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The most challenging aspect of developing a green hydrogen economy is long-distance oceanic transportation. Hydrogen liquefaction is a transportation alternative. However, the cost and energy consumption for liquefaction is currently prohibitively high, creating a major barrier to hydrogen supply chains. This paper proposes using solid nitrogen or oxygen as a medium for recycling cold energy across the hydrogen liquefaction supply chain. When a liquid hydrogen (LH2) carrier reaches its destination, the regasification process of the hydrogen produces solid nitrogen or oxygen. The solid nitrogen or oxygen is then transported in the LH2 carrier back to the hydrogen liquefaction facility and used to reduce the energy consumption cooling gaseous hydrogen. As a result, the energy required to liquefy hydrogen can be reduced by 25.4% using N2 and 27.3% using O2. Solid air hydrogen liquefaction (SAHL) can be the missing link for implementing a global hydrogen economy.

Land use and water management have considerable impacts on regional climates. This paper proposes that in humid regions with low wind patterns the construction of hydropower storage reservoirs contributes to the increases in the probability of precipitation in the regional climate. This observation has been tested with a methodology that calculates the cumulative influence of reservoir construction in the basins surrounding with a proposed index named Cumulative Impact of Existing Reservoirs, and compares this index with the historical flow of the rivers. It was found that the construction of reservoirs in Brazil had a considerable impact on its river flows.

The energy sector is undergoing substantial transition with the integration of variable renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar energy. These sources come with hourly, daily, seasonal and yearly variations; raising the need for short and long-term energy storage technologies to guarantee the smooth and secure supply of electricity. This paper critically reviews the existing types of pumped-hydro storage plants, highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each configuration. We propose some innovative arrangements for pumped-hydro storage, which increases the possibility to find suitable locations for building large-scale reservoirs for long-term energy and water storage. Some of the proposed arrangements are compared in a case study for the upper Zambezi water basin, which has considerable water storage limitations due to its flat topography and arid climate. Results demonstrate that the proposed combined short and long-term cycles pumped-storage arrangement could be a viable solution for energy storage and reduce the cost for water storage to near zero.

O estudo da avaliação de políticas públicas nas economias dependentes foi desenvolvido com o intuito de analisar as metodologias usadas para a avaliação das políticas públicas nessas economias, através da revisão da literatura. O estudo reforça a ideia de que tanto as metodologias positivistas, como as pós-positivistas da avaliação de políticas são importantes na avaliação de políticas públicas, pelo enfoque diferenciado que cada uma delas faz. Em segundo lugar, propõe que nas economias dependentes o avaliador esteja atento para apurar se não houve influências externas no ato da tomada de decisão sobre as políticas públicas, o que neste estudo se denominou relações informais de poder.

This study aims to analyze the performance of the Electrical Energy Index in the perspective of Institutional Changes in Brazilian Electricity Sector. The research focused its efforts in analyze the impact of Provisional Measure No. 579 of September 11, 2012 (converted into Law No. 12783 / 2013) on the stocks of the Electric Power Sector, represented here by the respective sector index in BM&FBOVESPA. The research results reveal that from the release of Provisional Measure No. 579 by the end of the observed time interval (April 2015), the Electrical Energy Index didn't recovered from the reversal trend caused by this measure, which once was a growth trend but instantly became a stagnation / decay trend.Keywords: Brazilian Electricity Sector. Capital Markets. Electrical Energy Index. Laws and Regulations. Provisional Measure No. 579/2012.JEL Classifications: G38; K23; L51; Q40; Q48.

Water management strategies can have considerable impacts on the regional climate and hydrology. It is usually the case that the construction and operation of hydropower reduce the river flow downstream due to the increase in evaporation. However, this paper shows that in humid regions, such as in Brazil, the hydropower storage reservoirs contribute to increase the flow of the river. This observation has been tested with historical reservoir levels and river flow data from several dams in Brazil. It was found that the operation of reservoirs in Brazil has a considerable impact on its river flows. The higher the storage level at the beginning of the humid period, the higher the river flow during the wet period. The paper proposes strategies to allow the reservoirs to fill up and to maintain the reservoirs filled in the future, with the intention of increasing hydropower generation and reducing the intermittency of other renewable energy sources.

Worldwide, the electricity sector has undergone radical changes with the emergence of new technologies that expand possibilities. In such a dynamic environment, the sector's regulatory and supervisory activities became major challenges. In this article, we present a case study on the collaborative design of a digital platform for learning, accessing information and fostering the collaboration between distributors, the regulatory agency and electricity consumer councils in Brazil. A series of national surveys were conducted with industry authorities, experts, representatives of electricity distributors and representatives of final consumers. Finally, we present the results of these surveys, which allowed the derivation of primary requirements for the design of the collaboration platform that is under development.

The long-term study of the electricity sector needs to consider a number of variables beyond the changes in population or economic activity, and include the availability of resources, the development of technology standards, environmental management and cultural habits. Thus, quantitative predictions may prove fragile and a consistent alternative lies in developing qualitative scenarios. In this article, we examine the characteristics of the Brazilian electricity sector to the 2030s, evaluating the uncertainties inherent in energy use patterns, the expectation of expanding the supply of electricity, the rate of development, the spread of smart grids, the insertion electric vehicles, commercial and regulatory trends as well as the future structure of the business environment. The goal is to present in summary form the constructed scenarios and guidelines formulated for the Brazilian electricity sector of the 2030s, through the different topics previously mentioned. In this study, we consider society’s behavior as the central variable distinguishing the baseline scenario and the scenario “Energy in Future City”. In short, the scenario “Energy in Future City” is expected that consumers will have a more active behavior and grant more importance to the quality and sustainability in the baseline scenario. Thus, while the power supply expansion reference scenario occurs primarily from the operation of conventional sources and advances in smart grids and electric mobility are limited, in the scenario “Energy in the City of the Future”, there the emergence of new technologies associated with the diffusion of new business models and a regulatory framework less interventionist.

Electrical integration is a topic discussed and promoted worldwide. European countries have created regional electricity markets, while in South American countries the creation of a regional electricity market is still a distant option due to economic and social asymmetries and, especially, because of incompatibilities in the regulatory framework and energy trading mechanisms. This paper aims to analyze the electrical integration process in South America, being Brazil the central focus of the analysis. The main constraints of Brazil's regulatory model are analyzed, highlighting that the last restructuring process of the electrical sector (2003-2004) has defined a commercial model where financial contracts of “physical guarantee” are traded instead of electricity itself, and where the power plants do not have autonomy over their own production. The already existing integration projects are also analyzed highlighting that these projects were developed under special conditions for taking advantage of specific opportunities without the support of a strategic integration policy. Additionally, the paper addresses two other electrical integration projects that are being discussed.

The rise in distributed renewable energy generation creates a growing need to find viable solutions for energy storage to match energy demand and supply at any time. This paper evaluates the possibility of using swimming pools as a long-term cooling energy storage solution, i.e., Swimming Pool Thermal Energy Storage (SPTES). This technology allows a small building to store solar energy for cooling purposes in a yearly cycle, by filling the pool with ice slurry in winter and using that ice to cool the house in the summertime. Additionally, the pool can be used as a heat sink for a heat pump to heat the house during the winter. Results show that the energy storage cost of 0.078 US$ kWhe−1 is substantially smaller when compared with batteries (125 US$ kWhe−1). This makes SPTES a good alternative to support the development of 100% renewable energy systems in locations where the climate has a highly seasonal variation in temperature and the cooling demand is high in summer.

In recent years, the diffusion of photovoltaic distributed generation (PVDG) has played a key role in achieving climate and energy policies goals. This increase stems from both the decline of technology costs and also from the support policies adopted worldwide. Yet, the achieved diffusion levels and the related impacts vary across locations. By applying a new analytical approach to thirteen international case studies, the study provides an exhaustive systematization of policies and regulatory adjustments of PVDG diffusion, focusing on the electricity distribution sector. The goal is to identify possible common patterns and path dependence trajectories. The results show that the policy impacts and the regulatory adjustments vary mostly according to the category of the support policies implemented. In countries where feed-in tariffs (FiTs) have been introduced, the main concern is the increasing cost of policies maintenance. The regulatory adjustments are mostly PV specific involving, in most cases, the reduction of the FiTs. In regions where net metering policies have been implemented, otherwise, the impacts are predominantly related to cost-shifting issues, thus requiring regulatory changes which can also be prosumers’ specific, but that attempt to correct allocative distortions through electricity tariffs.

This work presents a methodology to perform a multi-criteria decision analysis based on qualitative assessments from multiple experts or stakeholders. The application that motivated these methodological developments is also described, consisting of an assessment of policies to foster technological innovations in the electricity sector, namely in a context of evolution to smart grids. Qualitative assessments were elicited from 28 experts using a Delphi process. The assessments concern the impact of policies on different objectives, but also opinions concerning the importance of these objectives. These opinions are translated into constraints on the weights of the corresponding criteria, in a partial information setting. Then, policies are sorted into categories based on a stochastic multi-criteria analysis for the ELECTRE TRI method. A new ranking approach is also developed to be compatible with the sorting results, based on a robustness analysis of ELECTRE TRI credibility indices. Results are discussed considering the entire set of experts and considering subsets of experts representing different perspectives.

The evolution of existing electricity grids to smart grids is aimed at accommodating increasing shares of renewable generation thus contributing for the de-carbonization of economy, offering more diversified services to consumers, enhancing different types of markets (energy, capacity, ancillary services) and improving the system's overall efficiency. As the economic characteristics of the electricity sector tend to discourage investments in smart grids, many countries have adopted incentive policies to foster the deployment of new technologies, which vary according to the particular characteristics of each country. Therefore, the design of specific public policies for Brazil must consider not only the motivations involved, but also the existing challenges for the implementation of smart grids and the socio-economic context. Moreover, the relevance of the proposed policies can be seen from different perspectives. This justifies the need to elicit information from multiple stakeholders for decision support purposes. This paper presents and assesses a set of policies identified by different stakeholders as having a potential to foster the development of smart grids in Brazil. The methodology to shape this set of policies consisted of a thorough literature review of international experiences, combined with meetings with experts in several domains. Then, these policies were assessed by applying a Delphi questionnaire aiming at measuring their effectiveness in fulfilling the objectives associated with investments in smart grids. A first conclusion is that all policies were assessed as having a positive impact taking into account each of the objectives, differing only in the priority to be assigned to each one. The policies that were considered more relevant were: "Incentive Policies for Promoting Demand-Side Management, Distributed Generation and Storage", "Regulatory Changes to Foster Innovation in the Energy Sector" and "Regulation of New Business Models". Among the policies with the worst scores, "Mandatory Rollout of Smart Meters" and "Establishing Quality Standards for the Telecommunications Industry" were ranked as the two lower-ranked policies, i.e., they were assigned lower priority under all objectives.

The present work aims to analyze UK's and Brazil's wholesale electricity trading models. UK's model, also known as New Electricity Trading Arrangements (NETA), can be considered a reference for the present day electricity markets. Recently UK has implemented a market reform that, while maintaining UK's market structure, introduced several strong regulatory economic signals in order to foster new investments, both in thermal and in low carbon emission electricity generation. Brazil's wholesale market model is also noteworthy as it managed to promote large scale investments in low carbon generation in a liberalized market environment. However, Brazil's regulatory framework design proved fragile during a recent long draught period when short term financial obligations related to imbalance settlements soared and led to financial stress and, eventually to a market halt.

This chapter examines energy integration issues within Latin America, with a discussion of the current situation, focusing on both the “haves” and “have-nots” and the benefits and drawbacks from energy integration. It examines the opportunities and prospects for the future, in particular with a discussion of some of the benefits that might be attained from widespread integration of electricity markets within the region, and why these opportunities have not been achieved to date, identifying the geopolitical issues that should be considered in any integration effort, and the progress that has been achieved so far by looking at the regional experiences in energy integration. Among the conclusions of this chapter is the belief that for energy integration to succeed in Latam, a compelling belief is needed within policymakers and political establishment on the benefits that can be attained from such integration.

Este artigo tem como objetivo analisar a política para o setor elétricoda União Europeia. Mostra-se que, basicamente, há três políticas adotadas: i)política de redução de emissão de gases de efeito estufa; ii) o caráter eminentementedoméstico da administração dos congestionamentos de transmissão;e iii) a formação das grandes empresas conhecidas como Campeãs Nacionais.Mostra-se que estas políticas, por serem adotadas de forma unilateral, têm operadocomo óbices a um mercado integrado e competitivo.

Este artigo tem como objetivo mostrar que devido à estrutura de governança do setor elétrico brasileiro (maior parte hierarquia que mercado) e dadas às características próprias do setor, tais como especificidade dos ativos, incerteza e freqüência das transações, os custos de transação tendem a ser significativos. Logo, em ambientes caracterizados dessa forma, as firmas tendem a realizar transações verticalizadas. Conclui-se que, no caso do setor elétrico brasileiro, no qual a verticalização é proibida, as empresas tendem a se estruturar sob a forma de holdings, visando minimizar os custos de transação e maximizar os ganhos das sinergias das operações ao longo da cadeia de produção.

Desde o início dos anos 2000, o regionalismo sul-americano vive uma tendência multidimensional, incluindo novas temáticas ao foco das discussões sobre integração, entre elas, a energia. Diante deste cenário, o objetivo central deste trabalho é entender como se dá a formação de preferências do Brasil por um acordo de integração energética. Além dele, foram adotados como objetivos secundários: (i) estudar o histórico da integração energética na América do Sul, especialmente no que tange ao Brasil; (ii) entender o processo de negociação que envolve um acordo, formulando um tipo ideal voltado a integração energética e; (iii) reconhecer os benefícios e as dificuldades que envolvem a opção por um acordo energético de tipo bilateral ou multilateral. A fim de responder a essas perguntas, adotou-se a abordagem de Jogos de Dois Níveis, de Robert Putnam, por sua capacidade em relacionar a dinâmica da política interna com a externa, permitindo a análise do cenário complexo das negociações de um acordo de integração energética. A partir desta pesquisa, viu-se que a morosidade que envolve o processo de integração energética na América do Sul não é resultado apenas da falta de vontade política ou da ausência de um ator que arque com seus custos, mas principalmente da dificuldade em coordenar uma ampla gama de atores, interesses, expectativas e ordenamentos jurídicos, em mais de uma esfera de negociação. Por isso, diante de necessidades pontuais e imediatas, vê-se, por parte do Brasil, a adoção majoritária de acordos bilaterais, sem abandonar, no entanto, paralelamente, as discussões dos foros multilaterais. Since the early 2000s, the South America regionalism lives a multidimensional trend, including new themes to focus the integration discussions, including energy. In this scenario, the aim of this research is to understand the preferences formation in Brazil for an energy integration agreement. Besides, were adopted as secondary objectives: (i) study the history of energy integration in South America, especially in regard to Brazil; (ii) understand the negotiation process that involves an agreement by formulating an ideal energy integration agreement and; (iii) recognize the benefits and difficulties involving the choice of an energy bilateral or multilateral agreement. In order to answer these questions were adopted the approach of Two-Level Games by Robert Putnam, because of its ability to relate the dynamics of internal politics with the foreign policy, allowing the analysis of the complex scenario of an energy integration agreement negotiations. From this research, it is clear that the length involving the energy integration process in South America is not the result only a political lack or a paymaster absence, but mainly the difficulty in coordinating a wide range of actors, interests, expectations and legal systems, in more than one sphere of negotiation. So, by particular needs, Brazil elects bilateral agreements, without abandoning, however, in parallel, discussions in multilateral forums.

As características estruturais do setor elétrico brasileiro são semelhantes às de outros setores produtivos clássicos. O segmento geração de energia elétrica ocupa um papel de destaque não só no aspecto estrutural, mas também na sua participação dentro da tarifa de fornecimento de energia elétrica, com participação da ordem de 30%. As questões comerciais que deveriam estar presentes de forma intensa durante todo o ciclo de vida do SEB, somente nas duas últimas décadas ganharam destaque e lhe foi dada a devida importância. Este trabalho procurou identificar como se processou as relações negociais, em particular as de cunho comercial, entre as empresas, supridoras e supridas, integrantes do setor elétrico brasileiro - SEB. O estudo foi segmentado em três períodos: 1990 a 1996 - \"Concepção da privatização\", 1997 a 2002 - \"Execução Operacional do Programa de Privatização\" e 2003 a 2006 - \"Modelo da Reestruturação\". Foram analisados os conceitos referentes a energia assegurada, mecanismo de realocação de energia e contratos iniciais.O texto expõe também a evolução histórica do SEB desde o final do século XIX, durante todo o século XX, e observou as externalidades que contribuíram para o posicionamento atual, como por exemplo, crise do México, Consenso de Washington e Racionamento de Energia Elétrica - 2001. Finalmente são apresentados os conceitos e o processo de cálculo do custo marginal de operação - CMO e do preço da liquidação das diferenças - PLD e do atual processo de comercialização de energia que compreende os ambientes de contratação regulada, com destaque para os leilões de energia, e o ambiente de contratação livre. The characteristics of the Brazilian Electrical Sector, BES, are similar to those of other classic productive sectors. The electrical power generation segment plays an important role not only in the structural aspect, but also in the share of about 30% of the user\'s end tariff. The commercial issues, that should have been strongly emphasized in all BES life cycle, have only in the two last decades received the attention it deserved. This work aimed at identifying how business relations developed, particularly the commercial issues of the companies belonging to the BES system; that is, suppliers and supplied components of the said system. This project was divided into three parts: 1990 to 1996 - \"Conception of privatization\", 1997 to 2002 - \"Operational execution of privatization programs\" and 2003 to 2006 - \"Restructuring model\". Concepts related to assured power supply, electricity reallocation mechanism and initial contracts were analyzed. The text still describes BES historical evolution from the end of the nineteenth century through the twentieth century. The prevailing external scenarios that contributed to the present situation, e.g., Mexico Crises, Washington Consensus and 2001 Electricity Supply Restriction were also taken into account. Due consideration has also been given to: marginal operational cost calculation, settlement price for the differences (spot prices) and the existing process of power commercializing, which encompasses free and regulated contracting ambience. In the latter power auction plays the dominant role.

O presente trabalho foca-se na análise do processo de reestruturação do setor elétrico brasileiro, em particular nas mudanças ocorridas do ponto de vista institucional e regulatório, entre os anos de 1995 a 2004. Tendo como pano de fundo esse cenário, a tese preocupa-se em analisar a evolução do papel do Estado e sua relação com as políticas públicas orientadas para esse segmento da infra-estrutura nacional. Analisa-se, de um lado, a passagem do padrão de intervenção estatal para o modelo mercantil privado, instituído a partir de 1995, e de outro, as diversas adaptações vivenciadas pelo setor ao longo do biênio 2003/2004. Neste particular, destaca-se o novo papel atribuído às agências reguladoras e ao Estado, bem como a nova política mercantil, de preços e de planejamento redefinida para o setor. Por fim, à luz de toda a discussão abordada sobre Estado, políticas públicas e setoriais, planejamento e modelo regulatório, caracteriza-se a política industrial brasileira, divulgada em novembro de 2003, e sua possível articulação tanto com as premissas levantadas no modelo de reestruturação do setor elétrico brasileiro em curso no País, quanto com a revisão da inserção do Brasil no cenário internacional, dado o peso que os produtos ligados a empresas eletrointensivas, vêm ganhando na pauta de exportação brasileira. Neste particular, são analisadas as estratégias adotadas por tais empresas na tentativa de reduzir o custo do insumo energia, em seus processos produtivos, no âmbito das regras vigentes no país, em especial, no Ambiente de Contratação Livre (ACL). Conclui-se que a articulação entre política industrial e setor elétrico só será possível, se for definida com clareza uma nova estratégia de desenvolvimento sustentável para o Brasil, capaz de superar os limites impostos pela política macroeconômica de curto prazo. This study analyzes the restructuring of the Brazilian electrical sector, in particular the institutional and regulatory changes between 1995 and 2005. With this context as a backdrop, the dissertation analyzes the evolution of the role of the State and its relation with public policies related to this sector of national infrastructure. It analyzes, the shift from the pattern of state intervention to free market model, implemented starting in 1995, as well as the various adaptations the sector underwent in 2003-2004. In this regard, attention is given to the new role attributed to regulatory agencies and to the State, as well as the new commercial, price and planning policies implemented for the sector. Finally, in light of the discussion of the State, public and sectoral policies, planning and regulatory model, a description is provided of the Brazilian industrial policy announced in November of 2003, and its possible connection with the premises revealed in the model of restructuring of the electrical sector under way in Brazil, as well as the rethinking of the role of Brazil in the international context, given the weight that electricity-intensive products have been gaining in terms of exports. In this regard, the strategies of such companies to reduce energy costs in their production process, in the context of Brazilian rules and regulations, and in particular, the Free Contracting Environment (ACL), are analyzed. It is concluded that coordination of industrial policy and the electrical sector will only be possible if there is a clearly defined sustainable development strategy for Brazil, able to overcome the limitations of short-term macroeconomic policies.

Os projetos hidrelétricos binacionais existentes têm exibido grandes resultados no que se refere à integração energética, principalmente pela forma com que os países membros vêm lidando com os investimentos de geração. Nesse sentido, com base em pesquisas documentais realizadas para a compreensão da evolução da regulação especialmente da integração de energia e potência dos empreendimentos e dos mercados elétricos dos países contratantes , assim como da regulação elétrica dos países envolvidos, o presente trabalho tem por objetivo apresentar alinhamentos regulatórios para o desenvolvimento de futuros projetos hidrelétricos binacionais. Parte das ferramentas apresentadas e dos arranjos previstos nos modelos é preexistente e, inclusive, alguns deles têm sido aplicados na regulação existente de projetos em desenvolvimento. Contudo, será apresentada uma forma articulada de utilização, mediante a criação de modelos que possam servir como alinhamentos gerais para melhor orientar os esforços para a realização de futuros projetos binacionais. Tudo isso sob a ótica da teoria de desenhos de mercado e da teoria do interesse privado, com o intuito de, consequentemente, facilitar a inclusão de empreendedores privados nesse tipo de iniciativa. The existing binational hydroelectric projects have shown very good results when it comes to energy market integration, especially considering the way that countries deal with generation investments. Therefore, based on documentary research conducted to understand the evolution of the energy markets regulation particularly the way that the involved countries deal with the integration of the energy and power coming of the enterprises to their national energy markets , as well as the electrical regulation of such countries, this document intends to introduce regulatory alignments to guide the development of future binational hydroelectric projects. Some of the regulatory tools and arrangements presented as part of the models are pre-existing to this paper, and even some of them have been used on existing regulation of projects currently under development. However, an articulate way to use them will be presented, by creating models that can serve as general alignments to improve the accuracy of the efforts for the development of new binational hydroelectric projects. All this from the standpoint of the energy market designs theory and private interest theory, in order to facilitate the inclusion of private entrepreneurs in this kind of initiative.

Este trabalho parte da constatação de que, na história de Mato Grosso do Sul, sempre esteve presente a disputa, tão frequente no Brasil, entre os projetos de desenvolvimento de longo prazo e os interesses imediatistas do núcleo governante. Esta análise é conduzida nesta tese pelos os conceitos estruturais de desenvolvimento e subdesenvolvimento, dentro de um quadro teórico preciso, à luz das teorias macro-econômicas de Celso Furtado. Em seguida, o trabalho analisa como, em Mato Grosso do Sul, apesar da presença frequente do discurso do desenvolvimento, a força do imediatismo das elites suplantou as articulações que visassem um projeto de desenvolvimento sustentado e duradouro, capaz de melhorar as condições materiais e intelectuais da sociedade. Em particular no setor energético, que é o foco central desta tese, a contradição é marcante, principalmente em razão de que, sob vários aspectos, Mato Grosso do Sul abriga um dos mais importantes parques hidrelétricos do Brasil, sobretudo no Rio Paraná, compartilhado com São Paulo. Foi justamente a debilidade da visão de longo prazo que levou a que a implantação desse parque energético ocorresse à margem de seus governos. This work starts from the observation that in the history of Mato Grosso do Sul, the race was always present, so frequent in Brazil, among the development projects of long term and immediate interests of the core ruling. This analysis is conducted in this thesis by the structural concepts of development and underdevelopment, within a precise theoretical framework, under Celso Furtados macroeconomic theories. Then, in work examines how, in Mato Grosso do Sul, despite the frequent presence of the development discourse, the strength of the immediacy of the elites supplanted the joints which are aimed at a project of sustainable development and durable, capable of improving the material conditions and intellectual society. Particularly in the energy sector that is the focus of this thesis, the contradiction is striking, especially considering that in many ways Mato Grosso do Sul is home to one of the most important hydroelectric parks in Brazil, especially in the Paraná River, shared with the state of São Paulo. It was precisely the weakness of long term vision that led to the deployment of such energy park occurred outside of their governments.