Distribution Of Energy Resources Research Articles

Water-Energy-Food Communities in South Africa: Exploring Multi-Actor Governance Instruments Contributing to Social Justice

Abstract South Africa faces significant challenges concerning the scarcity and unequal distribution of water, energy and food resources. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 underscores the importance of social justice and mandates collaboration among all levels of government and state entities. To effectively address the interconnected nature of these resources, a collaborative governance approach is necessary. This article introduces the concept of ‘Water-Energy-Food (wef) communities’, a concept not currently recognised in South African law, drawing inspiration from the European Union’s Renewable Energy Directive (res-Directive) of 2018 and the Electricity Market Directive (E-Directive) of 2019 that introduced the concept of ‘energy communities’. wef communities, operating at the local level, could integrate improved governance and decision-making in the water, energy, and food sectors, thereby advancing social justice in local communities. The article compares existing multi-actor governance instruments in South African law and uses the EU law as learning points for the establishment of wef communities as opposed to energy communities that focus on one determinant only. Although the current South African multi-actor governance instruments do not explicitly address an integrated wef governance approach, they may serve as a basis for proposing framework rules to establish wef communities, highlighting their potential to achieve social justice goals in relation to their access to water, energy and food. The article proposes rules for the potential establishment of wef communities, taking learning points from the EU directives as well as existing South African instruments.

From Potential to Power: Advancing Nigeria’s Energy Sector through Renewable Integration and Policy Reform

Nigeria is a nation endowed with both abundant renewable and non-renewable energy resources. Despite its vast potential, Nigeria struggles with a consistent power supply due to various systemic issues, such as inadequate funding, infrastructural decay, corruption, technical skill shortages, and macroeconomic instability. These challenges hinder the effective harnessing and distribution of energy resources, particularly renewable ones like wind, solar, biomass, and hydropower. This study assesses the existing energy policies and their efficacy in promoting sustainable energy development towards achieving universal electricity access by 2030. It highlights the necessity for a just energy transition that integrates a substantial proportion of renewable energy into the national grid, aiming to meet up to 60% of the country’s energy demands with clean sources by 2050. This transition is critical not only for energy security and reducing the environmental impact but also for fostering socioeconomic equity. Recommendations include overhauling the legal and regulatory frameworks to support renewable energy growth, particularly in off-grid areas, to ensure clean, affordable, and secure energy access. Strategic investments, enhanced infrastructure, and robust public–private partnerships are essential to overcome the current barriers and realize Nigeria’s energy potential. This paper calls for a comprehensive approach that addresses both the technical and socioeconomic dimensions of the energy crisis, laying the groundwork for a sustainable and prosperous energy future for Nigeria.

Energy poverty and the green energy transition's impact upon income inequality in Latin America

In this study, we examine the relationships arising from the transition process to green economies and energy poverty in relation to income inequality across 22 Latin American countries during the period from 2000 to 2021. Our estimations are conducted using various estimators for energy poverty and the transition to green economies, employing feasible generalized least squares (FGLS) and panel corrected standard errors (PCSE) to ensure robustness. The results reveal a significant effect of both sets of variables on income inequality. Specifically, energy poverty contributes to higher levels of income inequality, while the ecological transition has the potential to address income inequality issues, provided an effective distribution of renewable energy resources among society is ensured. Failure to achieve equitable distribution of renewable energy resources may hinder the attainment of more egalitarian societies. To address this, a comprehensive set of policies is required to ensure equal access to renewable energy sources for the entire population, along with effective long-term measures that contribute to the equitable distribution of energy resources.

Towards Energy Equity: Understanding and Addressing Multifaceted Energy Inequality

Given the pressing necessity to mitigate the consequences of climate change, it is of the utmost importance to establish a carbon-neutral society. Nevertheless, sustainability is significantly impeded by energy inequality. It is the term used to describe the unequal distribution, access, and utilization of energy resources among demographic groups, which has been further exacerbated by the pandemic and geopolitical tensions. This research aims to conceptualize and quantify energy inequality in Lithuania and compare it with EU data in order to bolster the ambitious objective of a climate-neutral Europe by 2050. This article elucidates the intricacy of energy inequality by utilizing a Lithuanian population survey and a literature review, which are supplemented by an EU macroeconomic analysis. The findings underline the necessity of locally tailored solutions and underscore the significant disparities in energy access between Lithuanian regions and demographic groups. Targeted policy measures are necessary to overcome economic, technological, and socio-political obstacles that impede progress toward a climate-neutral society. The necessity of a multidimensional approach and global cooperation is underscored by a comparative analysis of EU statistics, which reveals variable progress in addressing energy inequality. Theis research is a pertinent contribution to the discourse on sustainability and social justice, and it offers policy-makers, practitioners, and stakeholders guidance for a more inclusive and sustainable energy future.

Are social justice and sustainability interdependent? If so, how and under what conditions?

AbstractSustainability often entails dealing with issues of justice in the distribution of goods and bads, such as resources and restrictions. Applications of justice to concrete situations, including what is deserved and entitled, call for specifications of several issues, like the meaning of “deservingness” and “entitlement” and how justice should be accomplished. This is a key aspect for sustainability, as social arrangements that are not experienced as fair may not be long‐lived. Conversely, justice may be an empty notion unless it is sustainable. With this in mind, we provide an inventory of factors to analyze the relationship between (un)sustainability and social (in)justice from a social psychological perspective. We (a) clarify the gist of the two subjective notions, (b) discuss their interdependences, (c) provide a list of factors for analyses, and (d) illustrate how they may be applied to two cases, one at a global level (food accessibility) and the other at a local level (distribution of renewable energy resources in communities). The proposed framework forms the basis of empirical analyses of the social dimension of sustainability.

Analyzing the dynamic effect of energy endowment-demand distortion on sustainable development: Insights from China's regional disparity

The distribution of China's energy resources is concentrated in the central and western regions, whereas the energy demand is predominantly centered in the eastern regions. Under the ambitious "carbon neutrality" goal, how to effectively quantify and respond to the impact of this energy “endowment-demand” distortion (EEDD) on economy and environment has become a key issue. We introduce an EEDD index that quantifies the distortion characteristics of China's energy endowment and demand. Based on the EEDD index, a panel vector auto regression-generalized method of moments (PVAR-GMM) model is adopted to assess the interactive effects between regional EEDD and sustainable development variables. The obtained results indicate that the energy endowment-demand distortions are progressively worsening across most provinces. Interestingly, we discover that the EEDD has significant beneficial effects on regional sustainable development. Moreover, the EEDD is found to be significantly influenced by the sustainability-related variables. These impacts between EEDD and sustainable development variables demonstrate significant regional heterogeneity. This study provides crucial empirical evidence for advancing the comprehensive and sustainable development of regional energy, environment, and economy.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND ECONOMIC GROWTH IN TÜRKİYE

The interplay between energy resource distribution and usage is pivotal for sustainable economic growth and development. Addressing global warming and climate change is essential, necessitating a shift towards renewable energy sources and reducing reliance on harmful energy types. Central to this endeavor is producing within the bounds of global steps and measures, fostering a sustainable relationship between humanity and resources, and achieving economic growth without depleting our natural endowments. The industrial sector's reliance on fossil fuels primarily contributes to rising carbon emissions, causing environmental degradation and climate change. This study scrutinizes the dynamics between energy consumption and economic growth in Türkiye from 1980 to 2020. Utilizing the Granger Causality Test, Johansen Cointegration Test, and Vector Error Correction Model, a causal link between energy consumption and economic growth was identified. Based on these findings, policy recommendations have been proposed to guide sustainable energy use and economic expansion.

Multidimensional energy poverty and human well-being: household-level evidence from India

Purpose This paper aims to assess the relationship between energy poverty and the well-being of people using Amartya Sen’s capability approach to development as theoretical underpinning. Design/methodology/approach The study uses household-level energy access data collected by the Harvard Dataverse in 2015 and 2018. The authors use multidimensional indices to measure energy poverty and well-being. Further, the authors apply quantile regression approach to measure the relationship between energy poverty and well-being. Findings The study’s findings reveal that energy poverty and well-being are negatively related. India has made progress in reducing energy poverty and improving well-being during the study period. However, progress in reducing energy poverty is largely due to improved access to electricity and improvement in well-being due to income and financial inclusion. Using modern cooking fuel has a greater negative impact on well-being compared to lighting using electricity. Further, households spending a greater proportion of their income on modern energy fuels leads to a lower quality of life as it precludes them from using it for other purposes. The study records wide variations in the observed relationship between energy poverty and well-being across various socioeconomic groups. Practical implications This calls for improvement in the production and distribution of modern energy resources, which have substantial welfare implications. Originality/value This is the first study to measure the relationship between energy poverty and quality of life using multidimensional indices. The findings of this paper have policy implications for the pricing of energy resources and energy access measures.

Assessment of the potential of salt mines for renewable energy peaking in China

Renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar, can reduce environmental pollution and promote the transformation of the energy structure. However, the intermittency and uncertainty of new energy sources such as wind and photovoltaics pose challenges to large-scale grid integration. Effective utilization of intermittent energy sources requires large-scale energy storage facilities. Salt rock is recognized as an excellent medium for underground large-scale energy storage with a wide range of applications. This paper identifies the potential of salt caverns to be used for large-scale energy storage by analyzing the distribution of wind and solar energy resources in China, taking into account the grid-connected infrastructure of the Chinese power grid and the geographic location of salt mines. The overlapping areas are identified for utilization in compressed air energy storage and hydrogen storage. Through meticulous categorization and analysis of the factors influencing salt cavern underground storage site selection, the AHP-EWM method is introduced to establish an objective hierarchy model for a comprehensive evaluation system of salt cavern underground storage site selection. The comprehensive planning of China's 20 major salt mines is conducted, and the research findings hold significant reference value for facilitating the low-carbon energy transition in China.

An Intelligent Web-based Energy Management System for Distributed Energy Resources Integration and Optimization

The integration of renewable energy sources into power distribution systems frequently presents challenges for conventional energy management systems (EMS) due to the unpredictable and unstable characteristics of such energy sources. As a result, novel and cutting-edge solutions are required. This paper presents an intelligent web-based energy management system (iW-EMS) specifically designed to address the integration and optimization of distributed energy resources, as outlined in the proposed approach. The system incorporates a hybrid novel optimization approach that integrates simulated annealing and cone programming to effectively manage the distribution of energy resources and attain optimal outcomes from the proposed EMS. Additionally, it leverages generative AI services to create optimal scenarios based on historical data and real-time information, ensuring adaptability to the dynamic nature of renewable energy generation, providing a user-friendly and flexible web environment for scenario planning. The proposed framework facilitates seamless communication and collaboration among stakeholders involved in renewable energy integration, while also enabling the incorporation of real-world data sources such as weather forecasts and energy consumption patterns into the planning process.

Determining the minimum required cooling time of profiled assemblies at the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant taking into account the load schedule

Determining the minimum required cooling time of profiled assemblies at the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, taking into account the load schedule, is an analytical process to establish the shortest required period during which profiled assemblies used in the nuclear power plant energy process must remain in active use. This process considers factors related to changes in the electrical load on the station during different periods. Within the scope of this definition, an analysis of the technical characteristics of profiled assemblies is conducted as well as their impact on the overall performance of the nuclear power plant. Key considerations in the cooling time include operational safety, compliance with regulatory requirements, and efficient distribution of energy resources in accordance with the load schedule. The goal of this process is to ensure optimal and safe operation of profiled assemblies, adapted to changes in the electrical grid and aligned with the load schedule, thereby contributing to the more efficient functioning of the nuclear power plant. This study aims to substantiate the minimum required cooling time for profiled nuclear assemblies characterized by an average uranium enrichment of 3.82% and an average burnup of 45.7 Megawatt-days per kilogram of uranium (MWD/kgU). Calculations are performed using the ORIGEN-ARP program, part of the SCALE software package designed for the analysis and modeling of radioactive and nuclear processes. The study considers parameters such as the composition of nuclear assemblies, fuel burnup, modeling using the ORIGEN-ARP program, and safety analysis. The results obtained aim to make a significant contribution to enhancing the efficiency and safety of nuclear energy installations

Spatial distribution and long-term trend of wind energy in the Northwest Pacific Ocean

Abstract: Given the threat of fossil fuel depletion, it is essential to proactively strive for carbon neutrality and promote clean, low-carbon and efficient energy use. This study used ERA5 reanalysis data to assess wind energy resources in the Pacific Northwest region. By analyzing key indicators such as wind power density, effective wind speed occurrence, and energy level occurrence, climate statistics and Empirical Orthogonal Function analysis (EOF) were used to examine the spatial distribution and long-term trend of offshore wind energy resources in the Northwest Pacific. The results suggest that there are abundant wind energy resources in this region, which are beneficial for the development of offshore wind energy. The rich areas are the East China Sea, Taiwan islands and reefs in the South China Sea and east of Japan, with prevailing wind power density (500 ∼ 2500 W/m2) and effective wind speed occurrence (80–90%) and energy level occurrence (60% ∼ 90%). Offshore wind energy resources in the Pacific Northwest are more abundant in fall and winter than in summer. The time coefficient of the first mode shows that the offshore wind energy in the Northwest Pacific has no obvious change trend, and the wind energy resources are relatively stable.

Consumer isoscapes reveal heterogeneous food webs in deep-sea submarine canyons and adjacent slopes

The deep sea is the largest biome on earth, but one of the least studied despite its critical role in global carbon cycling and climate buffering. Deep-sea organisms largely rely on particulate organic matter from the surface ocean for energy – these organisms in turn play critical roles in energy transport, transformation, storage, and sequestration of carbon. Within the deep sea, submarine canyons are amongst the most complex and dynamic environments in our oceans, where varied morphology, powerful currents, and variable nutrient conditions influence the distribution of species and transport of organic material throughout the water column and the seafloor. Significant habitat heterogeneity provides ideal substrates for cold-water corals, making submarine canyons of interest to conservation and management. However, how these and other topographic features in the deep ocean influence energy flow and trophic pathways is poorly known. Thus, submarine canyons serve as model systems to track variability in organic material flux and consequential utilization and assimilation by the benthos. In this study, we used an extensive stable isotope dataset to examine food-web structure in Baltimore and Norfolk submarine canyons and compared them to their adjacent slopes located along the U.S. Atlantic margin. Linear models were used to construct geospatially-explicit consumer isoscapes that predicted variation in carbon and nitrogen isotopes across the canyon-slope seascape, providing a predictive map from which to test hypotheses on the distribution and flow of energy resources, relevant to understanding whole community function. Communities were composed of isotopically diverse feeding groups with photosynthetically-derived organic carbon providing the basal food resource. Canyon communities were distinct from the slope, with canyon consumers significantly 13C-depleted, indicating a greater supply and/or utilization of fresh organic matter compared to the slope. Isoscapes for benthic and suspension feeders were distinct, possibly due to the consumption of different quality organic matter sources (fresh = suspension feeders, old = benthic feeders), each with distinct isotope composition. To our knowledge, our modeled isoscapes represent the first spatially extensive isotopic maps of deep-sea consumers, providing insights into regional-scale variation in stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes for different consumer groups. They provide a baseline for tracking climate-change induced fluctuations in the quality and availability of surface primary production and the consequential impact to benthic communities, which play critical roles in carbon cycling in our world’s oceans.

Equity-oriented power sharing and demand response for enhancing green energy access in mixed communities

The distribution of renewable energy resources (RERs) is currently uneven and is largely influenced by their affordability across various communities. This has led to disparities in access to green energy for different community members. To address these inequalities, this study proposes an equity-oriented power-sharing mechanism that incorporates demand response (DR). The implementation of this approach will increase the availability of green energy for all members of the community in mixed neighborhoods. First, a DR program is introduced for conventional homes (i.e., homes without RERs) to maximize the consumption of RERs by shifting their load to RER excess intervals. Then, a proportionally fair mechanism is introduced to distribute the available resources among community members during times of high excess. The objective is to minimize the grid dependence of community members by reducing their reliance on purchasing power from the grid. To ensure renewable energy homes (i.e., homes with installed RERs) maintain their green energy access, additional constraints are put in place to prioritize their energy needs when compared to the non-sharing case. Three indices (green energy access, grid dependence, and cost reduction) are introduced to evaluate the performance of the proposed method in different cases: the base case, the power-sharing-only case, and the case of power-sharing with the DR. Finally, the impact of different seasons, day types, and user-defined parameters is analyzed. Simulations have shown that the proposed method can significantly increase the green energy access of conventional homes without affecting the access to green energy of renewable energy homes. It also decreases the grid dependence and the electricity cost of the entire community.

Application of the multi-criteria analysis method mairca, spotis, comet for the optimisation of sustainable electricity technology development

The development of sustainable electricity technology is of utmost importance in addressing the increasing energy demand while mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. Fossil fuel-based electricity generation is the primary contributor to air pollution and climate change, necessitating a shift towards renewable energy sources. The efficient production, distribution, and utilization of energy resources, along with ensuring affordable energy access and environmental sustainability, are key policy objectives for any country's energy sector. However, assessing sustainable electricity technologies is a complex task due to the diverse range of evaluation criteria and impacts associated with the practical implementation of these solutions. To overcome this challenge, this study proposes a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) approach to select the optimal solution for the development of sustainable electricity technology. The study employs several reliable methods, including MAIRCA, SPOTIS, COMET, and the CRITIC weighting method, to perform ranking evaluations. Based on this, an evaluation Table of criteria using linguistic variables is constructed. Furthermore, a ranking of methods for developing sustainable electricity technology is established by combining MCDM optimization methods. The results indicate that future energy policies should prioritize sustainable energy technologies, particularly water and solar thermal solutions. These findings have significant implications for development policymakers as the transition towards a sustainable energy system becomes increasingly crucial. In the future, the findings of this research can be further developed on a regional level, enabling the identification of the most appropriate energy technologies for specific regions based on their unique characteristics and requirements

Optimal scheduling of microgrids considering real power losses of grid-connected microgrid systems

Energy conservation, emission reduction and vigorous development of new energy are inevitable trends in the development of the power industry, but factors such as energy storage loss, solar energy loss and line loss in real power situations have led the problem to a complex direction. To address these intricacies, we use a more precise modeling approach of power loss and propose a collaborative optimization method integrating the Deep-Q-Network (DQN) algorithm with the multi-head attention mechanism. This algorithm calculates weighted features of the system’s states to compute the Q-values and priorities for determining the next operational directives of the energy system. Through extensive simulations that replicate real world microgrid (MG) scenarios, our investigation substantiates that the optimization methodology presented here effectively governs the distribution of energy resources. It accomplishes this while accommodating uncertainty-induced losses, ultimately achieving the economic optimization of MG. This research provides a new approach to deal with problems such as energy loss, which is expected to improve economic efficiency and sustainability in areas such as microgrids.

Towards integrating the WEF nexus into food systems thinking

In a case study of the peri-urban Philippi Horticultural Area (PHA) outside Cape Town, South Africa, AMIENA BAYAT and MARK VOLMINK uncover the many issues and racial legacies that negatively impact the security and equitable distribution of water, land and energy resources and suggest how the embryonic water, energy and food or WEF nexus applications, already prevalent in the PHA, could strengthen food production and security.

Resumption Of The Kurdish Card In Iranian-Iraqi Relations: Complex Interplay, Pre-Referendum Realities

The Kurds have been pivotal in Iran's domestic and foreign politics throughout history. In post-Saddam Iraq, helming the delicate balance between Iraq's ethno-confessional groups according to its national security interests posed one of the focuses of Iran's regional policy. The article aims to analyze the peculiarities of Iran's Kurdish policy, the essence of the regional transitions of the Kurdish issue, and their impact on Iran's regional policy. The article argues that the Islamic State's threat and the Syrian crisis strengthened Iran's Kurdish policy to control the Kurdish region of Iraq, including the issue of distribution and transition of energy resources. Tehran vigorously defended the principle of the territorial integrity of Iraq and preserved the Shia force's dominance in the 2017 pre-referendum period. This strategy sought to prevent the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) from evolving into potential foothold operations targeting Iranian assets in the region.

Impact of Renewable Energy Sources on Climate Change

Based on the analytical analysis of the eco-energy resource potentials of renewable energy sources and climate change, the potential for mitigation and costs, the strategy of Turkmenistan on climate change, energy demand and the greenhouse effect, options for reducing emissions, a heterogeneous class of renewable technologies (solar, wind, bioenergy, geothermal and hydropower). Research to date suggests that climate change is not expected to significantly affect the global technical potential for wind energy development, but changes in the regional distribution of wind energy resources can be expected. Climate change is not expected to have a significant impact on the amount or geographic distribution of geothermal or ocean and marine energy resources.

Exploration of the progression and innovation in harnessing wave energy resources and the implementation of cutting-edge wave power generation apparatuses along China's coastal regions

In the current international environment, energy is in short supply and environmental pollution is increasingly serious. The development of marine resources is favored by many countries and regions because of its environmental protection and renewable nature. Among them, wave energy is an extremely important kind of marine energy, which is now receiving the world's attention step by step and has achieved some research results. This paper analyzes the current enrichment and distribution of wave energy resources in China's sea areas, and studies the future development trend of wave energy in China on this basis. Based on the above experimental data analysis, this paper introduces the wave energy power generation devices that have completed sea trials in China in recent years, and finally looks forward to the future development direction and trend of wave energy, and points out the current shortcomings and improvement methods of wave energy, which has a certain degree of practical application value.