Capacity-constrained renewable power generation development in light of storage cost uncertainty. ESRI Working Paper No. 647 December 2019

The development of sustainable energy sources and their enabling infrastructures are often met by public opposition, resulting in lengthy planning processes. One proposed means of reducing public opposition is constraining the capacity of renewable energy projects onshore, leading to more small-scale, decentralised and possibly community-driven developments. This work computes the effects of same by performing a medium- and long-term generation expansion planning exercise considering two renewable development cases, in which renewable power expansion is spatially constrained to certain degrees, under high and low storage cost regimes. We employ an appropriately designed optimisation model, accounting for network effects, which are largely neglected in previous studies. We apply our study to the future Irish power system under a range of demand and policy scenarios. Irrespective of storage costs, the unconstrained portfolio is marginally cheaper than the constrained one. However, there are substantial differences in the final generation expansion portfolios. The network reinforcement requirements are also greater under the unconstrained approach. Lower storage costs only slightly mitigate the costs of capacity constraints but significantly alter the spatial distribution of generation investments. The differential in costs between the unconstrained and constrained cases increases non-linearly with renewable generation targets

Exploring the institutional perspective on international business expansion: towards a more detailed conceptual framework

While the general principles of the Institutional Perspective have been widely accepted, there has been only limited consideration to the present of their in-depth application to the strategies of individual firms engaged in international business. The paper argues that companies engaged in such activities will find that there is a significant gap in precisely what aspects of the formal and informal institutional perspectives need to be identified and assessed for international expansion. The purpose of this paper is to develop a theoretical paradigm that allows organizations to compare different countries with regard to their potential for international business expansion from the perspective of Institutional Theory but also drawing on theories of International Business Strategy where relevant. The theoretical framework assumes that such organizations are engaged in analyzing the institutional arrangements and resources of their home and possible host countries. The paper then develops a conceptual framework that identifies five major components, namely people, power, performance, pathways to international expansion, and productivity, the latter being defined in terms of knowledge and innovation. It explores each of these areas in more depth with the aim of adding a more detailed structure to elements of Institutional Theory relevant to international business expansion

Knowledge and innovation in emerging market multinationals: the expansion paradox

This article examines the innovation and knowledge strategies that allow emerging-market companies to become major international players. By adopting a qualitative approach, this study identifies a significant paradox between the desire of some leading Chinese car companies to expand internationally and the current relationship of such companies with leading global car companies, which significantly inhibits Chinese international expansion. This study unpacks that paradox using innovation theory and the resource-based view and develops a matrix of strategic options that can assist emerging market multinational companies to expand internationally

The relationship between innovation culture and innovation outcomes: exploring the effects of sustainability orientation and firm size

Being sustainability oriented has become a key strategy for many firms. Equally, innovation culture and innovation outcomes have long been recognized as important contributors to the growth of firms. However, the literature on sustainability and innovation provides limited understanding of the important relationship between sustainability orientation, innovation culture and innovation outcomes. Given that large firms and small firms differ in building and employing their strategic assets, firm size matters in understanding the relationship. Through the lens of resource-based view, we develop a theoretical model embedding the four components and test it using data from a global survey: the 2012 Comparative Performance Assessment Study. Our research contributes to sustainability literature and innovation theory by providing an integrated framework to explicate the mechanism through which the innovation culture of the firm impacts on innovative performance through the sustainability orientation of the firm. The findings advance our understanding of the extent to which sustainable orientation can explain the relationship between innovation culture and innovation outcomes. Our evidence shows that the innovation culture of a firm facilitates the sustainability orientation of the firm and that the converse also applies. The research also contributes to our knowledge of the differences between large and small firms in leveraging their strategic assets in terms of innovation culture and sustainability orientation to facilitate superior innovation outcomes. Although firm size moderates the relationship between innovation culture and innovation outcomes, the research shows that this no longer holds when sustainability orientation is included in the relationship. A strong sustainability orientation can be a competitive advantage for firms in the delivery of superior innovation outcomes

The moderating influences on the relationship of corporate reputation with its antecedents and consequences: a meta-analytic review

Through a meta-analytical approach, we test the antecedents and consequences of corporate reputation, examining specifically the moderating roles of three study variables: country of study, stakeholder group, and reputational measure. The study presents a comprehensive overviewof threemoderating factors for the relationship of corporate reputation with its antecedents and consequences in the literature from 101 quantitative studies. Our findings suggest that practitioners need to exercise considerable caution when developing and managing the reputation of their organizations through the use of research evidence from various countries, with different stakeholder groups and when employing diverse reputational measures

Optimal development of electricity generation mix considering fossil fuel phase-out and strategic multi-area interconnection. ESRI WP616, February 2019

Increased renewable generation worldwide is posing new challenges for power system planners. The location, as well as the level and operation, of each generation resource is increasingly important. This work presents a constrained Generation Expansion Planning (GEP) optimization model. One of the salient features of the model is its reasonably accurate representation of the physical characteristics of power systems. It considers both active and reactive power flows in a linear manner. Natural voltage magnitude deviations from nominal values across the transmission system are also captured in the resulting model. Therefore, the network model employed here closely resembles the AC optimal power flow one.We apply the model to a realistic test system of the island of Ireland and determine the optimal generation expansion and operation out to 2030 under a range of demand and policy scenarios. Our results show that costs and emissions are driven primarily by the decommissioning of old inefficient generation units. High renewable targets, on the other hand, render increased carbon prices relatively ineffective in reducing system emissions

New Metastable Nonmetallic Phase of Europium

Metastable, close-packed films of elemental, divalent Eu from about a half to several monolayers thick on several substrates were found to be nonmetallic. Photoemission showed no states within 1.4 eV of the Fermi level. Low energy electron diffraction studies of Eu films on Ta(110) showed a closepacked pattern with orientational epitaxy. With increased thickness this phase reverted to metallic bcc Eu with orientational epitaxy

Lessons Learned: Diane Thompson

Diane Thompson was of counsel at the National Consumer Law Center from 2006 to 2014, conducting policy advocacy on legal issues affecting low-income consumers during the housing crisis. Subsequently, she joined the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), where she led the development of and provided guidance on federal consumer regulations in the areas of mortgage, fair lending, debt collection, credit reporting, and student loan servicing. She currently leads the Consumer Rights Regulatory Engagement and Advocacy Project, which she founded in 2020 to promote inclusive public engagement in regulatory work, particularly for low-income communities and communities of color and since 2021 has been senior adviser to the director of the CFPB. This “Lessons Learned” is based on an interview with Thompson held in September 2021

Lessons Learned: John Oros

John Oros was managing director at the private investment firm J.C. Flowers & Co. (JCF) during the Global Financial Crisis of 2007–2009 (GFC); he is now an operating partner at the firm. In the fall of 2008, Oros worked as a senior member of the JCF team on projects involving Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and American International Group [AIG], as these firms were negotiating with lending banks, investment companies, and federal regulators to avoid collapse. Earlier in his career, Oros served as chairman of the Federal Savings and Loan Council from 1987 to 1989, during the savings and loan (S&L) crisis, when 747 S&Ls failed. This summary is based on a telephone interview conducted with Oros in May 2022