract oil from locations around the world (EBR_EBdaily,2010). Potential entrant for the Oil industry include, new innovative forms of fuels which, aim to protect the environment and decrease costs. New technological advances in wind energy, also prove to be a threat as consumers are looking for a more earth friendly way of living. Extensive research by top competitors also poses a threat to the industry. Increased use of bio fuels is becoming extensively popular in many agricultural parts of the world. It is low in cost and emits less pollution in our economy. Substitutes in the energy industry include Wind, Water, Solar, geo-thermal, and bio fuels. Wind energy has become increasingly popular in the recent years and has gained a large share of the market, it is a source of energy that is free, but as other sources it is expensive to install. Another popular form of energy in the past decade is solar power, they have increased the use of this since it was first discovered and now is used by many. Solar energy is proven to be an efficient and free resource, which proves a low cost and has very few moving parts, which means low maintenance and no pollution emission. However, until solar energy is a...
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... Due Date: 29/4/13 Weighting: 25% The concept of renewable energy within Australia, particularly Solar Energy has a huge scope of serious development and benefit to our future energy needs. Our country to this date has the highest average solar radiation per square meter of any country in the world (Geoscience Australia, 2012). Even our solar radiation in the southern regions has a higher overall radiation than countries like Germany, who are one of the most developed nations in terms of Solar Energy. Since late 2012, 10% of Australian energy relies on renewable sources of which 0.03% is Solar (T. Flannery, V.Sahajwalla, 2012). Although this percentage is small, due to the continual evolution of the concept and the current state of the economy and particularly the feed-in tariffs schemes; Solar Energy in Australia is becoming progressively affordable. The current state of Solar Energy in Australia is advancing, though obstacles such as ecological impacts & risks, the heritage & cultural boundaries placed within Australia and the production disadvantages of solar systems itself act as large limitations in the development of the concept. Developments in Solar Energy facilities for large areas such as towns require a large amount of land. This is largely the case for the use of solar photovoltaic systems (AAS, 2010). Although within Australia, around...
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...Organizational Behavior Human energy management is lacking in many companies, despite how it affects the overall performance in employees. Energy seems to be constantly drained, before, during and after work. It is affected by one’s relational, mental, physical and spiritual welfare. To find a way to retain or increase energy levels in the workplace, the frequency and correlation of micro-breaks (non-work and work related) taken by a group of knowledge workers with vitality and fatigue was investigated. Firstly, the methodology in using subjective vitality was largely accurate in measuring the complicated term. The accuracy of the seven-item subjective vitality scale used has been proven in a validation paper by Bostic, McGartland and Hood (2000). Results showed high factor loadings (>0.60), indicative that scale was consistent and reliable. However, the relationship between vitality and fatigue was not explained. If vitality is the enthusiasm that an employee has, the lack of it is due to fatigue – indication that they are merely flip sides. Improvements to data collection can be to use observational research by monitoring employees through a camera or to obtain colleagues’ assessment. While there is high cost in doing so, representative data can be obtained, eliminating the problem of inaccurate self-evaluation. The paper’s focus on strategies and breaks targeted at the individual may not be effective in boosting energies. The individual’s work is assumed to...
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...Duke energy has recently released news that it plans to acquire Piedmont Natural Gas Company in a $4.9 billion cash deal. Duke Energy is one of the largest electric power companies in the United States and is headquartered in Charlotte N.C. Duke Energy is a fortune 250 company, has been in business for 150 years, and has approximately 7.3 million electric customers and 500,000 natural gas customers. After preforming a brief SWOT analysis on Duke Energy two factors became very evident which relate directly to the plans to acquire Piedmont. A big strength of Duke Energy is the strong market position accompanied by an extensive infrastructure within the United States. Energy is very capital intensive industry which give Duke Energy a large advantage...
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...1.0 Market Analysis 1.1 Industry The energy shot industry is relatively new and is experiencing exponential growth. According to bevindustry.com, sales of energy shots have increased by 39 percent to a total of $780.7 million for the 52 weeks ending June 13, 2010. This growth can be attributed to greater product awareness as well as high satisfaction with these shots leading to increased consumption. The growth is expected to continue, as Mintel International forecasts energy shot sales to increase 147 percent in current prices from 2010 through 2015. This swelling growth will push energy shot manufacturers to compete at an even higher level than they are currently operating at. Shots Energy Energy Drinks Beverages Functional Beverages Figure 1 Prior to 2004, consumers in search of an energy beverage could choose between a few alternatives—soda, coffee and energy drinks. These choices have their drawbacks. The average calorie content in a 12oz can of soda is around 150. Coffee can leave a person jittery as well as stain the teeth. Energy drinks provide a pick-me-up but leave the consumer to crash once the initial effects wear off. When defining the relevant market, figure 1 explains different choices a consumer has the option of purchasing. The top section is beverages. The second relevant section is generic drinks. The third section is energy drinks and the final is energy shots. All these problems led the company, Living Essentials...
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...world’s first energy drinks. Both of them contain caffeine and people have been using these beverages for year to receive an extra boost of energy for their day. I could remember my grandmother would wake up in the morning and the first thing she would do was to start to boil water for her morning tea. As a child I had no idea why she drunk tea. All I knew that if you added lemon and a bunch of the sugar to the tea, then it wasn't so bad. My grandmother was a local babysitter for the neighbourhood and the tea helped to give her energy for the day. My grandmother has passed away for years now but the idea of drinking something to gain energy didn’t pass with her. Tea and coffee has gotten a little out-dated and people today have adopted a new energy increaser, the energy drinks. The energy drinks as we know it today has gotten very poplar. From 2008 to 2012 the energy drink market has grown 60% (wallstreetinsanity.com). Energy drinks of today, besides coffee and tea, have been around for years. From it’s unknown origin, the energy drink has traveled around the world, and have gained substantial market shares in the functional beverage industry of several parts of the world. Europe is one of the largest functional beverages markets in the world. The energy drink has made a sizeable impact on the functional beverage markets in both western and eastern Europe. In this research project we are going to explore a number of objectives targeted to the impact of the energy drink on the...
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...Position Paper: Economic Impact of Declining Oil Prices Since the summer of 2014, an excess of supply in the global oil market has led to an unprecedented decline in oil prices. While this will undoubtedly affect nearly every financial market going forward into 2015, it is important to understand the ramifications, both positive and negative, of this particular glut. To find what caused this steep drop-off, it is necessary to look at the drivers of this movement. From a basic economics perspective, oil prices had been inflated prior to this past summer due to high levels of demand due to rapid growth in developing countries (i.e. China), as well as the inability of E&P companies across the world to satisfy this demand. Through the course of 2014, however, both of these drivers began shifting in the opposite direction; high-growth economies began to show signs of maturity, leading to an easing of demand for oil while producers in the U.S. and Canada simultaneously began successfully exploiting shale reserves and alternate sources of extraction, such as fracking, as a source of crude oil. Combined with the lack of cooperation from OPEC to reduce production from the Middle East, oil supply continued to outpace demand. Although alternative means of oil production have been relatively common for some time now, oil prices were being artificially inflated by oil sanctions placed by the United States due to geopolitical conflicts. As these conflicts began to dissipate, the true...
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...In “Five Myths about Nuclear Energy,” Kristin Shrader-Frechette begins by simply stating that atomic energy is one of the most “impractical and risky” fuel source available (231). She continues her essay, published in America, a Catholic Jesuit magazine, using facts and statistics to negate popular myths about nuclear energy as a way of convincing the reader that there are more effective forms of energy. Shrader-Frechette’s argument, besides a few minor fallacies, is very effective with the use of her statistics as well has her tone contributing to the overall successful argument. Shrader-Frechette speaks in a matter-of-fact tone that I would actually consider a fallacy within itself. Since Shrader-Frechette is so fluent and lofty, this is a snob appeal that appeals to the readers’ desire to be more intelligent and well-rounded. As Shrader-Frechette uses statistics to explain her point, her overall character portrays a more intellectual person because she knows these little details. Also, her diction, or word choice, depicts a more factual and knowledgeable tone. The use of words such as “proliferation” as well as her knowledge of the “Swedish Nobel Prize winner” shows her intelligence which makes the reader more fascinated by Shrader-Frechett’s argument in a subconscious use of snob appeal (235). Since she uses such a matter-of-fact tone in her argument, the reader is more susceptible to accepting the argument in order to be identified with Shrader-Frechette who seems...
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...3 MATERIALS AND METHODOLOGY 3.0 INTRODUCTION Energy analysis of buildings helps to simulate the amount of energy used in a building. It is very important as it helps to discover and ascertain new ways of conserving energy and ensuring energy efficiency of building components. Building developers, construction engineers are increasingly interested in creating more energy efficient reason, and for this purpose whole building energy simulation programs are being used to determine strategies that save energy and are cost effective. The most common way available to perform this building energy analysis is to implement building information modelling(BIM). Building Information Modelling(BIM) consists of a digital representation of physical and functional...
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...Case Study Essay: Big Energy Sally Johnson is a member of the management team of XYZ Energy, a major government-owned energy company. Following a high-profile corporate sales process, XYZ Energy was bought by one of its private-sector competitors, Big Energy, for a record price. XYZ Energy was successful company that had established strong, efficient and robust processes and systems to manage its business and risks. It had also innovated new processes in areas, which gave it significant competitive advantage. The company had a loyal staff with relatively low turnover. The XYZ Energy management team was well respected by employees. A large majority of staff worked hard throughout the lead up to the sale to support the process and support each other. Although morale was not high, it was better than had initially been envisaged when the sales process was announced, the staff were extremely proud of the value they had built up for the company, and it was felt that Big Energy must see significant value in the existing processes and systems of XYZ Energy, as well as in their customer base. The core business structure of both companies was similar, not surprisingly given they both operated in the same energy retailing market. For example, both companies had marketing, commercial, operational and trading department, and each one of these areas was represented on the companies’ management teams. XYZ Energy also had a strategy department, which Sally Johnson managed. At the...
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...Midland Energy Resource Case Analysis 1. Describe Midland, its capital planning model and Janet Mortensen's role in the case. Midland Energy Resource, Inc. has three major divisions: Exploration & Production (E&P), Refining and Market (R&M), and Petrochemicals. E&P division provides the most profit for Midland. R&M is the largest division in Midland by revenue. Petrochemicals is the smallest division in Midland. Midland’s financial strategy in 2007 consisted of four principals: funding significant overseas growth, investing in value-creating projects, optimizing corporate capital structure, and repurchasing undervalue shares. Janet Mortensen, senior analyst reporting to CFO, takes role of estimating Midland’s cost of capital for various analyses, both corporate and division level, throughout the company. Her main method is using Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) formula to evaluate required Cost of Capital estimate. 2. Briefly explain the meaning of the following concepts: cost of capital, WACC, and CAPM. Cost of Capital: the minimum acceptable rate of return for new investments in the corporation. The opportunity cost of investing. WACC: Weighted Average Cost of Capital, a calculation of company’s cost of capital, which is seemed as composite cost of debt and equity. Every category of capital in WACC is proportionally weighted. CAPM: Capital Asset Pricing Model, a theory representing the financial market behavior. Used to estimate...
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...The objective of this paper is to analyze and discuss some of Energy Boost Inc.’s business decisions using their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, also known as an S.W.O.T. analysis which is defined as “a way of monitoring the external and internal marketing environment” (Kotler and Keller, 2012). • Strengths o Energy Boost Inc. has a very experienced marketing team with new product launches. This makes Energy Boost Inc. stand out from its competitors. Product launching plays a key role in marketing a product. The marketing team should have a good plan about how to launch the product in the market. They should do proper research in knowing the customer preferences and requirements. The company should be able to meet the requirements of the customers to be getting accepted in the market. An experienced marketing team will fulfill all these requirements. o As Energy Boost Inc. has a good experienced marketing team; the company will be able to launch its product in the market without much difficulty. With the past experiences, the marketing team will be able to come up with a strong plan for product launching. Also, they will be able to meet the requirements of the potential customers. • Weaknesses o Several established competitors in the market o Large start-up cost due to manufacturing needs o The relatively high caffeine and taurine content of Energy Shot makes the brand highly vulnerable to regulatory controls o Potential Health risks in drinking...
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...Midland Energy Resources Case Analysis Midland Energy Capital Planning Model • Fund significant overseas growth • As domestic natural resources dwindle, overseas investments are the main drivers of growth for Midland. These investments are analyzed and evaluated is US dollars (foreign cash flows are converted to US dollars) and have a US dollar discount rate applied to them. In 2006, 77.7% of Midland’s total earnings from equity affiliates came from non-US investments. • Invest in value creating projects across all divisions • Midland generally used traditional discounted cash flow methods to evaluate potential projects and investments. Some overseas projects were analyzed as streams of future equity cash flows, and were discounted based on cost of equity as a result. Once funded, a project/investment’s performance was measure in two ways. The first being actual performance vs forecasted plan over 1, 3, and 5 year periods, and the second being Economic Value Added (EVA). EVA was calculated as: EVA = EBIT(1-t) – WACC(period capital expenditure) Midland Energy Capital Planning Model • Optimize capital structure • Midland primarily optimized its capital structure by taking advantage of the borrowing capacity inherent in its energy reserves and long term assets, such as refining facilities. Midland maintained an optimal debt level which was based on energy prices and its own stock prices. This practice allowed them to shield additional profits from...
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...Cost of Capital Estimate for Midland Energy Resources, Inc. In the first section of my report, I list out the main models and methods applied to estimate the cost of capital for Midland’s three divisions, general assumptions made and the corresponding justifications. In the second section, Calculations, I not only compute the cost of capital based on the general assumptions previously made, but also discuss specifics of each division and the additional adjustments or assumptions made to justify my estimates. SECTION 1: Main models and methods applied and corresponding assumptions 1. Constant Debt-ratio Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC): WACC=rdDV1-t+reEV Assumptions: * WACC: as constant debt ratio is the underlying assumption to derive the WACC model, constant debt ratio should be reasonably assumed to be applied by Midland and its three divisions. According to the case, Midland optimizes its debt levels by regularly reevaluations against its energy price and stock price level and each division has its own target debt ratio. Although the actual capital structure sometimes deviates from the target due to factors such as market value of specific collaterals, it is safe to assume that the debt ratio averages out at the target ratio in the long run, given that the target ratios are not adjusted frequently. Therefore, the debt ratio can be viewed as a constant and thus WACC is applicable. * Capital structure: as assumed above, target debt ratio is employed in...
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