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Recently, South Asian countries have committed their mitigation targets to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. This study examines the effectiveness of these efforts by developing a dynamic computable general equilibrium-water-energy (CGE-WE) model. Using the GTAP database version 9, it examines how different sectors respond to these policies in South Asia. Besides, it argues that an improved irrigation system can reduce the output losses caused by the mitigation policies. In a nutshell, the cost of improving irrigation system is USD 159.7 million in Bangladesh, 224 million in India, 9.1 million in Nepal, 38.5 million in Pakistan and 10.4 million in Sri Lanka. The proposed adaptation strategy can save more than USD 76.43 billion in the region after fulfilling the region’s commitment toward the global mitigation efforts.

Power utilities, especially those that generate electricity by burning fossil fuels, produce significant amounts of carbon emissions. Mitigation of ${\mathrm{\text{CO}}}_2$-equivalent (${\mathrm{\text{CO}}}_2\mathrm{\text{e}}$) emissions can be achieved by replacing power plants with renewable power installations and by adopting carbon-sequestration technologies. Physical upgrades are expensive, but carbon taxes, or the purchase of certificates and allowances on a voluntary carbon market, can be costly, too. Carbon costs may increasingly become a threatening liability for power utilities, eating into profits and undermining the financial viability of emission-intensive electricity generation. Thus, we consider an asset-and-liability, structural firm model to investigate the creditworthiness of a generic power utility. The utility’s assets dynamics are driven by the financial returns generated from the sold electricity for a set tariff which is modeled by a simple stochastic process. The liabilities not only depend on fuel, running, and depreciation costs, but also on the costs of ${\mathrm{\text{CO}}}_2\mathrm{\text{e}}$ emissions. As a case study, we consider Eskom, the South African power utility. We show the evolution of Eskom’s default probability under various fuel mix plans and technologies (as per SA’s Integrated Resources Plan (IRP) 2019), and under the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) carbon price scenarios. The obtained results and insights present a trying path ahead, especially for carbon-intensive power utilities.

AUSTRALIA – Successful FDA end-of-Phase-2 for Hatchtech head lice product DeOVO^™

AUSTRALIA – Senz Oncology secures seed funding for promising cancer drug.

AUSTRALIA – Geneworks develops DNA barcodes for international security.

INDIA – Stress hormones: Good or Bad for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder risk?

SINGAPORE – New study shows fertility knowledge gaps may exacerbate Singapore's declining birth rate challenge.

SINGAPORE – World's first wearable robotic device for stroke rehabilitation comes to Singapore.

SRI LANKA – Conflicting reports highlight scientific data gaps in Sri Lanka's chronic kidney disease.

EUROPE – InDex Pharmaceuticals strengthens IP position for Kappaproct.

EUROPE – Novozymes and Terranol to market advanced biofuel yeast.

EUROPE – The world's first (official) biosimilar antibody goes to… Rheumatoid Arthritis.

USA – MRI reveals brain's response to reading.

USA – Novozymes partner Chemtex receives USDA commitment to build advanced biofuels plant in United States.

USA – Fossil fuel and renewable energy subsidies on the rise.

In intelligent transportation systems (ITS), electric vehicles (EVs) play an essential role in reducing environmental pollution and minimizing high fuel costs. The EVs are three times efficient than conventional gasoline-powered vehicles, whereas it depends on the mix of source generation on the grid utilized for charging. However, in most cases, the EVs are resultant in emitting the more substantial greenhouse gas that extends fossil fuels’ lives. Therefore, the ITS contributing to developing the renewable energy management process is incorporated with electric vehicles to reduce greenhouse gas. The EVs are mostly designed to reduce the cost and improve efficiency during the charging infrastructure. Hence, renewable energies are saved exclusively and eliminating wasteful usage. In this work, a blockchain-based effective renewable energy management process should be created to achieve this goal. The blockchain process validates each EV before permitting them to charge their vehicle. The blockchain principle analyzes the energy demand of any EV and validates its demand through vehicle data. The validation process enables the same and original energy use vessel to be identified to remove threats associated activities efficiently. The validating process considering the vehicle information and energy utilization level to verify the EV. The block-based validation process monitoring each vehicle entered into the grid environment, and the ITS process minimizes the fuel wastage and enhances the system’s overall efficiency.

In 2012, China and the European Union (EU) issued a joint declaration on energy security. It is unclear, however, what progress has been made since then in terms of applying the goals of the declaration. This paper sets out to assess the present state of China and the EU’s energy security, the potential for future cooperation, and the obstacles which stand in the way. The analysis assesses the extent to which the two actors can work together on improving energy infrastructure, diversifying supplies, and developing renewable and nuclear energy, possibly by finding synergies between China’s Belt and Road Initiative and the EU’s Juncker Plan. It also includes a re-examination of the concept of energy security to take account of the urgency of addressing the collapse of the global environment. Overall, the analysis suggests that although due to geographical and other constraints there may be limited opportunity for cooperation between the EU and China on securing oil and gas supplies, there are both scope and a pressing need for joint action in the field of renewable energy.

The rise of China as an economic superpower after the 2008 global financial crisis has attracted increasing worldwide attention. Securing access to ample and affordable energy supplies — energy-supply security — has underpinned its rise and will continue to contribute to its economic prosperity. This chapter examines China’s energy-security challenge with respect to its policies. The global energy system is currently undergoing a multi-energy transition away from fossil fuels: the powers will take different paths, creating competition between one another and thus between energy sources. The development of China’s energy-security policies and challenges as well as climate change, both at home and abroad, will therefore shape this competition and the global energy transition in the coming decades.

In the past few decades, precipitation across North America and Europe has become increasingly more acidic having an immense effect on the ecosystem. Any rain below the natural pH level is considered acid rain. Acid rain primarily occurs when extraneous sulfur dioxide is released into the atmosphere and mixes with the air; nitric oxide, typically from burning of fossil fuels, is a secondary cause. First being discovered in the mid-20th century, the phenomena has had detrimental effects on lakes, rivers, soils, plants, and the overall environments that cannot neutralize water. This chapter thoroughly covers the history, causes, and environmental effects of acid rain.

Renewable energy costs are now below those of fossil fuels. Five years ago, fossil fuels were the cheapest baseload. The collapse in renewable costs means that for 85% of the world, renewable electricity is the cheapest source of new baseload. By the early 2020s it will be every major country. Because of the rise of cheap renewables, the fossil fuel system is ripe for disruption. This disruption will be having profound financial implications for investors as a quarter of equity markets and half of corporate bond markets are “carbon entangled”…