Search Results (1,607)

The main challenge of hydrogen electrolysis lies in the high cost of hydrogen production. Achieving a decarbonized energy sector requires substantial investment to shift from carbon-intensive technologies to more sustainable alternatives. However, investment decisions in this context remain complex and uncertain. Currently, green hydrogen projects account for more than 500 initiatives worldwide and are expected to expand rapidly in the coming years. Evidence from feasibility studies suggests that green hydrogen produced from renewable energy is already technically viable and is approaching economic competitiveness. The current emphasis is on large-scale deployment and learning-by-doing processes to reduce electrolyzer costs and improve supply chain efficiency. This transition requires appropriate funding mechanisms, often involving significant public sector participation alongside private investment. This study analyzes the financing structures of green hydrogen projects in Germany, Australia, and Brazil using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to identify the most relevant combinations of technical, economic, and financial variables. Unlike previous studies that address technical, economic, and financial dimensions in isolation, this study offers an integrated, empirically grounded analysis at the project level, combining cross-country comparison with a multivariate approach. The results indicate that project characteristics are strongly associated with capital intensity and financing structures, while cost variables such as levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) play a secondary role in explaining variation across projects. These findings suggest that financing arrangements—particularly those involving public support mechanisms—are closely associated with project configuration in this emerging sector. However, these results should be interpreted as patterns of statistical association rather than evidence of causal relationships. Overall, the analysis highlights the importance of coordinated financing strategies in supporting the development of green hydrogen and its potential contribution to emissions reduction in line with the Paris Agreement and the transition toward climate neutrality. Full article

Digital inclusive finance has grown rapidly in China in recent years, yet its effect on agricultural economic resilience remains debated. This study investigates the effect of digital inclusive finance on agricultural economic resilience, focusing on the mediating role of rural industry integration. Using annual panel data covering 29 Chinese provinces from 2011 to 2021, we employ two-way fixed-effect panel regressions, mediation analysis, threshold analysis, instrumental variable estimation, and spatial econometric models. The results show that digital inclusive finance has a significant negative effect on agricultural economic resilience, and this finding is robust across alternative specifications and instrumental variable estimations. Rural industry integration serves as an important transmission channel, with the indirect effect accounting for approximately one-third of the total effect. The two stages of this mediation pathway are moderated by distinct threshold variables: rural digital infrastructure positively moderates the effect of digital inclusive finance on rural industry integration, while government fiscal support negatively moderates the effect of rural industry integration on agricultural economic resilience. The spatial analysis further reveals that digital inclusive finance generates negative spatial spillovers onto neighboring provinces. Based on these findings, we suggest that the government continue to invest in rural digital infrastructure, guide digital finance toward rural industry integration in underdeveloped regions, and maintain fiscal support at an appropriate level to preserve the vitality of integrated industries. Full article

This study examines the relationship between managerial overconfidence and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance through firm-level financial policy channels in an emerging-market context. Using panel data from non-financial firms listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange during 2015–2024, this study adopts a multidimensional channel-based perspective in which managerial overconfidence is indirectly reflected through financing, liquidity, and investment decisions. Fixed-effects estimation with Driscoll–Kraay standard errors is employed as the baseline approach and complemented by lagged specifications, system GMM estimation, alternative measurements, and quantile regressions to assess robustness. The findings suggest that managerial overconfidence does not exert a direct and uniform influence on ESG performance but operates indirectly through heterogeneous financial policy behavior. The financing channel provides weak and unstable evidence, whereas the liquidity channel shows a relatively stronger positive association with ESG performance. The investment channel appears most sensitive to measurement and model specification, indicating that different operationalizations may capture distinct dimensions of managerial overconfidence. This study contributes to the behavioral corporate finance and ESG literature by showing that managerial overconfidence influences sustainability outcomes indirectly through heterogeneous financial policy mechanisms in an emerging market setting while highlighting the importance of temporal dynamics, endogeneity, and measurement sensitivity. Full article

The evaluation of intervention strategies for the existing building stock, within the context of energy transition and increasing attention being given to sustainability, requires approaches capable of systematically integrating economic and environmental dimensions over the entire building life cycle. From this perspective, the present study develops and applies an integrated Life Cycle Costing (LCC) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) model aimed at comparing two alternative intervention strategies for traditional residential buildings: conservative retrofit of the existing structure and demolition with reconstruction according to Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) criteria. The methodological framework, compliant with ISO 15686-5 and based on a simplified LCA-oriented approach inspired by EN 15978 principles, is applied to a representative case study of Swedish vernacular wooden architecture (röd stuga) located in the municipality of Falun. The assessments are carried out over 50- and 100-year time horizons, adopting Net Present Value (NPV) as the primary economic indicator and Global Warming Potential over 100 years (GWP100) and Cumulative Energy Demand (CED) as environmental indicators. The results show that the NZEB scenario, despite higher initial investment costs, achieves a significant reduction in life-cycle environmental impacts, with a decrease of approximately 20–25% in terms of GWP100 and about 45–50% in terms of CED compared to the retrofit scenario. The analysis also highlights a differentiated behavior of environmental indicators—while operational energy use remains dominant in cumulative energy demand, embodied impacts become increasingly significant in the GWP balance, particularly in high-performance scenarios. From an economic perspective, conservative retrofit results in lower global costs over the considered time horizons, although the economic gap tends to narrow in the long term. The integrated LCC–environmental assessment approach highlights the economic–environmental trade-offs and provides a replicable decision-support framework for sustainable regeneration policies targeting the existing residential building stock. Full article

Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) are increasingly used in warehouse intralogistics to improve material flow, flexibility, productivity, and operational continuity. However, selecting an appropriate AMR is no longer limited to mechanical performance or acquisition cost, since modern warehouse robots operate as networked cyber-physical systems that must interact with enterprise software, fleet management platforms, communication infrastructures, and cybersecurity mechanisms. This study proposes an integrated Pythagorean fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework for evaluating AMR alternatives in warehouse operations by jointly considering economic, technical, physical, software-related, integration-oriented, and security-related criteria. Expert judgments obtained from eight specialists, including four academics and four private-sector professionals, were modeled using Pythagorean fuzzy numbers to capture uncertainty and hesitation in linguistic assessments. The Pythagorean Fuzzy Indifference Threshold-Based Attribute Ratio Analysis (PF-ITARA) method was employed to determine criterion weights based on threshold-sensitive discrimination among alternatives, while Pythagorean Fuzzy VIšekriterijumsko KOmpromisno Rangiranje (PF-VIKOR) was used to rank four AMR alternatives according to a compromise solution logic. The results show that investment cost, maneuverability, total cost of ownership, integration and validation requirements, and ease of programming and commissioning are the most influential criteria. Cybersecurity-related criteria, particularly data confidentiality, system integrity, monitoring and incident response readiness, authentication control, and role-based access control, also received notable importance levels. Among the evaluated alternatives, MiR250 achieved the best overall performance and emerged as the most suitable compromise solution, followed by OMRON LD-250, HIKROBOT Forklift AGV, and KUKA KMP 600-S diffDrive. The proposed framework provides a transparent and practically applicable decision-support tool for AMR procurement by integrating operational performance, digital interoperability, and cybersecurity readiness into a unified evaluation structure. Full article

The cement industry is one of the most energy- and emission-intensive sectors and plays a crucial role in achieving climate neutrality and sustainability objectives. This study examines waste management practices in cement production within the framework of the circular economy and low-carbon transition, with particular emphasis on Polish cement plants operating under EU environmental regulations. Particular attention is given to the use of waste as alternative fuels and secondary raw materials, as well as to the economic and environmental implications of EU climate policy instruments. The research methodology includes an analysis of key emission sources such as clinker production, fuel combustion, and raw material transport and an evaluation of technological and organizational measures aimed at improving energy efficiency and reducing emissions. The empirical analysis is based primarily on operational observations from selected Polish cement plants operating under EU ETS conditions and combines plant-level operational evidence with comparative sectoral data and scenario-based techno-economic assessments related to selected low-carbon technologies. The results suggest that increasing the use of waste-derived fuels and materials may contribute to emission reduction, lower reliance on non-renewable resources, and improved circularity in cement production systems operating under advanced regulatory conditions. Furthermore, the findings highlight the potential for synergies between environmental performance and economic competitiveness. The study underscores the importance of coherent regulatory frameworks and continued investment in low-emission and circular technologies to ensure the long-term sustainability and viability of the cement industry. Full article

This study critically examines residential tourism in Isla Cortés within the context of the real estate boom and the growing sustainability challenges facing coastal regions. Driven by global mobility, investment flows, and lifestyle migration, residential tourism is reshaping coastlines through intensive urban expansion. The analysis highlights the socio-environmental consequences of this model, including habitat fragmentation, mangrove loss, increasing pressure on water resources, and the gradual privatization of coastal areas. Using a qualitative research design that combines literature review, comparative case analysis, and territorial assessment, the study identifies structural similarities between Isla Cortés and other coastal tourism enclaves while emphasizing locally specific processes shaped by Mexico’s political economy and regulatory context. Findings suggest the structurally unsustainable character of this development pathway. Although residential tourism has stimulated short-term economic growth, it has also intensified socio-spatial segregation, commodified coastal commons, and generated long-term ecological and social vulnerabilities. The study challenges dominant narratives that portray residential tourism as inherently sustainable and instead draws on ecological reflexivity and socio-ecological systems perspectives to outline alternative planning pathways. It underscores the need for stronger regulatory frameworks, nature-based solutions, participatory governance, and regenerative planning strategies capable of aligning economic activity with ecological integrity and social inclusion in coastal territories. Full article

While there is some agreement on estimating construction cost contingency for “known unknowns,” there is little consensus on estimating management reserves for “unknown unknowns.” Definitions of risk and uncertainty also differ between the economics and finance literature and the cost engineering literature. This paper examines how cost engineering guidance on estimating management reserves is applied in government-sponsored project cost estimates. This lack of consensus is evident in a specific program: the management, treatment, and disposal of 212,000 cubic meters of mixed radioactive and hazardous chemical waste generated by plutonium production at the Hanford Nuclear Site. Over $30 billion has been invested in treatment facilities, vitrification plants, and laboratories analyzing gases, liquids, sludges, and salt cake from 177 aging storage tanks. The remaining construction and operating costs are highly uncertain, with estimates ranging from $300 billion to $640 billion. Analyses of alternatives for constructing Hanford waste treatment facilities assume 15% contingencies and 40% management reserves. A method is presented to compute the implicit moments of Extreme Value distributions of cost estimates for different options, helping determine whether one alternative’s cost estimate stochastically dominates others. Adopting industry definitions of contingency and management reserves by federal government agencies could improve construction cost estimation in government-financed programs. Full article

This study evaluates the economic feasibility of retrofitting split-type air-conditioning systems in a university administrative building in a hot-humid tropical climate in Colombia, addressing the need for cost-effective energy-efficiency strategies in such contexts. A measurement-calibrated building energy model was developed using DesignBuilder and EnergyPlus, and a baseline scenario with low-efficiency fixed-speed split units was compared against three retrofit scenarios with higher-efficiency units defined by market-available COP levels. A 10-year life-cycle cost (LCC) analysis was conducted using a discounted cash flow approach, incorporating investment costs, operation and maintenance expenses, electricity tariff escalation, and equipment performance degradation, complemented by a parametric sensitivity analysis. The results show that air-conditioning systems account for the majority of total building electricity consumption, and that retrofit scenarios reduce cooling energy use by approximately 45–53% relative to the baseline. All retrofit options yield lower life-cycle costs despite higher initial investments, achieving total LCC reductions of up to 30%. Sensitivity analysis indicates that the economic ranking of alternatives remains stable under significant variations in electricity prices. Overall, the proposed framework provides a robust and transferable approach for assessing HVAC retrofit strategies, supporting informed decision-making for energy and cost optimization in buildings located in tropical climates. Full article

This article addresses the operational challenges facing maritime vessels in the context of decarbonization, with a focus on developing staged recommendations for the integration of power limitation systems and alternative fuels. The systematisation of existing decarbonization problems in the maritime sector and the establishment of their interrelationships constitute the framework for developing coherent decarbonization strategies for the industry. The analysis of alternative fuels identifies the key factors that drive fuel selection in practice. The analysis of contemporary energy consumption regulation technologies has shown that power limitation systems operating through controllable pitch propellers (CPP), integrated with electronic remote-control systems, provide the highest flexibility in managing propulsion characteristics without altering engine rotational speed. The comparative analysis of the engine power limitation (EPL) and shaft power limitation (SHaPoLi) systems has confirmed that SHaPoLi offers a greater potential for reducing fuel consumption and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions; however, it comes at higher capital expenditure at the implementation stage. Pairing power limitation with alternative fuels shows that deep cuts in the sector’s carbon footprint are within reach. The economic analysis of power limitation system deployment has revealed the potential for achieving considerable operational cost savings, with a balanced consideration of capital investments and operational benefits. Future research should target the optimisation of EPL and SHaPoLi systems and their integration with other energy-saving technologies. Transitioning to alternative fuels in parallel offers the greatest cumulative reduction in the sector’s carbon footprint. Full article

This article provides a critical analysis of the term “entheogen” as a name for certain psychoactive drugs, arguing that it functions more as a theological construct than a neutral designation. The article analyzes how entheogenic discourses present claims about the historicity of their use, their supposed spiritual or religious meaning, and their ultimate significance for individual and social transformation as descriptive, when they are, in fact, normative. Particular attention is given to the creation of the term “entheogen” as an alternative to other designations, how advocates understand the alleged exceptional nature of entheogens and what they do, appeals to shamanism as a legitimating discourse, and the eschatological hopes invested in these substances as agents of social, cultural, and religious renewal. Rather than adjudicating the truth of these claims or creating an alternative designation, the article interrogates the theological interests and commitments at work, and the rhetorical strategies that sustain them. In doing so, the article argues that entheogenic discourses often blur the boundaries between description and prescription, or advocacy. The article suggests the need for a more reflexive, contextual approach to how we understand the use of these substances. Full article

Soil Organic Matter (SOM) and Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) are essential for regulating ecosystem functions, soil fertility, and influencing climate change processes, especially in semi-arid regions. The recent improvements in remote sensing instruments and the development of artificial intelligence methodologies, such as machine learning, enable an improved understanding of carbon dynamics, facilitate the estimation of SOC content, and support predictive modeling. This study presents an integrated framework to analyze past and future carbon dynamics in the Sfax Governorate (Tunisia). Land-use and land-cover (LULC) maps for the years 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2024 were generated using a Random Forest algorithm applied to multispectral satellite data in the Google Earth Engine platform, achieving high classification accuracy (overall accuracy up to 0.90). Carbon stocks and their temporal variations were estimated using the InVEST Carbon Storage and Sequestration model, while carbon emissions and the Net Ecosystem Carbon Balance (NECB) were derived by integrating land-use-specific emission factors. Future LULC scenarios for 2030 were simulated through a Cellular Automata model under three alternative development pathways: conservation-oriented (CONS), business-as-usual (BAU), and urban expansion (URB+). The study demonstrates how the integration of machine learning, remote sensing, and ecosystem modeling supports spatially explicit assessment of SOC-related carbon dynamics and provides useful insights for land management and climate mitigation strategies. Full article

Different types of Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) play distinct roles within power systems. To scientifically evaluate the operational benefits of VPPs, this paper constructs a comprehensive evaluation framework based on combined weighting and the Evaluation based on Distance from Average Solution (EDAS) method. First, an evaluation index system is established encompassing four dimensions: economic, environmental, social, and technical. Subsequently, a hybrid model integrating DEMATEL, CRITIC, Game Theory, and EDAS is proposed. Specifically, the DEMATEL method is employed to analyze the causal relationships among indicators and determine subjective weights, while the CRITIC method is used to calculate objective weights. Game Theory is then applied to optimize the combination of weights, and the EDAS method is utilized to rank the alternatives. Empirical analysis of five VPP scenarios indicates that the renewable energy accommodation rate and hardware investment costs are the core driving factors affecting operational benefits. Specifically, the renewable-energy accommodation rate exhibits the highest combined weight of 0.08, and the hardware investment cost reaches 0.07. Among the scenarios, a wind-solar-storage hybrid VPP demonstrates the optimal comprehensive performance. The results are consistent with comparative methods such as TOPSIS, verifying the reliability of the proposed framework and providing a scientific reference for VPP investment decision-making. Full article

This study explores the degree of capital mobility in selected APEC economies over the period 2000–2023, using a consumption-based approach. The motivation stems from the well-known limitations of the traditional investment–saving framework associated with the Feldstein–Horioka puzzle, which may not fully capture how capital actually moves across borders. To address this issue, the paper adopts an alternative perspective by examining how domestic consumption responds to external consumption patterns relative to domestic income. The analysis focuses on six economies, including both developed countries (the United States, Canada, and Australia) and developing countries (Chile, Thailand, and Indonesia), allowing for a meaningful comparison across different levels of economic development. The findings indicate that capital is indeed mobile, but not perfectly so. More notably, the results suggest that capital mobility tends to be stronger in developing economies than in developed ones. This outcome challenges conventional expectations based on standard measures of financial openness and highlights the gap between formal financial liberalization and actual capital movement in practice. Overall, the study provides a deeper understanding of capital mobility and offers useful insights for policymakers seeking to enhance financial integration and improve the effectiveness of capital flow management, particularly in developing economies. Full article

Background: Left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) requires a significant upfront investment, which is in contrast with the more gradual, long-term costs of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs). Objective: We performed a budget impact analysis exploring the financial impact of increasing the number of LAAO procedures in a high-stroke-risk population over a 10-year time horizon from the perspective of the healthcare providers under the Italian National Healthcare Service. Methods: Two alternative scenarios simulating an increased uptake of the LAAO therapy were compared to the estimated volume of LAAO procedures performed (baseline scenario: 1341 procedures): (1) Alternative Scenario I (3314 procedures) based on the level of penetration observed in the Italian region performing the highest rate of LAAO procedures; (2) Alternative Scenario II (7672 procedures): LAAO therapy uptake set to attain 5% of the estimated target population. Clinical data were extracted from a propensity-matched, multicenter cohort of 554 AF patients at a very high thromboembolic risk profile (CHA₂DS₂-VASc score ≥ 5) treated with LAAO or DOACs. Results: Cumulative cost savings in Alternative Scenario I were around €4.9 million compared to the baseline. When comparing Scenario II to the baseline scenario, savings added up to €15.8 million over 10 years. The break-even point occurred between the seventh and eighth years. Cost savings were observed even in the instance that all DOAC prices would decrease as generics became available. Conclusions: The widespread use of LAAO therapies in a population of AF patients at very high stroke risk may yield substantial long-term benefits, as the initial investment in the LAAO procedure and device would be counterbalanced within 8 years. Full article