Innovation and energy conservation: electric motors in Brazil

This paper assess the potential for energy conservation through the spread of High Efficiency Motors (HEM) in the Brazilian market. The strategy of 9 main Brazilian electric motors producers is reviewed and the market barriers to the diffusion of HEM was studied. We found out that there are technological opportunities to improve the efficiency of Brazilian electric motors. The main difficulty to improve these motors efficiency is not producers technological capability but their strategy for the domestic market. These producers have different technological strategy for foreign and domestic market. The industrial organization of motor producers suppliers represents an important barrier to the spread of HEM in domestic market. The study concludes that an innovative policy that deals with cost differential between standard and HEM motorsis fundamental to induce energy conservation in the electric motors market.Indisponível

FATORES INDUTORES E BARREIRAS PARA O COMÉRCIO DE GÁS NATURAL NO CONE SUL

Este artigo coloca em evidência os fatores indutores e as barreiras para o comércio de gás natural na região do Mercosul. O artigo mostra que o novo contexto dos mercados energéticos da região é caracterizado pela presença de fatores que são favoráveis a uma maior integração dos mercados gasíferos do Cone Sul. Em particular, a dinâmica industrial atual, marcada pela presença de global players, a convergência das indústrias de gás e eletricidade e a disparidade na dotação dos recursos gasíferos na região são fatores que contribuem para um aumento significativo do comércio intra-regional de gás natural. O artigo analisa os obstáculos para o comércio de gás natural, associados aos custos de transação elevados na indústria de gás natural em geral e ao ambiente econômico regional, que acentuam ainda mais estes custos de transação. Colocamos em tela dois problemas da região que contribuem para a elevação dos custos de transação: i) volatilidade cambial e ii) assimetria regulatória. A última seção do artigo aponta medidas possíveis de serem adotadas pelos governos e empresas no sentido da redução dos riscos no comércio regional.This article analyses the driving forces and the obstacles for the natural gas trade in the Mercosur Area. The paper shows the new context of the energy markets in the region, emphasising the driving factors for the energy integration: the presence of "global players"; the business convergence between gas and electricity industries; and the disparity of gas resources in Mercosur's countries. Main obstacles for regional gas trade are analysed. The paper points that transaction costs in the gas industry are high and the economic context of the Mercosur zone aggravates these transaction costs. Regarding the economic context of the region, the impacts of two main problems are analysed: the exchange rate volatility and the energy regulatory asymmetry. The last section of the paper analyses the possible contributions from the governments and companies, in order to reduce risks for the regional gas trade

Trajetórias Tecnológicas em Combustíveis Sintéticos: Análise dos Mecanismos de Seleção e Indução

This article identifies and bounds the existence of two technological trajectories on synthetic liquid fuels. This technological trajectory concept is bounded concerning the selection environment and the programs for technological research. It is applicable at technological levels. The selection environment of the first technological trajectory was bounded by the economical and army limitations observed by the countries that did not produce oil. This situation reached its limit at the beginning of the Second World War. The research programs aimed the development of the Fischer-Tropsch process, high-pressure hydrogenation and low temperature carbonization (LTC). The selection environment of the second technological trajectory is bounded by the increase of natural gas reserves, by the environmental restrictions and by the demand for flexibility in the gas and energy chains. The research programs have as objective the production process for the synthesis gas, which is necessary to the Fischer-Tropsch process. The direct conversion of natural gas into synthetic liquid fuels represents the promise of a radical innovation. Finally, the article compares the two trajectories, identifying similarities and differences between them.O artigo identifica e delimita a existência de duas trajetórias tecnológicas em combustíveis líquidos sintéticos. O conceito de trajetória tecnológica é delimitado em função do ambiente de seleção e dos programas de pesquisa tecnológica, sendo aplicável ao nível das tecnologias. A primeira trajetória tecnológica tem por ambiente de seleção as limitações econômicas e militares observadas pelos países não-produtores de petróleo, o que culminou com os embargos da Segunda Guerra Mundial. Os programas de pesquisa buscavam desenvolver as tecnologias Fischer-Tropsch, hidrogenação em alta pressão e LTC (low temperature carbonization). O ambiente de seleção da segunda trajetória é delimitado pelo aumento das reservas de gás natural, pelas restrições ambientais e pela demanda por flexibilidade na cadeia de gás e energia. Os programas de pesquisa têm por objeto de estudo o processo de produção do gás de síntese necessário ao processo Fischer-Tropsch. A conversão direta do gás natural para combustíveis líquidos sintéticos apresenta-se como a promessa de uma inovação radical. Por fim, o artigo compara as duas trajetórias, identificando aspectos comuns e diferenças entre elas

Gas Market Integration in the Southern Cone

"Gas Market Integration in the Southern Cone" is part of a larger effort by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to promote integration of energy markets in South America's Southern Cone region. This book offers a comprehensive analysis of the gas industry's evolution in the region, highlighting the drivers of and obstacles to regional market integration. The authors identify barriers to integration and also present a concrete proposal based on a wealth of experience in other world regions, for overcoming these barriers to advance toward regional integration

El desafio de integrarse para crecer. Balance y perspectiva del MERCOSUR en su primera década.

El propósito central de este libro es brindar información y elementos analíticos que sean útiles para elaborar respuestas a interrogantes sobre el bloque como medio para la integración. Además de realizar un balance de lo ocurrido con la integración en la última década, se evalúan las perspectivas y se discuten propuestas. Se abarcan prácticamente todos los temas que, a diez años del tratado de Asución eran relevantes en la agenda del MERCOSUR. Su análisis se organiza en base a los tres grandes desafíos presentes del bloque: avanzar en la integración profunda, consolidar las instituciones y la presencia internacional del MERCOSUR, y convertir a éste en herramienta para el crecimiento y la competitividad. Red MERCOSURReD MERCOSUR, crecer, MERCOSUR, crecimiento, integrarse, integración

Sensitivity of South American tropical forests to an extreme climate anomaly

NERC Knowledge Exchange Fellowship (NE/V018760/1) to E.N.H.C.The tropical forest carbon sink is known to be drought sensitive, but it is unclear which forests are the most vulnerable to extreme events. Forests with hotter and drier baseline conditions may be protected by prior adaptation, or more vulnerable because they operate closer to physiological limits. Here we report that forests in drier South American climates experienced the greatest impacts of the 2015–2016 El Niño, indicating greater vulnerability to extreme temperatures and drought. The long-term, ground-measured tree-by-tree responses of 123 forest plots across tropical South America show that the biomass carbon sink ceased during the event with carbon balance becoming indistinguishable from zero (−0.02 ± 0.37 Mg C ha−1 per year). However, intact tropical South American forests overall were no more sensitive to the extreme 2015–2016 El Niño than to previous less intense events, remaining a key defence against climate change as long as they are protected.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe