Risks and the financing of PPP: Perspectives from the financiers

Public private partnerships (PPP) are an established model for most governments internationally to provide infrastructure-based services, using private finance. Typically the public authority will sign a contract with a special purpose vehicle (SPV), which, because of the holistic nature of PPP, in turn sub-contracts the finance, design, construction, maintenance and soft services to companies that are often related to its shareholders. Thus there is a considerable network of linked organisations that together procure and provide the PPP project. While there is an increasing body of research that examines these PPP projects, much of it is interview or case study based so that the evidence is drawn from a small number of interviews or cases in specific sectors. It also focuses on the public sector procurer and the private sector contractor in the network of organisations. Although it has been recognised that the perceptions of the financiers may vary from those of other key PPP players there is much less research that focuses on the financiers. In this paper we report the results of a postal questionnaire survey, administered to 109 providers of senior debt and equity, from which the response rate was just less than 40%. We supplement these findings with a small number of illustrative quotes from interviewees, where the cited quote represents a commonly held view. We used SPSS and Nvivo to analyse the data. The findings show that when assessing PPPs financiers perceive a very wide range of risks as important, and that it is important to them that many of these risks are either insured or allocated to sub-contractors. When considering participating in PPPs, financiers agree that working with familiar partners on familiar projects and in familiar sectors is important, which may raise barriers to entry and undermine competitive processes.

Electric vehicles and displaced gaseous emission

Electric vehicles (EV) do not emit tailpipe exhaust fumes in the same manner as internal combustion engine vehicles. Optimal benefits can only be achieved, if EVS are deployed effectively, so that the tailpipe emissions are not substituted by additional emissions in the electricity sector. This paper examines the potential contributions that Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicles can make in reducing carbon dioxide. The paper presents the results of the generation expansion model for Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland built using the dynamic programming based long term generation expansion planning tool called the Wien Automatic System Planning IV tool. The model optimizes power dispatch using hourly electricity demand curves for each year up to 2020, while incorporating generator characteristics and certain operational requirements such as energy not served and loss of load probability while satisfying constraints on environmental emissions, fuel availability and generator operational and maintenance costs. In order to simulate the effect of PHEV, two distinct charging scenarios are applied based on a peak tariff and an off peak tariff. The importance and influence of the charging regime on the amount of energy used and gaseous emissions displaced is determined and discussed.

An Autopilot Based on a Local Control Network Design for an Unmanned Surface Vehicle

Over recent years, a number of marine autopilots designed using linear techniques have underperformed owing to their inability to cope with nonlinear vessel dynamics. To this end, a new design framework for the development of nonlinear autopilots is proposed herein. Local control networks (LCNs) can be used in the design of nonlinear control systems. In this paper, a LCN approach is taken in the design of a nonlinear autopilot for controlling the nonlinear yaw dynamics of an unmanned surface vehicle known as Springer. It is considered the approach is the first of its kind to be used in marine control systems design. Simulation results are presented and the performance of the nonlinear autopilot is compared with that of an existing Springer linear quadratic Gaussian (LQG) autopilot using standard system performance criteria. From the results it can be concluded the LCN autopilot out performed that based on LQG techniques in terms of the selected criteria. Also it provided more energy saving control strategies and would thereby increase operational duration times for the vehicle during real-time missions.

Impact of weather conditions on electric vehicle performance

Seasonal and day-to-day variations in travel behaviour and performance of private passenger vehicles can be partially explained by changes in weather conditions. Likewise, in the electricity sector, weather affects energy demand. The impact of weather conditions on private passenger vehicle performance, usership statistics and travel behaviour has been studied for conventional, internal combustion engine, vehicles. Similarly, weather-driven variability in electricity demand and generation has been investigated widely. The aim of these analyses in both sectors is to improve energy efficiency, reduce consumption in peak hours and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, the potential effects of seasonal weather variations on electric vehicle usage have not yet been investigated. In Ireland the government has set a target requiring 10% of all vehicles in the transport fleet to be powered by electricity by 2020 to meet part of its European Union obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase energy efficiency. This paper fills this knowledge gap by compiling some of the published information available for internal combustion engine vehicles and applying the lessons learned and results to electric vehicles with an analysis of historical weather data in Ireland and electricity market data in a number of what-if scenarios. Areas particularly impacted by weather conditions are battery performance, energy consumption and choice of transportation mode by private individuals.

An Analysis of the Effect of Electric Vehicle Charging on the Operation of the Single Electricity Market

To meet European Union renewable energy and greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets the Irish government set a target in 2008 that 10% of all vehicles in the transport fleet be powered by electricity by 2020. Similar electric vehicle targets have been introduced in other countries. However, reducing energy consumption and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions in transport is a considerable challenge due to heavy reliance on fossil fuels. In fact, transport in the Republic of Ireland in 2009 accounted for 29% of non-emissions trading scheme greenhouse gas emissions, 32% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions, 21% of total greenhouse gas emissions and approximately 50% of energy-related non-emission trading scheme greenhouse gas emissions. In this paper the effect of electric vehicle charging on the operation of the single wholesale electricity market for the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland is analysed. The energy consumed, greenhouse gas emissions generated and changes to the wholesale price of electricity under peak and off-peak charging scenarios are quantified and discussed. Results from the study show that off-peak charging is more beneficial than peak charging.

Chymotrypsin-like serine proteinases are involved in the maintenance of cell viability

An increasing number of studies have implicated serine proteinases in the development of apoptosis. In this study, we assessed the ability of a set of highly specific irreversible inhibitors (activity probes), incorporating an a-amino alkane diphenyl phosphonate moiety, to modulate cell death. In an initial assessment of the cellular toxicity of these activity probes, we discovered that one example, N-a-tetramethylrhodamine phenylalanine diphenylphosphonate {TMR-Phe^P(OPh)₂} caused a concentration-dependent decrease in the viability of HeLa and U251 mg cells. This reduced cell viability was associated with a time-dependent increase in caspase-3 activity, PARP cleavage and phosphatidylserine translocation, establishing apoptosis as the mechanism of cell death. SDS-PAGE analysis of cell lysates prepared from the HeLa cells treated with TMR-Phe^P(OPh)₂, revealed the presence of a fluorescent band of molecular weight 58 kDa. Given that we have previously reported on the use of this type of activity probe to reveal active proteolytic species, we believe that we have identified a chymotrypsin-like serine proteinase activity integral to the maintenance of cell viability.

Maintenance therapy with cisapride after healing of erosive oesophagitis:a double-blind placebo-controlled trial

There are few data on the role of prokinetic agents as maintenance therapy in moderately severe reflux oesophagitis despite the high relapse rate of this condition after healing.

Maintenance treatment of renal anaemia in haemodialysis patients with methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta versus darbepoetin alfa administered monthly:a randomized comparative trial

Several studies with erythropoiesis-stimulating agents claim that maintenance therapy of renal anaemia may be possible at extended dosing intervals; however, few studies were randomized, results varied, and comparisons between agents were absent. We report results of a multi-national, randomized, prospective trial comparing haemoglobin maintenance with methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta and darbepoetin alfa administered once monthly.

A wavelet-based damage detection algorithm based on bridge acceleration response to a vehicle

Previous research based on theoretical simulations has shown the potential of the wavelet transform to detect damage in a beam by analysing the time-deflection response due to a constant moving load. However, its application to identify damage from the response of a bridge to a vehicle raises a number of questions. Firstly, it may be difficult to record the difference in the deflection signal between a healthy and a slightly damaged structure to the required level of accuracy and high scanning frequencies in the field. Secondly, the bridge is going to have a road profile and it will be loaded by a sprung vehicle and time-varying forces rather than a constant load. Therefore, an algorithm based on a plot of wavelet coefficients versus time to detect damage (a singularity in the plot) appears to be very sensitive to noise. This paper addresses these questions by: (a) using the acceleration signal, instead of the deflection signal, (b) employing a vehicle-bridge finite element interaction model, and (c) developing a novel wavelet-based approach using wavelet energy content at each bridge section which proves to be more sensitive to damage than a wavelet coefficient line plot at a given scale as employed by others.

Impacts of Electric Vehicle charging under electricity market operations

The Irish government set a target in 2008 that 10% of all vehicles in the transport fleet be powered by electricity by 2020. Similar electric vehicle targets have been introduced in other countries. In this study the effects of 213,561 electric vehicles on the operation of the single wholesale electricity market for the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland is investigated. A model of Ireland’s electricity market in 2020 is developed using the power systems market model called PLEXOS for power systems. The amount of CO2 emissions associated with charging the EVs and the impacts with respect to Ireland’s target for renewable energy in transport is also quantified. A single generation portfolio and two different charging scenarios, arising from a peak and off-peak charging profile are considered. Results from the study confirm that offpeak charging is more beneficial than peak charging and that charging EVs will contribute 1.45% energy supply to the 10% renewable energy in transport target. The net CO2 reductions are 147 and 210 kt CO2 respectively.