India’s 5G auction will boost Reliance’s digital plans

Significance This came after the government announced plans for a 4G spectrum auction in March 2021, after a five-year gap. There is growing speculation that this will be followed by an auction of 5G spectrum later in the year. Impacts Reliance’s lead on 5G will boost its broader digital business strategy. New financial support to indebted telcos will help to avoid further strain on public sector banks. Data tariffs are likely to remain competitive in India, even after a new floor price.

Promotional Policies and Legislative Support for Grid-Connected Renewable Energy Projects

Renewable Energy Sources-Based Electricity (RES-E) plays a key role in sustainable development – of meeting current energy demands, without adding to global warming concerns. However, as of 2017, only 8.5% of the total electricity generation came from RES-E. To boost this contribution, countries rely on strong legislative and policy support/tools. This case focuses on studying the legislative or regulatory frameworks put in place by the top three developed countries, and compares it with three developing countries, each of which are forerunners in RES-E, as of 2017. The comparative study suggests that while no single policy can be credited with the success behind rising RES-E in these countries, two key incentives are most important – namely feed-in-tariffs and renewable purchase obligations. Feed-in-tariffs act as floor price guarantee to the generator and renewable purchase obligations assures the generator of quantum of sale of the RES-E generated. When combined, these two incentives remain the most trusted policy tools even today for countries starting their journey in increasing their RES-E footprints.

Socio-economic model for the operation of a solar platform for the conservation and valorization of local milk in the village of Tatki in Northern Senegal

Livestock is a strategic sector that occupies nearly 60% of rural households and accounts for 4.3% of Senegal's Gross Domestic Product (ANSD, 2016). The dairy sector plays a decisive role in this sector, given its importance in the food security of the population and the income it generates (Alari et al, 2011). However, national milk production is in deficit; the country relies on imports of large quantities of milk powder, 25,000 tons/year, to cover its consumption needs (MEPA, 2016). These imports weigh heavily on public finances, up to 60 billion FCFA/year, thus accentuating the trade balance deficit, which was 2,977 billion FCFA in 2016 (ANSD, 2018). The analysis of the milk value chain highlights, in addition to the difficulties of securing production in the dry season, the poor access to energy in production areas (Enda Energie, 2015). Thus, in these localities, the milk can neither be preserved nor processed to be valorized and allow producers to earn stable incomes. It is in this context that a milk valorization platform was installed in 2016, in the village of Tatki located in a dairy basin in northern Senegal. After two years of operation of the platform, the financial results showed real difficulties in making the business of selling fresh milk to dairy industries profitable, given the landlocked nature of the area. Indeed, the cost price is 320 CFA francs per liter, for a price proposed by the industrialist set at 325 CFA. According to economic calculations, the floor price of a liter of fresh milk should be set at 550 CFA francs, for a minimum average commercialized volume of 471 liters per day, within the framework of a concessional credit at a rate of 5%. These conditions do not correspond to the reality of the current market and could not be applied without a subsidy. Thus, in order to make the platform profitable, it seems essential to add value to the milk by processing it on site. In this regard, the production of yogurt has given very interesting results that could be replicated in other villages in the northern zone. The financial analysis of the activity, for financing at a subsidized rate of 7.5% per year for a period of 7 years and a deferred repayment of 2 years, shows a rate of return of 18% for a period of 15 years, when local milk is processed into yogurt. The wealth generated (10% NPV) amounts to 227,269,450 FCFA and the time to recover the capital invested is 3.90 years.

The Influence of Floor Type of Multi-Family Residential on the Transaction Price and the Estimation of Utility Ratio among Floors

In Taiwan’s multi-family residential, there are some problems in the previous research on the utility ratio among floors, including the failure to consider the difference in total number of floors, the excessive research scope and the residential price without deducting the parking space price. This research hopes to improve the problems of previous research, select 1,172 data of multi-family residential with total number of floors of 12, 15 and 22, and use the hedonic price model to establish the utility ratio among floors of residential buildings, and then compare the difference between absolute floors and relative floors on the transaction price. The empirical results found that in the comparative analysis of absolute floors and relative floors, the variable of relative floors is significant, showing that the residential price is significantly different with different total number of floors, and the total number of floors is higher that the residential price is higher; the importance of absolute floors on the residential price isn’t high. In the model of utility ratio among floors of different total number of floors, the utility curves are distributed in zigzag pattern. Taking floor 4 as the base floor, the floor price difference is higher on floor 1 and near the top floors, and the floor price difference of other floors is not significant.

Simulating the Impact of a Cigarette Minimum Floor Price Law on Adult Smoking Prevalence in California

Introduction Minimum floor price laws (MFPLs) are an emerging tobacco control policy that sets a minimum price below which a specific tobacco product cannot be sold. MFPLs target cheaper products and may disproportionately impact consumers choosing low price brands or using discounts to reduce prices. We developed a static microsimulation model for California, United States to project short-term effects of different MFPL options for a 20-stick pack of cigarettes on adult smoking behaviors. Aims and Methods We simulated 300 000 individuals defined by race and ethnicity, sex, age, and poverty status. Smoking behaviors and cigarette prices were assigned based on demographic distributions in the 2014–2016 California Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. We drew 100 random samples (n = 30 000), weighted to state-level California demographic characteristics. We simulated six MFPL options and modeled impacts on smoking prevalence and cigarette consumption, in general, and separately for those in households below or above 250% of the federal poverty level, assuming a price elasticity of −0.4. Results Predicted changes in prices, prevalence, and consumption increased exponentially as the floor price increased from $7.00 to $9.50. Assuming 15% policy avoidance, projected increases in average cigarette prices ranged from $0.19 to $1.61. Decreases in smoking prevalence ranged from 0.05 to 0.43 percentage points, and decreases in average monthly cigarette consumption ranged from 1.4 to 12.3 cigarettes. Projected prices increased, and prevalence and consumption decreased, more among individuals in households below 250% federal poverty level. Conclusions MFPLs are a promising tobacco control strategy with the potential to reduce socioeconomic disparities in cigarette smoking prevalence and consumption. Implications Despite reductions in adult smoking prevalence, significant socioeconomic disparities remain, with lower-income groups smoking at substantially higher levels than higher-income groups. Policies that set a floor price below which a tobacco product cannot be sold could reduce socioeconomic disparities in smoking, depending on variation in prices paid by smokers prepolicy. By using a microsimulation model to predict changes in smoking for different population groups in California under several floor price scenarios, this study demonstrates that MFPLs have the potential to reduce adult smoking prevalence overall, and especially for lower-income tobacco users.

Increasing the Price of Alcohol as an Obesity Prevention Measure: The Potential Cost-Effectiveness of Introducing a Uniform Volumetric Tax and a Minimum Floor Price on Alcohol in Australia

The objective of this study was to estimate, from an obesity prevention perspective, the cost-effectiveness of two potential policies that increase the price of alcohol in Australia: a volumetric tax applied to all alcohol (Intervention 1) and a minimum unit floor price (Intervention 2). Estimated changes in alcoholic drink consumption and corresponding changes in energy intake were calculated using the 2011–12 Australian Health Survey data, published price elasticities, and nutrition information. The incremental changes in body mass index (BMI), BMI-related disease outcomes, healthcare costs, and Health Adjusted Life Years (HALYs) were estimated using a validated model. Costs associated with each intervention were estimated for government and industry. Both interventions were estimated to lead to reductions in mean alcohol consumption (Intervention 1: 20.7% (95% Uncertainty Interval (UI): 20.2% to 21.1%); Intervention 2: 9.2% (95% UI: 8.9% to 9.6%)); reductions in mean population body weight (Intervention 1: 0.9 kg (95% UI: 0.84 to 0.96); Intervention 2: 0.45 kg (95% UI: 0.42 to 0.48)); HALYs gained (Intervention 1: 566,648 (95% UI: 497,431 to 647,262); Intervention 2: 317,653 (95% UI: 276,334 to 361,573)); and healthcare cost savings (Intervention 1: $5.8 billion (B) (95% UI: $5.1B to $6.6B); Intervention 2: $3.3B (95% UI: $2.9B to $3.7B)). Intervention costs were estimated as $24M for Intervention 1 and $30M for Intervention 2. Both interventions were dominant, resulting in health gains and cost savings. Increasing the price of alcohol is likely to be cost-effective from an obesity prevention perspective in the Australian context, provided consumers substitute alcoholic beverages with low or no kilojoule alternatives.