Initial Capital Requirements Research Articles

Design, modeling, and simulation of a PV/diesel/battery hybrid energy system for an off-grid hospital in Ethiopia

In the pursuit of sustainable energy solutions, off-grid hybrid systems have emerged as a promising avenue, catering to the electrification needs of rural areas. These systems encompass a multifaceted approach, addressing concerns of reliability, sustainability, and environmental preservation. Leveraging advanced tools such as HOMER modeling, the design and simulation of hybrid off-grid systems, alongside the evaluation of existing diesel generator (DG) power supply, have become imperative. This paper embarks on a comprehensive exploration with the overarching objective of designing, modeling, and simulating an off-grid power system tailored for the Shinshicho Primary Hospital. Nestled in the heart of Shinshicho Town within the Kembata Tembaro Zone of Ethiopia, this healthcare facility stands as a focal point for community well-being. The proposed hybrid system integrates solar PV, diesel generators, and battery storage, offering a robust and resilient energy solution. Throughout the optimization process, a primary load demand of 276 kgwatt-hours per day and a peak load of 40 kW were pivotal considerations. The financial cost of this hybrid system results in an initial capital requirement of $160,500, complemented by operational and maintenance costs amounting to $14,824. Over the projected 20-year lifespan, the total net present cost (NPC) is estimated at $216,155. With these economic parameters in mind, the cost-effectiveness of the selected hybrid system is underscored by a cost of energy (CEO) of 0.187 dollars per kilowatt-hour. This metric not only highlights the economic viability of the proposed solution but also positions it as a sustainable and financially prudent choice for meeting the energy needs of Shinshicho Primary Hospital.

Factors determining the economic performance of Litopeneaus vannamei (whiteleg shrimp), aquaculture in Tamil Nadu, India

Shrimp aquaculture has gained significant attention to meet the animal protein need of the growing world population and is widely cultured in semi-intensive methods around the world including India. Here, we examined the growth performance and enterprise budget of shrimp farming using field-level survey data from 194 farms in Tamil Nadu for successive two crops of a year. An estimated shrimp production was 5880 kg/ha/crop from an average pond size of 2.93 ha and stocking density of 39 numbers m−2 for a culture period of 92 days. Similarly, in terms of feed, a total of 9117 kg/ha/crop was found to be used with an average food conversion ratio of 1.55 kg. An initial capital investment requirement of USD $ 22062.11 was observed. The fixed cost of USD $ 2984.21 and variable cost of USD $ 40685.13 were recorded in the production process of shrimp. The harvested shrimp quantity (5880 kg/ha/crop) generated gross revenue of USD $ 50405.56 ha/yr. The calculated net revenue for the shrimp farms of Tamil Nadu was USD $ 6736.22. The Cobb–Douglas production function results showed that water salinity, culture days, stocking density, quantity of feed used, shrimp harvest size, harvest count, daily weight gain, specific growth rate and survival rate was positively influencing the economic performance of the shrimp but not statistically significant. Whereas, the food conversion ratio statistically negatively influenced the economic performance of shrimp production in Tamil Nadu.

Factors Affecting Success of Entrepreneurship in Agribusinesses: Evidence from the City of Mashhad, Iran

Entrepreneurship and innovation are the fuel of economic growth. Understanding the motivational factors that lead to the success of entrepreneurs in agribusiness can be useful in affecting the degree of successful investment that accelerates development and economic growth in the agriculture sector. In this study, we investigated the factors affecting the success of entrepreneurs in the agribusiness sector in Mashhad, Iran, using a two-stage Heckman approach. Factors affecting the success or failure of agribusiness entrepreneurship have received less attention in the literature. In this study, the aim was to determine the factors affecting agricultural entrepreneurship success and entrepreneurs’ profits. We generated the data for this study by designing a questionnaire and conducting a survey of active entrepreneurs in Mashhad in 2020. The results showed that entrepreneurship experience, risk-taking behavior, interest rates, and initial capital have a significant impact on the probability of entrepreneurship success and entrepreneur’s profits. Policies that could improve the skills of entrepreneurs, provision of initial capital requirements, and financial market efficiency had an effective role in increasing entrepreneurship and innovation in the agribusiness sector. Entrepreneurs in the field of agriculture could consider these factors to have better choices while entering or continuing with their agribusinesses. Our recommendation to policymakers and agribusiness leaders is to establish a friendlier and more stable environment for entrepreneurship and employ policies that help reduce the risk of entrepreneurs’ initial investment returns.

Assessment of Barriers and Strategies for the Enhancement of Off-Site Construction in India: An ISM Approach

The tremendous urbanization pace of India calls for higher efficiency in housing development, currently typified by low productivity and poor sustainability performance. Although off-site construction (OSC) is a method of widely acknowledged efficiency, its current uptake in India is very low, and the factors hindering its wider adaptation have not been comprehensively researched. This paper employs interviews with experts, a questionnaire survey and the interpretive structural modelling (ISM) technique to achieve the following objectives: first, to reveal which factors are perceived as top barriers for OSC implementation in India; second, to develop a hierarchical model presenting the causality between these factors; and third, to propose the initiatives required for barriers with high impact on other barriers to be most efficiently tackled. The survey findings show that the barriers perceived as most important from the professionals’ point of view are design inflexibility, difficulties in storage and transportation, supply chain weaknesses, initial capital requirements and lack of skills. The ISM reveals, though, that the underlying causes for these barriers lie with factors such as public procurement regulations and the fragmentation of the sector. Therefore, the latter are the barriers that need to be targeted in priority, as per the suggested strategies.

Pilot demonstration of clean technology for landfill gas recovery in India – A case study

Landfills are the second fastest growing source of methane emissions in India. The potential for landfill gas (LFG) recovery from thousands of landfills in India has yet to be seasonally experimented. The current research assesses the energy recovery potential of a landfill site located in the capital city of India, in order to demonstrate the potential of clean technology implementation in solid waste sector. Pump test and pilot plant studies were performed to evaluate the same. Seasonal monitoring of LFG was done to determine the trends of LFG flow and composition. Monitored concentration under dynamic condition was observed to lie within a range of 19 to 50% v/v for CH4, 8 to 22% v/v for CO2 and 1 to 13% v/v for O2. Applied suction pressure varied from -4.1 to -25.4 mbar. Monitoring results were found to indicate that LFG recovery maximized at high suction levels. Maximum LFG flow was 22 m3/h and minimum LFG flow was 8 m3/h. Multiple regression models were developed based on the experimental studies. This work makes for a pioneering contribution in demonstrating the implementation of clean technology for LFG recovery in India. The developed models using pilot plant studies will be a critical resource for future feasibility studies regrading LFG to energy projects, given the high initial capital investment requirements and risks associated to these projects.

Drivers and barriers to the deployment of pumped hydro energy storage applications: Systematic literature review

Storage technology is recognized as a critical enabler of a reliable future renewable energy network. There is growing acknowledgement of the potential viability of pumped hydro energy storage solutions, despite multiple barriers for large-scale installations. A plethora of articles have been published covering the drivers for and barriers to the widespread diffusion of pumped hydro energy storage, but the literature has yet to coherently categorise and rate the various reported drivers and barriers. Therefore, a systematic literature review of studies published between 2000 and 2020 was conducted using meta-analysis guidelines to analyse, synthesize and consolidate findings covering both the techno-environmental and socio-economic drivers for, and barriers to, the development of pumped hydro energy storage. The study ranked the significance of reported drivers and barriers as well as the lessons learned for both developed and developing countries. The top-ranked techno-environmental driving factor was grid resilience (i.e., grid balancing, energy time-shifting, etc.) and the top-ranked socio-economic driver was revenue generation and rural development (i.e., job and businesses opportunities, infrastructural development, etc.). In terms of barriers, the top ranked techno-environmental barrier was as the lack of good infrastructure (i.e., roads, transmission lines, etc.) near potential sites, and top ranked socio-economic barrier was securing the initial and ongoing capital requirements for a less understand investment category. Overall, this study synthesises and categorises the drivers and barriers to the development of pumped hydro energy storage. Study findings will be useful to both researchers and practitioners seeking to better direct resources and efforts to foster the development of pumped hydro energy in the future. • Reviewed studies between 2000-2020 to determine the PHES drivers and barriers. • Key drivers to PHES deployment are energy storage, revenue and renewables integration. • Key barriers to PHES development are high capital cost and absence of power lines. • Growing interest in closed-loop systems compared to open loop systems. • Feasibility studies using GIS-MCDM were the most reported method in studies.

Determinant Factors of Crowdfunding Success and Its Influence on SMEs in West African Countries

The success rate of crowdfunding has boosted SME growth in developed countries, while the developing nations have not taken advantage of it. This study formulated five hypotheses from some determinants of crowdfunding success, and the outcome demonstrated that all the constructs were supported. The results provided R2values of the constructs with repercussions on the research proposed model signifying 84.1% variance of crowdfunding success rate for SMEs in the West Africa Region. Using the Important-Performance Matrix Analysis to examine further revealed crowdfunding platform availability had the highest total effect value of 0.890. However, SMEs’ initial capital requirement and duration involved in raising the required funds also affect crowdfunding success rate in terms of performance with an index value of 72.692.

Evaluation of equity-linked products in the presence of policyholder surrender option using risk-control strategies

AbstractThroughout the past couple of decades, the surge in the sale of equity-linked products has led to many discussions on the evaluation and risk management of surrender options embedded in these products. However, most studies treat such options as American/Bermudian style options. In this article, a different approach is presented where only a portion of the policyholders react optimally due to the belief that not all policyholders are rational. Through this method, a probability of surrender is obtained based on the option moneyness and the product is partially hedged using local risk-control strategies. This partial hedging approach is versatile since few assumptions are required for the financial framework. To compare the different surrender assumptions, the initial capital requirement for an equity-linked product is obtained under a regime-switching equity model. Numerical examples illustrate the dynamics and efficiency of this hedging approach.

Awareness On Application Of Artificial Intelligence In Medicine Among Dental Students - A Survey

Aim and introduction Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the branches of computer science, which is capable of analyzing complex medical data. This technology is helpful in diagnosing disease, treatment, and predicting outcomes in many clinical scenarios. Artificial intelligence is nothing but a natural language processor and does repetitive jobs in a timely manner. Some disadvantages of AI technology are high initial capital requirement, potential for increased unemployment, which shows that this technology has the potential to replace physicians in future. The main aim of this survey is to assess the awareness on application of artificial intelligence in medicine among dental students. Materials and Method Self-administrated questionnaire was designed based on awareness. The questionnaire was distributed through an online Google forms link. The study population included dental students belonging to the 18 – 26 age group. Method of representation of each output variable was in pie charts and bar graphs. The statistics done using SPSS software, chi square test was done to check the association and a p value of 0.05 was said to be statistically significant. This survey has been completed in the month of may 2020. Result 56% of the participants were aware that artificial intelligence is the analysis of medical data without direct human input. From the survey it was evident that 57% of the participants feel that with the help of AI clinical decision and diagnosis can be revolutionized and also found that both male and female students were equally aware of the importance of application of artificial intelligence in medicine(p-value>0.05). Conclusion This study concludes that about 59% of the study participants were aware that Artificial Intelligence technology in medicine is beneficial to doctors and also found that both male and female students were equally aware of artificial intelligence. Since AI technology has the potential to develop into an innovative platform which is capable of analyzing more complex medical data, more awareness has to be created for better understanding and analysis of this technology.

Pemberdayaan Masyarakat Menuju Desa Tangguh Bencana di Area Terdampak Bencana Lumpur Lapindo, Sidoarjo

The economy is one of the important factors that influence the condition of vulnerability of community after a disaster. This study aims to determine the factors that are of interest to the community in starting a business by SWOT analysis of community empowerment programs in areas impacted by the Lapindo mudflow disaster, Sidoarjo, and the implementation of programs towards disaster resilient villages. The method used is a combination of quantitative and qualitative with questionnaires and in-depth interviews. The results showed that people's awareness of the importance of family savings as a disaster preparedness increased significantly even though some respondents experienced a decrease in income. The results of the SWOT analysis of the training alternatives offered to the community indicate that the factors of ease of obtaining raw materials, small initial capital requirements, mastery of the production process and market access of the products produced will attract the interest of the community to run a business. The participation of village communities in the study areas to help reduce the impact of disaster risks related to the environment around the settlements, can be encouraged by forming disaster resilient villages managed by the community themselves with the full support of the government.
 Keywords: Vulnerability, community empowerment, disaster resilient villages

Profitability of poultry production among school leavers in Anaocha Local Government area (LGA) of Anambra State, Nigeria

The study was undertaken to investigate the profitability of poultry production in Anaocha Local Government Area of Anambra State, Nigeria. Ten poultry farmers were randomly. drawn from each of the ten autonomous communities that make up the local Government Area to give a sample size of one hundred. Structured questionnaire were employed to elicit information from the respondents. Statistical analysis was accomplished by means of frequency distribution, percentages, Likert rating scale and budget analysis technique. Findings of the study indicated that the major source of fund for poultry production among young keepers was personal savings and grants from relatives (71.2%). It was also revealed that young keepers embarked on the project because of its profitability (X's = 4.2), minimal initial capital requirement (Xs = 3.75) and because it can be practiced on a small scale (Xs = 3.5). Result of analysis also indicated that an average young poultry keeper earned a net income of about forty thousand and thirty naira (N40,030) in 1998. However, poultry production has some production constraints which include high cost of feed (Xs = 4.10), difficulty in securing loan for expansion (Xs = 3.21) and clean water supply (Xs = 3.10). Aforementioned constraints notwithstanding, poultry have offered gainful employment opportunities to young persons in the study area.

Nonlinear Destructive Interaction between Wind and Wave Loads Acting on the Substructure of the Offshore Wind Energy Converter: A Numerical Study

Even though the offshore wind industry’s growth potential is immense, the offshore wind industry is still suffering from problems, such as the large initial capital requirements. Many factors are involved, and among these, the extra costs incurred by the conservative design of offshore wind energy converters can be quickly addressed at the design stage by accounting for the nonlinear destructive interaction between wind and wave loads. Even when waves approach offshore wind energy converters collinearly with the wind, waves and wind do not always make the offshore wind energy converter’s substructure deformed. These environmental loads can intermittently exert a force of resistance against deformation due to the nonlinear destructive interaction between wind and wave loads. Hence, the nonlinear destructive interaction between wave and wind loads deserves much more attention. Otherwise, a very conservative design of offshore wind energy converters will hamper the offshore wind energy industry’s development, which is already suffering from enormous initial capital expenditures. In this rationale, this study numerically simulates a 5 MW offshore wind energy converter’s structural behavior subject to wind and random waves using the dynamic structural model developed to examine the nonlinear destructive interaction between wind and wave loads. Numerical results show that the randomly fluctuating water surface as the wind blows would restrict the offshore wind energy converter’s substructure’s deflection. Nonuniform growth of the atmospheric boundary layer due to the wavy motions at the water surface as the wind blows results in a series of hairpin vortices, which lead to the development of a large eddy out of hairpin vortices swirling in the direction opposite to the incoming wind near the atmospheric boundary layer. As a result, the vertical profile of the longitudinal wind velocity is modified; the subsequent energy loss drastically weakens the wind velocity, which consequently leads to the smaller deflection of the substructure of the offshore wind energy converter by 50% when compared with that in the case of wind with gusts over a calm sea.

A review of public water infrastructure financing in the United States

AbstractThe delivery of clean drinking water and the treatment of wastewater are critical public services, and in the United States, they are provided by a complex system of federal, state, and local governments. The process of water treatment and delivery requires significant investment in infrastructure both for initial capital requirements as well as the on‐going maintenance and operating costs. The quality of drinking water in the United States is, on average, relatively high, but according to the American Water Works Association, an estimated $1 trillion is necessary to maintain and expand service to meet demands over the next 25 years. The water infrastructure needs in the United States require both immediate attention and long‐term solutions, and the dollar cost is climbing rapidly. It remains unclear, however, where these funds will come from and how they will be allocated. The goal of this paper is to review the portfolio of financing options that exist for public entities responsible for the construction and maintenance of water infrastructure in the United States, including the municipal bond market, state revolving loan funds, federal grant and loan programs, public–private partnerships, and recent financing innovations.This article is categorized under: Engineering Water > Water, Health, and Sanitation Human Water > Value of Water Human Water > Water Governance

A Review of Digital Brand Positioning Strategies of Internet Entrepreneurship in the Context of Virtual Organizations: Facebook, Instagram and Youtube Samples

In the new century, the rapid transfer of information and the lack of time and physical limits by increasing the importance of information technologies, the organizations have changed the way of doing business. In this context, the field of activity where the virtual organizations formed by the expert organizations coming together and working on the internet is the trade done over the internet. The entrepreneur who wants to create differences can choose internet entrepreneurship for reasons such as low initial capital requirement, low operating expenses and access to broad markets.Virtual organizations are looking for new value-added strategies for internet entrepreneurial activities. Influenced by this change, internet entrepreneurs had to differentiate their brand positioning strategies in order to benefit from opportunities. The aim of this paper is to explain the entrepreneurship model which is new entrepreneurship model and to explain the digital brand positioning strategies of virtual organizations by giving examples from youtube, instagram and facebook. It is expected that the theoretical approach of this study will be supported with subsequent field studies and will give a direction to the researches.

Robust hedging in incomplete markets

AbstractWe considered a pension fund that needs to hedge uncertain long-term liabilities. We modeled the pension fund as a robust investor facing an incomplete market and fearing model uncertainty for the evolution of its liabilities. The robust agent is assumed to minimize the shortfall between the assets and liabilities under an endogenous worst-case scenario by means of solving a min–max robust optimization problem. When the funding ratio is low, robustness reduces the demand for risky assets. However, cherishing the hope of covering the liabilities, a substantial risk exposure is still optimal. A longer investment horizon or a higher funding ratio weakens the investor's fear of model misspecification. If the expected equity return is overestimated, the initial capital requirement for hedging can be decreased by following the robust strategy.

PREFERENSI PETANI DALAM PENJUALAN GABAH PASCA PANEN DI DESA SUMUR MATI KECAMATAN SUMBERASIH KABUPATEN PROBOLINGGO

This research was conducted to describe farmer preference in post-harvest grain sales and to know the working relationship of farmers with Bulog, middlemen and market kiosk traders. The type of this research is descriptive with qualitative approach. The method of determining the location of research using the method of purposive area is in the Sumur Mati Village Sumberasih District Probolinggo. The main informants in this study were 12 rice farmers, with the criteria of ever selling grain more than 5 times. While the additional informants in this study are Bulog Officials, Brokers, and Kiosk Traders. Data collection methods used consisted of methods: interviews, observation, and documents. Data analysis used is descriptive analysis which include data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion (verification). The results showed that Farmers' preferences in the Sumur Village died based on experience gained and trust decreased. Farmers in Sumur Mati Village sell grain to Bulog, middlemen, and market stall traders. Bulog's relationship with farmers is a partnership. The partnership between Bulog and the farmers did not last long because the farmers felt the loss. The relationship between middlemen and farmers is intertwined in a patron-client bond. A middleman as a patron takes a strategic role in this client's patron relationship by lending money to farmers or clients to meet initial capital requirements. While the relationship between market stall traders with farmers is the relationship between agents and actors as in the theory of Giddens structure. Where the relationship between buying and selling kiosk vendors with farmers in this study also occurs continuously and in it there are social practices. Farmers and traders established contractual relationship

The effects of political and legal constraints on expropriation in natural resource and manufacturing sectors

Using panel data for up to 86 developing countries from 1960–2006, this paper investigates the effects of political and legal constraints on the tendency of host governments to expropriate in the natural resource and manufacturing sectors. Consistent with existing research, we find that host governments are more inclined to expropriate in the natural resource sector than they are in the manufacturing sector and that leftist governments are more apt to expropriate than rightist governments. However, we also find that political and legal constraints on host governments lessen the risk of expropriation, but do so with greater force as to the natural resource sector than for the manufacturing sector, and with larger effect as to leftist governments than rightist governments. The results suggest that leftist governments are especially inclined to expropriate in the resource sector unless constrained by political and legal factors from doing so and, because of lower initial capital requirements and increased mobility of assets, all governments, left and right, have less reason to expropriate in the manufacturing sector and therefore are more likely to resist expropriating even in the absence of political and legal constraints.

Feasibility studies on grape production and business plan development in Axum, Ethiopia

Feasibility Studies on Grape Production and Business Plan Development in Axum, Ethiopia Ecological and socio economic feasibility studies were conducted for establishment of a vineyard in Aksum Maykerah by Aksum University. Sustainable vineyard proper management is a paramount important in decision making ecologically and many socio economically over the long productive seasons of the vine grapes. Determining the vineyard design, including the location, land slope, water accessibility, the type of irrigation system, soil and nutrient status and the type agronomic management practices should be made prior to farm establishment. There would be a requirement of regular assessments of production costs and advantages of major agronomic practices such as soil tests and amendments, fertilizer recommendations, vine-training, pruning, pest and disease management, land cultivation, gardening, seasonal management and irrigation scheduling. Satisfactory analysis of farm determining factors favorable for economic operation would indicate profitably of a farm. Farms economic feasibility analysis essentially entails identifying major factors that directly impacts the enterprise’s market potential, resource constraints, and the production processes. However, the ultimate profit-determining factor is the whole farm management practice. Feasibility studies help to avoid costs associated with a wrong decision. Hence they will designate whether or not a projected business plan could succeed. Feasibility studies on a farm can be carried out any time as managers consider any alteration to the farms current operation. There is a considerable initial capital investment requirement for the establishment of this vineyard as a communal development project and it takes five to six years to recover the costs associated with the establishment and get a first profit. The vineyard would be operated as a communal business enterprise via crucial considerations on details in both the production and financial management for a successful and sustainable production and profitability....

Does OTC Derivatives Reform Incentivize Central Clearing?

The reform program for the over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives market launched by the G-20 nations in 2009 seeks to reduce systemic risk from OTC derivatives. The reforms require that standardized OTC derivatives be cleared through central counterparties (CCPs), and they set higher capital and margin requirements for non-centrally cleared derivatives. Our objective is to gauge whether the higher capital and margin requirements adopted for bilateral contracts create a cost incentive in favor of central clearing, as intended. We introduce a model of OTC clearing to compare the total capital and collateral costs when banks transact fully bilaterally versus the capital and collateral costs when banks clear fully through CCPs. Our model and its calibration scheme are designed to use data collected by the Federal Reserve System on OTC derivatives at large bank holding companies. We find that the main factors driving the cost comparison are (i) the netting benefits achieved through bilateral and central clearing; (ii) the margin period of risk used to set initial margin and capital requirements; and (iii) the level of CCP guarantee fund requirements. Our results show that the cost comparison does not necessarily favor central clearing and, when it does, the incentive may be driven by questionable differences in CCPs’ default waterfall resources. We also discuss the broader implications of these tradeoffs for OTC derivatives reform.

Does OTC Derivatives Reform Incentivize Central Clearing?

The reform program for the over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives market launched by the G-20 nations in 2009 seeks to reduce systemic risk from OTC derivatives. The reforms require that standardized OTC derivatives be cleared through central counterparties (CCPs), and they set higher capital and margin requirements for non-centrally cleared derivatives. Our objective is to gauge whether the higher capital and margin requirements adopted for bilateral contracts create a cost incentive in favor of central clearing, as intended. We introduce a model of OTC clearing to compare the total capital and collateral costs when banks transact fully bilaterally versus the capital and collateral costs when banks clear fully through CCPs. Our model and its calibration scheme are designed to use data collected by the Federal Reserve System on OTC derivatives at large bank holding companies. We find that the main factors driving the cost comparison are (i) the netting benefits achieved through bilateral and central clearing; (ii) the margin period of risk used to set initial margin and capital requirements; and (iii) the level of CCP guarantee fund requirements. Our results show that the cost comparison does not necessarily favor central clearing and, when it does, the incentive may be driven by questionable differences in CCPs’ default waterfall resources. We also discuss the broader implications of these tradeoffs for OTC derivatives reform.