Application and risk assessment of the energy performance contracting model in energy conservation of public buildings

With the development of China’s economy, the total area of public buildings is continuously increasing, and higher energy consumption in this field is gradually becoming prominent. In order to improve this situation, China has been working on energy savings in public buildings since 2007. Energy-saving models and energy policies have become the lifeline of sustainable energy development. Furthermore, the energy-saving renovation of public buildings, as a key project, has attracted the attention of governments and scholars. In the report of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, energy conservation and emission reduction were given a prominent place. The 13th Five-Year Plan (2016–2020) aims to further promote China’s energy conservation work. On the one hand, administrative and legal measures should be taken to strengthen energy conservation. On the other hand, it is necessary to speed up the establishment of a long-term market-based energy-saving mechanism and to rely on market forces to remove various obstacles to energy conservation. Energy performance contracting (EPC) is a practical and effective method applied in energy conservation. Therefore, this research aims to put forward a relatively perfect energy-saving risk management system for EPC public building projects based on analysis of the factors influencing investment risks of energy-saving projects and the use of quantifiable risk management models, thus providing some theoretical support for the risk decision-making of energy service companies.

Three-block model of contracting "subject of the contract – organizational structure of construction – risk distribution"

The work contains the results of developing the contracting model for the enterprise of the full investment and construction cycle, depending not only on the subject of the agreement, but also on the organizational structure of construction and risk allocation. The wide range of services that need to be implemented by the company of the full investment and construction cycle, as well as the variety of organizational forms of implementation of this process lead to varying degrees of uncertainty in each case. This often hinders the formalization of contracts between the participants in the construction. Therefore, it is important to develop a tool for contracting, which includes assessing the organizational structure of construction and emerging risks. A compact and adequate model for this was not found in the studied sources. As a result of research it is established that the existing approaches to the contractштп determine the subject of the agreement as the main factor. The analysis of risk classifications in construction allowed to offer an approach based on the allocation of risks of internal and external environment with the distribution of responsibilities between managers and contractors. The developed classification of possible contract subject in construction made it possible to establish that one of the main factors of pricing, managing the implementation of the agreement and reducing the impact of risks, is the choice of measurement of the contract subject: the ratio of costs and revenues of the contractor / hours worked / physical unit of measurement of work performed. Both classifications served as a basis for the development and use of a three-block contracting model: the definition of the contract subject and its characteristics; determination of the organizational structure of construction as an external environment for the agreement implementation; formalizing the distribution of risks by establishing a legal scheme and pricing as tools for agreement managing. The introduction of such an instrument will reduce the excess cost of covering risks and accelerate capital turnover in the execution of transactions.

Organizing Global Supply Chains: Input-Output Linkages and Vertical Integration

We study how the technological importance of inputs—measured by cost shares—is related to the decision to “make” or “buy” that input. Using detailed French international trade data and an instrumental variable approach based on self-constructed input–output tables, we show that multinationals vertically integrate technologically important inputs. A stylized incomplete contracting model with both ex-ante and ex-post inefficiencies explains why: Technologically more important inputs are “made” when transaction cost economics type forces overpower property rights type forces. However, additional results show that both types of forces are needed to explain the full patterns in the data.

Social Service Contracting: International Experience and China Practice

In China, social service contracting is a new phenomenon even in the most developed cities and areas. The action that the government contracts with non-government organizations in delivering community service is merely a local initiative under the context of social administration reform. There are scarce theoretical and empirical discussions relevant to social service contracting in Chinese academic community. In the light of this gap, this article draws on literature of social service contracting in developed countries or cities to understand key elements ensuring an effective contracting and impacts of contracting. Available literature on social service contracting in China is used for discussion to understand the development of social service contracting in China. Public and social services contracting in China can be briefly divided into three models: non-competitive contracting model, competitive contracting model and informal contracting model. Factors influencing the implementation of contracting programs in China are concerned with the participation of sufficient NGOs, the roles and attitudes of government agencies and the relationship and the interaction between stakeholders. The contracting programs both have positive and negative impacts on service provision.

A Comparative Study on SECA Compliance Options for Maritime Fuel Producers

In January 2015, the Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECA) regulations changed so that ships that ply the Baltic Sea and the North Sea can no longer use bunker fuel that exceeds 0.1 per cent v/v of sulphur. Many changes have been seen in the maritime sector, especially in the Baltic Sea region (BSR). From studies, the impact is still somewhat negative for some maritime stakeholders, such as small-scale fuel producing companies who must produce fuel that complies with the SECA requirements. The impact analysis of their compliance options shows that hydrodesulphurisation (HDS) option is the most viable option with a commensurable investment return rate, but it is highly risky and expensive considering the incessant plummeting of fuel price and the financial status of such companies. However, even though the situation looks bleak for the small-scale maritime fuel producers, a deeper probe revealed a chance for exceptional opportunities for growth and profit through a change of business model to the maritime energy-contracting model (MEC). The study zooms in on a case study of a fuel producing company and empirically compares the operating costs of the MEC model (as a decentralised option) and the HDS process (as a centralised option) to determine which option will be most economically worthwhile if adopted as a SECA compliance strategy to ensure a rounded and robust choice-making process for maritime stakeholders in such situations.

Research on Construction Risk Evaluation of EPC Project of Transmission and Distribution Engineering Based on Design Enterprise

The EPC general contracting model of power transmission and transformation projects consisting of design, procurement and construction has gradually been favored by the owners in recent years. Among the EPC general contractors, design institutes often occupy a leading position by virtue of their design advantages, but they are inferior in construction management, and there are many construction risk factors. In this paper, the potential risks in the construction phase are stripped out, combined with the characteristics of power transmission and transformation projects, the risk identification system is established, based on the gray whitening weight function, the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method is used to evaluate the construction risk of the EPC project of the power transmission and transformation project led by the design enterprise.

Business and Human Trafficking: A Social Connection and Political Responsibility Model

Human trafficking is one of the most lucrative international criminal activities and is widespread across a variety of industries. The response to human trafficking in corporate supply chains has been dominated by analyses of due diligence obligations. Existing scholarship, however, has cast doubt on the effectiveness of corporate due diligence in addressing human trafficking, because human trafficking is the outcome of macro-level social structures that are created by and consist of multiple actors, including business. The outsourcing and sub-contracting model provides incentives throughout the global supply chain to sub-contract further to reduce the cost of labor, which has led to human trafficking remaining a pervasive problem. Business responsibility for human trafficking derives from the fact that business decisions and strategies enable the conditions that allow for human trafficking to occur within their supply chains. To address human trafficking, we propose a social connection and political responsibility model, based on Iris Marion Young’s analysis of social connection and structural injustice, that is holistic, forward-looking, and outcomes-oriented. We differentiate between businesses with a strong connection to human trafficking and businesses with a weak connection, and within this distinction delineate different pathways that firms can take to meet their political responsibilities to address human trafficking. We conclude with implications for future research.

As parcerias público-privadas e a infraestrutura no Brasil

<p>The public-private partnerships and the infrastructure in Brazil</p><p> </p><p>As parcerias público-privadas foram apresentadas como a solução para a falta de investimento público em infraestrutura no Brasil. Entretanto, trata-se de um modelo de contratação complexo que merece todo o planejamento necessário para que se mostre adequado ao interesse público. A opção pelo modelo de parcerias público-privadas nem sempre é a opção mais barata, se comparada ao investimento público. Somente em casos de comprovada maior eficiência do agente privado deverá o Estado optar pelo modelo contratual de parcerias público-privadas, sob pena de grandes prejuízos aos cofres públicos e da consequente responsabilização de agentes estatais.</p><p> </p><p>Public-private partnerships were presented as the solution to the lack of fund for investment in infrastructure in Brazil. However, it is a complex contracting model that deserves all the necessary planning to be adequate to the public interest. The option of public-private partnerships is not always a cheaper option compared to public investment. Only in cases of proven greater efficiency of the private agent should the State opt for the contractual model of public-private partnerships, under penalty of great losses to the public coffers and the consequent accountability of state agents.</p>