The merit order effect of photovoltaic generation in Slovakia

Photovoltaics in Slovakia have been experiencing a fast development in the last years, benefiting from a large support in various forms - be it generous subsidies and guaranteed feed-in tariff or legal preferential treatment. Due to very low - close to zero marginal costs it may appear that the green energy generated by solar power plants is "free" thus we expect a decrease in the wholesale electricity price. Indeed, in several countries the so- called merit order effect has been proven and the spot price of electricity declines thanks to the generation from the photovoltaics and/or other renewable sources. This thesis evaluates the impact of the solar energy penetration into energy mix on spot prices, seeks evidence of the merit order effect in the Slovak electricity market and quantifies it thanks to publicly available data. The multivariate regression analysis takes into consideration the full years 2011-2016. The merit order effect estimated by an OLS time series model is negative, however, the spot price reduction attributable to the photovoltaics is not sufficient for resulting savings to outweigh the costs of the support scheme borne by end users what implies a consumer loss. Keywords: renewable energy sources, photovoltaics, merit order effect, energy sub­ sidies, feed-in tariff

Efekt pořadí záslužnosti ve výrobě fotovoltaické energie na Slovensku

Fotovoltaika na Slovensku sa v posledných rokoch rýchlo rozvijala hlavně vďaka štátnej podpore vo formě štědrých dotácií, garantovanej výkupnej ceny a prednostného výkupu. Kvóli nízkým - takrner nulovým marginálnym nákladom sa zdá, že "zelená energia" pochádzajúca zo solárnych elektrární je bezplatná, preto očakávame zníženie velkoobchodnej ceny. Tento efekt sa skutočne potvrdil v mnohých krajinách. Spotová cena klesá vďaka výrobě z fotovoltaiky a/alebo iných obnovitelných zdrojov. Táto práca hodnotí dopad výroby solárnej energie na spotovú cenu elektřiny - dokazuje a kvantifikuje efekt poradia záslužnosti na slovenskom trhu s elektřinou. Regresná analýza berie do úvahy dáta za roky 2011-2016. Ekonometrický model potvrdzuje záporný efekt, teda zníženie spotovej ceny v dósledku zvýšenej výroby zo solárnych zdrojov. Vyplývajúce úspory však nie sú dostačujúce na převážeme nákladov 11a podporu týclrto zdrojov, ktoré sú hradené koncovými odberatelnri a tí sa tak ocitajú v strate. Klúčové šlová: obnovitelné zdroje energie, fotovoltaika, efekt poradia záslužnosti, dotácie v energetike, výkupná cena 1Photovoltaics in Slovakia have been experiencing a fast development in the last years, benefiting from a large support in various forms - be it generous subsidies and guaranteed feed-in tariff or legal preferential treatment. Due to very low - close to zero marginal costs it may appear that the green energy generated by solar power plants is "free" thus we expect a decrease in the wholesale electricity price. Indeed, in several countries the so- called merit order effect has been proven and the spot price of electricity declines thanks to the generation from the photovoltaics and/or other renewable sources. This thesis evaluates the impact of the solar energy penetration into energy mix on spot prices, seeks evidence of the merit order effect in the Slovak electricity market and quantifies it thanks to publicly available data. The multivariate regression analysis takes into consideration the full years 2011-2016. The merit order effect estimated by an OLS time series model is negative, however, the spot price reduction attributable to the photovoltaics is not sufficient for resulting savings to outweigh the costs of the support scheme borne by end users what implies a consumer loss. Keywords: renewable energy sources, photovoltaics, merit order effect, energy sub­ sidies, feed-in tariff 1Institute of Economic StudiesInstitut ekonomických studiíFakulta sociálních vědFaculty of Social Science

On the Measures to Solve Environmental Problems of the Territory with Intensive Open Pit Coal Mining

Ecological problems in the open pit mining of coal deposits are extremely hard, since mining operations are accompanied by disturbed land to a large depth with significant changes in the landscape, hydrometeorological conditions, mixing of rocks and removal of infertile or even harmful rocks with radioactive isotopes to the surface. Disturbed lands are unusable if they are not repaired. All man-made disturbances of the environment caused by open pit mining are divided into landscape (changes in terrain, vegetation and soil cover) and environmental (violation of living conditions within the allotment and adjacent lands: changes in water regime, pollution of the soil, air and water basins) onesOne of the most important areas in the field of environmental protection is the reclamation (restoration) of the earth’s surface. In accordance with the requirements of the protection of the subsoil, enterprises engaged in the development of mineral deposits are obliged at their own expense to bring disturbed lands into a state suitable form for their further use. Reclamation of ought to be carried out during open pit mining operations and must be completed after mining of mineral resources in the terms established by the authorities that provide land for use

Frequency and morphological behaviour of nouns in Czech and Russian

Declensional morphology of nouns in Czech and Russian is investigated and compared. It is shown that, in general, word forms which are more similar to their lemmas are preferred, but there are differences between animate and inanimate nouns and also among grammatical genders. The frequency distribution of grammatical cases is also studied, with animacy and gender being again important factors

Geo-Environmental Problems of Open Pit Mining: Classification and Solutions

Open mining development is the cheapest method, because it uses powerful production equipment, which allows a large amount of minerals to be excavated during a shift. Working conditions in open development are less dangerous for the health of workers, and a smaller number of supervisory personnel than in underground mining is required. In the process of open development, stripping works are first carried out, i.e. the removal of the empty rocks covering the deposit. Constantly growing requirements for energy sources, metal ores and building materials cause the need for intensive development of the mining industry. There is a rejection of significant areas for the development of minerals in an open and closed way. The causes of degradation are both the mining of minerals, as well as construction, the placement of production and consumption wastes in the natural environment. Changes in the components of the environment are observed as a result of direct or indirect influence of mining enterprises activities. This requires an analysis of the entire complex of geo-environmental problems of open mining and the identification of the most urgent ways to solve them

Geo-Environmental Problems of Open Pit Mining: Classification and Solutions

Open mining development is the cheapest method, because it uses powerful production equipment, which allows a large amount of minerals to be excavated during a shift. Working conditions in open development are less dangerous for the health of workers, and a smaller number of supervisory personnel than in underground mining is required. In the process of open development, stripping works are first carried out, i.e. the removal of the empty rocks covering the deposit. Constantly growing requirements for energy sources, metal ores and building materials cause the need for intensive development of the mining industry. There is a rejection of significant areas for the development of minerals in an open and closed way. The causes of degradation are both the mining of minerals, as well as construction, the placement of production and consumption wastes in the natural environment. Changes in the components of the environment are observed as a result of direct or indirect influence of mining enterprises activities. This requires an analysis of the entire complex of geo-environmental problems of open mining and the identification of the most urgent ways to solve them