ECONOMICS OF ENERGY

Economics of Energy

Wikipedia says" ...Energy economics is a broad scientific subject area which includes topics related to supply and use of energy in societies. "

Energy economics is the field that studies the human utilization of energy resources and energy commodities and the consequences of that utilization. In physical science terminology, “energy” is the capacity for doing work, e.g., lifting, accelerating, or heating material. In economic terminology, “energy” includes all energy commodities and energy resources, products or resources that embody significant amounts of physical energy and thus offer the ability to perform work. Energy commodities - e.g., gasoline, diesel fuel, natural gas, propane, coal, or electricity – can be used to provide energy services for human activities, such as lighting, space heating, water heating, cooking, motive power, automatic operation.

Energy resources - e.g., crude oil, natural gas, coal, biomass, hydro, uranium, wind, sunlight, alternatively, geothermal deposits – can be harvested to produce energy commodities. Energy economics studies forces that lead economic agents – firms, individuals, governments – to supply energy resources, to convert those resources into other useful energy forms, to transport them to the users, to use them, and to dispose of the residuals. It studies roles of alternative market and regulatory structures on these activities, distributional economic impacts, and environmental consequences. It investigates economically efficient provision and use of energy commodities and resources and factors that lead away from economic efficiency.

Energy economics recognizes the fundamental physical realities that 1) no energy is created or destroyed but that energy can be converted among its various forms, and 2) power comes from the physical environment and ultimately is released back into the physical environment.
Thus, energy economics is the study of human activities using energy resources from naturally available forms, though often complex conversion processes, to forms providing energy services.

The role of energy in economic activity is to study in details modern methods of assessing energy technologies, projects, and policies, and debates concerning alternative future energy scenarios. It also analyses both fossil fuels, renewable and nuclear energy sources as well as energy efficiency and conservation. Additional topics include the environmental impacts of energy use including climate change and the role of power in economic development.

We offer you free Consultancy, and you will have everything to gain and nothing to lose. Act now, our team will make it easy for you to discover our government rebates and taxes incentivizes which will make all the energy improvements within your hands. Our mutual co-operation and our powerful solutions are all that you need to succeed, improve your building performance and save money. You will never worry or overpay again.

Sources:
1- Energy economics - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_and_the_Macroeconomy
2- Economics of Energy - Stanford University.  https://goo.gl/LvhJ5u

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What your 1 – 100 ENERGY STAR score means?

The 1 – 100 ENERGY STAR score is a screening tool that helps you assess how your building is performing. It’ll help you identify which buildings in your portfolio to target for improvement or recognition. A score of 50 is the median. So if your building scores below 50, it means it’s performing worse than 50 percent of similar buildings nationwide, while a score above 50 says it’s playing better than 50 percent of its peers. Moreover, a score of 75 or higher means it’s a top performer and may be eligible for ENERGY STAR certification. The ENERGY STAR score provides a comprehensive snapshot of your building’s energy performance. It assesses the building’s physical assets, operations, and occupant behavior in a quick and easy-to-understand number. As a rule of thumb, In an analysis of more than 30,000 buildings that benchmarked consistently in Portfolio Manager over a 3-year period, EPA found that buildings that start with lower ENERGY STAR scores and higher energy use achieve the most significant savings.

We offer you free Consultancy, and you will have everything to gain and nothing to lose. Act now, our team will make it easy for you to discover our government rebates and taxes incentivizes which will make all the energy improvements within your hands. Our mutual co-operation and our powerful solutions are all that you need to succeed, improve your building performance and save money. You will never worry or overpay again.

Energy management solutions, in brief,  means use smart sensors to remotely track energy utilization trends in your buildings, helping you increase operational efficiencies. Monitor and manage consumption in real-time and get alerts notifying you of changes, so you can proactively make adjustments and improve your bottom line.

Sources:
https://www.energystar.gov/buildings/facility-owners-and-managers/existing-buildings/use-portfolio-manager/interpret-your-results/what

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Clean Energy

What is renewable energy?

Renewable energy is derived from natural processes that are replenished at a rate that is equal to or faster than the speed at which they are consumed.

There are various forms of renewable energy, deriving directly or indirectly from the sun, or from heat generated deep within the earth. They include power generated from solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, hydropower and ocean resources, solid biomass, biogas and liquid biofuels.

Renewable energy sources currently provide about 18% of Canada’s total primary energy supply. Wind and solar energy are the fastest growing sources of electricity in Canada.

In general, Renewable energy is any which comes from renewable natural resources, such as wind, rain, sunlight, geothermal heat, and tides. It is referred to as “renewable” because it doesn’t run out. You can always get more of it.

What is Clean(Green) Energy?

“Clean energy” is just any form of energy which we can create with clean, harmless, and non-polluting methods. Most renewable energy sources are also clean energy sources. But not all.

One such example is geothermal power. It may be a renewable energy source, but some geothermal energy processes can be harmful to the environment. Therefore, this is not always clean energy. However, there are also other forms of geothermal energy which are harmless and pure.

Clean energy makes the less impact on the environment than our current conventional energy sources do. It creates an insignificant amount of carbon dioxide, and its use can reduce the speed of global warming – or global pollution.

What is Sustainable Energy?

Sustainable is a general term used for energy sources whose continued usage does not cause reversible changes and rapidly replenishes. It could return to its original form or is unaffected by consistent usage. The number of solar voltaic panels or wind farms has no impact— what so ever— to the amount of Sunshine or climatic conditions that control wind speed or patterns. Wood-chips and stems, leaves ( called plant biomass by more refined colleagues ) are sustainable means of energy production because they can regrow over and over; replenishable.

What is Alternative Energy?

When we speak of alternative energy, we refer to sources of usable energy that can replace conventional energy sources (usually, without undesirable side effects). The term “alternative energy” is typically used to refer to sources of energy other than nuclear power or fossil fuels.
A form of “alternative energy” might also be renewable energy, or clean energy, or both. The terms are often interchangeable, but not the same.

As you can see, alternative energy, renewable energy, and clean energy are very similar. However, it is essential to know that there are differences.


Sources: 
Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).
Internet article was written by "Kilanko Paul, Process engineer," Nov 15, 2016.
https://www.ukutilitiesltd.com

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Building Automation System(BAS) as a tool of Energy Management system(EMS)

BUILDING AUTOMATION SYSTEM(BAS) AS A TOOL OF ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM(EMS)

People spend about 90 percent of their lives indoors and the buildings where we spend our lives, have a massive impact on it.

There remains widespread confusion around how EMS can best be leveraged to minimize energy use and maximize cost savings. As a result, many building professionals are missing out on opportunities to diminish their energy footprints.

The nucleus of this issue revolves around the fact that these professionals too often use the terms EMS and BMS/BAS interchangeably when they are fundamentally different.

In the 1970s and ‘80s—due to increased energy prices—the demand for a more cost-effective building sent the BAS industry into a whirl of development to make buildings smarter. Taglines like “smart building solutions” started dotting the competitive landscape as building-automation companies were able to leverage cheapening computer technologies and bring them into the building space. This period was a golden age for the BAS industry. During this peak demand to reduce consumption, BAS manufacturers globally created new and relevant technologies related to controlling a building. Competition increased, and the direct digital-control solution became the standard expectation in buildings everywhere. However, most systems were disparate and only designed to control specific operations of a building, with other vital components not being visible or integrated through the controlling mechanisms.

BAS can save a business between 5% and 30% on utility costs by managing HVAC and lighting systems. HVAC and lighting are the two largest users of energy in modern buildings and are usually the first systems to be automated. Wireless BAS systems can monitor every zone of the building and make instant adjustments to maintain comfort while lowering energy usage. Lighting can be reduced remotely in various areas of the building to save energy costs.

Digitalization means buildings are becoming more and more connected and the importance of having all building data insight is continuously increasing. Whether you wish to enhance occupant comfort and productivity or to improve operational and energy efficiency, building management systems, enable you to connect, monitor and operate your facility smoothly. 

Energy management systems and building automation systems serve two very different functions. Perhaps the easiest way to understand the difference is to think of your building as a car. An energy management system is the dashboard of your vehicle: it allows you to see all the controls and understand how all components are operating. With this high-level view, you accurately direct your car.

That’s when the building automation system comes in. BAS acts as the steering wheel: you can direct the car by telling it what to do. You can set it on “cruise” mode to drive on autopilot, but you’ll still need to run frequent, necessary checks to make sure everything is working correctly.

Your building operates the same way. A good energy management software provides an overview of your portfolio operations, with the option to explore a potential problem before it happens. You then use this information to set your building automation system to run most efficiently.

Sources: 
Internet Article by ANNA BUGLAEVA, JULY 22, 2015
Building automation - Buildings - Siemens Global Website. 
https://facilityexecutive.com/2015/12/ems-bms-or-both/

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