assessment of biogas plant firms by application of annual accounts and financial data analysis approach

Firms operating biogas plants are often characterized by making significant investments in fixed assets financed by equity and, mainly, financial debt. These firms have experienced significant growth in Italy, partly as a result of public contributions. The objective of the research is to analyze the management of biogas plant firms by analyzing annual accounts as the main document of use to third parties for the evaluation of a firm's management. The research, conducted on a sample of 22 firms using 110 year-data, has highlighted that economic and financial margins are different, though often statistically correlated. The research shows that profitability and cash generation in the biogas plant industry are high, even if the generation of cash flow is less than the return on equity, and there are firm cases of having difficulty in financial debt repayment, even in the presence of positive economic margins. The research also shows that return on equity greatly exceeds the performance of Italian government bonds and of the majority of industrial sectors; this result points to the significant increase in returns on equity capital in the industry, potentially damaging other sectors, and highlighting the risk of the distortive use of public resources

evaluation of biogas plants by the application of an internal rate of return and debt service coverage approach

Energy production using renewable energy has an effect on environmental sustainability and on public expenditure. In fact, this industry is heavily assisted by public support from the European Union and the Italian State. Developing and applying a method to evaluate the return on investment for companies operating in the field of renewable energy allows them to quantify their efficient use of public resources. In this research we develop an assessment method that combines the rate of return on equity capital (IRRE) and financial viability (DSCR), in which IRRE > Ke and sub DSCR >1 for any given period of the investment. This method enables us to quantify both the equity capital return and financial sustainability. The method is applied to a case study of a company's production of biogas from livestock effluents located in the province of Reggio Emilia, Italy. The analysis shows that biogas investment guarantees financial sustainability, even in the case of financial liabilities, in the case examined. It also shows that IRRE is higher than average, with a return on equity assured both by market average (MRP) and government bonds in the long term. The research could be further developed by quantifying the social welfare generated by public spending and private investment as equity capital, both in terms of its activation of the economy and in terms of assessing the environmental effects that qualify as externalities

economic and financial flow generation in tomato industry in italy

In many Italian regions, firms operating in tomato industry have made significant investments in plants and machinery and often sell products to large food retail chains that require large stocks of inventory and have an average time of over 150 days for the payment of receivables. These management characteristics amplify capital requirements, in large part financed, increasing debt levels. Also, because of the increasing costs of raw materials in recent years, many firms in the tomato processing sector in Italy have suffered a corporate crisis and even bankruptcy. Therefore, tomato processing firms need to properly control management, particularly in applying indicators that express the sustainability of the financial cycle. To achieve this goal, the article analyzes the annual account data of a sample of 54 tomato processing firms in Italy across a five-year period, showing that economic margins traditionally applied to assess the sustainability of the management cycle differ significantly from financial margins. Moreover, the annual account data of the sample firms highlight the difficulties in credit access, expressed by applying a multiple regression model to analyze return on equity and flow on equity generation. To deepen the analysis, the considered methods could be applied to other agri-food firms, particularly if characterized by high capital intensity

ebitda ebit and cash flow based icrs a comparative approach in the agro food system in italy

The interest coverage ratios (ICRs) are used to quantify the ability of firms to pay financial debts; ICRs are then considered by banks such as covenants in the financing term sheet, and are used by researchers and the rating agencies to estimate the probability of default of firms. Typically, ICRs calculation is based on profit margins, such as EBITDA and EBIT; EBITDA and EBIT approximate, but do not directly express, cash flows available to pay financial debts. The article aims to evaluate whether there are significant differences in results using ICRs based on EBITDA or EBIT and ICRs based on different definitions of cash flow (CF). The application is made to a sample of firms characterized by high absorption of capital operating in the Italian agro-food sector. The article highlights that there are statistically significant differences using ICRs EBITDA and EBIT based and ICRs based on different CF definitions

life cycle flow lcf application to evaluate the real estate investment in residential buildings with tax benefit incentives in cases of positive externalities

Investing in the main home is an important form of investment for families and represented one of the main family assets in Italy in the second half of the 20th century. The evaluation of the convenience of the house purchase needs to consider that technologies in construction have undergone a rapid change in recent times that proposes an approach to sustainable building technologies, such as dry construction systems that can reduce energy consumption over time. Moreover, these construction systems are encouraged with tax deductions from the state, that is, financing with public spending via a tax benefit, which recognizes the role of externalities of investments in sustainable construction. The article would apply Life Cycle Flow (LCF) model to a residential building; LCF is based on the Life Cycle Cost (LCC) model and adapted to assess a real estate investment, such as a residential building for private use, taking into account the effects of a tax benefit. The model quantifies the cost of satisfying consumers' housing needs in the long run. The model takes into account the absorption of financial resources at all stages of property investment. The proposed LCF approach quantifies an average discounted cash outflow per year and an average discounted cash outflow per year per surface unit in square meters; thus, it is possible to compare project alternatives and choose the alternative that minimizes the absorption of financial resources in the long run. In this article, the LCF model is applied to three project alternatives and highlights the energy savings in the long run for consumption choices and the importance of tax benefits for the reduction of the cash outflow for a family in long-term housing. Given the results of the research, the proposed LCF model can be applied on a larger scale, in particular, to quantify social welfare generated by tax benefits financed with public spending, in terms of economic activation and assessing environmental externalities

profitability and financial sustainability analysis in italian aquaculture firms by application of economic and financial margins

Agricultural Firms operating in the aquaculture sector in Italy are often characterized by high investment and high capital intensity. In fact, these companies need to develop structures and breeding systems to generate adequate cash flow to repay their investment in fixed assets. In addition, the biological cycle of breeding further extends the need for capital, in this case to finance working capital. There is therefore often a mismatch between the economic and financial cycles, wherein profit margins may differ from financial margins. In this way, such companies have an economic advantage but no sustainable financial cycle. In these cases, several crisis may force companies to default, especially when firns are unable to cover debt repayment. This difficulty is particularly present in Italy, where aquaculture firms are often Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and therefore have greater difficulty than large companies accessing the capital market. Our research evaluates the cost effectiveness and financial sustainability of a sample of forty firms operating in the aquaculture sector in Italy, within a timespan of five years, through comparative analysis of the economic and financial margins. The analysis shows that such firms are capital intensive (TA/VP of median value is 1.16%). Financial debt emerges as the first source of capital then increasing companies' financial dependence through credit systems and borrowing costs. Firms have a particular absorption in the NWC cycle, with I_DAYS being 143.29 days, AR_DAYS being 72.75 and 145.51 AP_DAYS expressing financial operating cycle (I_DAYS + AR_DAYS - AP_DAYS) with a length of 70.53 days. Profit margins, even if they are correlated with financial margins, are lower on average. The research highlights that economic model worst explains FCFE (F = 0.011 and adjusted R2 = 0.803), while the financial model best explains FCFE (F = 0.000 and adjusted R2 = 0.922). Our research will be further developed through analyzing cooperatives, unincorporated partnerships and sole proprietorships. It may also be useful to undertake a comparative analysis of aquaculture firms operating in other countries of the Mediterranean basin

Mantle-Derived Corundum-Bearing Felsic Dykes May Survive Only within the Lower (Refractory/Inert) Crust: Evidence from Zircon Geochemistry and Geochronology (Ivrea–Verbano Zone, Southern Alps, Italy)

Corundum-rich (up to 55 vol.%) felsic dykes formed with albite, +/- K-feldspar, +/- hercynite and +/- biotite-siderophyllite cut the lower crustal rocks exposed in the Ivrea–Verbano Zone (NW Italy). Zircon is an abundant accessory mineral and its investigation through laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma (multi-collector)-mass spectrometer (LA-ICP-(MC)MS) has allowed results to directly constrain the timing of emplacement, as well as petrology and geochemistry of parental melts. Zircons are characterized by very large concentration in rare earth elements (REE), Th, U, Nb and Ta, and negative Eu anomaly. U–Pb analysis points to Norian emplacement ages (223 +/- 7 Ma and 224 +/- 6 Ma), whereas large positive EHf(t) values (+13 on average) indicate a derivation from depleted to mildly enriched mantle source. The mantle signature and the corundum oversaturation were preserved thanks to limited crustal contamination of the host, high-temperature refractory granulites and mafic intrusives. According to the geochemical data and to the evidence of the development of violent explosions into the conduits, it is proposed that dykes segregated from peraluminous melts produced by exsolution processes affecting volatile-rich differentiates during alkaline magmatism. This work provides robust evidence about the transition of the geochemical affinity of Southern Alps magmatism from orogenic-like to anorogenic during Norian time, linked to a regional uprising of the asthenosphere and change of tectonic regime

Brittle-ductile deformation effects on zircon crystal-chemistry and U-Pb ages: an example from the Finero Mafic Complex (Ivrea-Verbano Zone, western Alps)

A detailed structural, geochemical and geochronological survey was performed on zircon grains from a leucocratic dioritic dyke discordantly intruded within meta-diorites/gabbros forming the External Gabbro unit of the Finero Mafic Complex. This latter is nowadays exposed as part of a near complete crustal section spanning from mantle rocks to upper crustal metasediments (Val Cannobina, Ivrea-Verbano Zone, Italy). The leucocratic dyke consists mainly of plagioclase (An18-24Ab79-82Or0.3-0.7) with subordinate amounts of biotite, spinel, zircon and corundum. Both the leucocratic dyke and the surrounding meta-diorites show evidence of ductile deformation occurred under amphibolite-facies conditions. Zircon grains (up to 2 mm in length) occur mainly as euhedral grains surrounded by fine grained plagioclasedominated matrix and pressure shadows, typically filled by oxides. Fractures and cracks within zircon are common and can be associated with grain displacement or they can be filled by secondary minerals (oxides and chlorite). Cathodoluminescence (CL) images show that zircon grains have internal features typical of magmatic growth, but with local disturbances. However EBSD maps on two selected zircon grains revealed a profuse mosaic texture resulting in an internal misorientation of ca. 10o. The majority of the domains of the mosaic texture are related to parting and fractures, but some domains show no clear relation with brittle features. Rotation angles related to the mosaic texture are not crystallographically controlled. In addition, one of the analysed zircons shows clear evidence of plastic deformation at one of its corners due to indentation. Plastic deformation results in gradual misorientations of up to 12o, which are crystallographically controlled. Trace elements and U-Pb analyses were carried out by LA-ICP-MS directly on petrographic thin sections and designed to cover the entire exposed surface of selected grains. Such investigations revealed a strong correlation between internal zircon structures, chemistry, U-Pb isotope ratios and mylonitic fabric. U-Pb data return highly discordant and variable ages: in particular, the 206Pb/238U ages range from Carboniferous to Triassic within the same zircon grain. The youngest 206Pb/238U data derive from narrow axial stripes oriented parallel or at low angle with respect to the foliation planes. These stripes are characterized by an overall HREE, Y, U and Th enrichment possibly reflecting deformation of the grain in presence of interstitial fluid phases, likely related to a concomitant magmatic activity. Deformation related structures (cracks and fractures) within zircon grains acted as fast-diffusion pathways allowing fluids to modify the geochemistry and isotopic systems of zircon. Our results suggest that fluid-assisted brittle-ductile deformation can severely modify the trace elements and isotopic composition of zircon with unexpected patterns constrained by stress regime. In similar cases, our observations suggest that, for a more appropriate interpretation of the petrologic evolution and age variability, a direct characterization of the internal structures of zircons still placed in their microtextural site is highly recommended

Ultrasound-guided removal of soft tissue foreign bodies in companion animals: A case series

Foreign bodies (FBs) retained in the subcutaneous tissues are a common reason for medical consultation. In small animals, FBs usually consist of vegetal materials, especially grass awns. Failure to remove the FBs is likely to give rise to acute or late complications. The surgical removal of the FBs can be invasive, costly and technically challenging. Ultrasound has become a mainstay in the detection of FBs and it can be used to guide the extraction of the FBs with a minimally invasive technique. This study describes the detection and extraction of soft-tissue FBs in small animals. One hundred-sixty-two patients, presenting at two veterinary clinics with suspected FBs retained in the soft tissues of various body districts, were considered. Once an ultrasound diagnosis was established, the ultrasound-guided removal of the FB was performed. A high-frequency linear transducer, a skin disinfection, sedation or anaesthesia was used when needed and a scalpel and some Hartmann forceps were also used. One hundred-eighty-two FBs were successfully removed in all the patients. In six cases, the FB was identified during a second ultrasonographic examination, after recurrence of the fistula. No complications were reported after the procedure. The extraction of the FB was performed in an echographic suite in 138 cases and in a surgery room with surgical intervention in 24 cases. In the latter situation, the surgical minimally invasive dissection of tissues under ultrasound guidance was performed before the removal of the FB. In conclusion, the ultrasound-guided removal of the FBs retained in the superficial soft tissue can be considered a good alternative to surgery. However, failure to remove a FB does not preclude the removal by traditional surgery

Transition from orogenic-like to anorogenic magmatism in the Southern Alps during the Early Mesozoic: Evidence from elemental and Nd-Sr-Hf-Pb isotope geochemistry of alkali-rich dykes from the Finero Phlogopite Peridotite, Ivrea–Verbano Zone

The Ivrea-Verbano Zone (IVZ) in the westernmost sector of the Southern Alps is an iconic upper mantle to lower continental crust sequence of the Adriatic Plate and provides a geological window into the tectono-magmatic events that occurred at the Gondwana–Laurussia boundary from Late Paleozoic to Early Mesozoic. In this work, we document new geochemical and Nd-Sr-Hf-Pb isotopic data for Early Mesozoic alkali-rich dyke swarms which intruded the Finero Phlogopite Peridotite (northern IVZ) to provide geological constraints on the nature, origin and evolution of Early Mesozoic magmatism in the Southern Alps. The studied dykes are amphibole-phlogopite-bearing and show geochemical features varying between two end-member groups. A dyke group is characterized by HFSE-poor, Al-rich amphibole (Al2O3 up to 16 wt.%) with high LILE and LREE contents, high radiogenic 87Sr/86Sr(i) (0.704732 to 0.704934) and low radiogenic Nd isotopes (εNd(i) from –0.1 to –0.7), which support the occurrence of significant amounts of recycled continental crust components in the parental mantle melts and impart an overall “orogenic-like” affinity. This dyke group was largely derived from metasomatized lithospheric mantle sources. The second group is HFSE-rich with Al-poorer amphibole enriched in LILE and LREE, low radiogenic 87Sr/86Sr(i) (0.703761–0.704103) and higher radiogenic Nd isotopes (εNd(i) from +3.4 to +5.4) pointing to an “anorogenic” alkaline affinity and asthenospheric to deep lithospheric mantle sources. Some dykes show both orogenic and anorogenic affinities, providing evidence that the orogenic-like magmatism in the IVZ predates the alkaline anorogenic magmatism. The Finero dyke swarms therefore record a geochemical change of the Early Mesozoic magmatism of the Southern Alps from orogenic-like magmatism, typical of post-collisional settings, to anorogenic alkaline magmatism, common in intraplate to extensional settings, and places a temporal correlation of Early Mesozoic magmatism in the IVZ to those in the eastern and central sectors of the Southern Alps