فصلنامه مطالعات اقتصاد انرژی
پیاپی 67 (زمستان 1399)

The problem of hydropower plant profit maximization includes simultaneous programming of optimal utilization of water resources and participation in the power market. The present research was performed on a chain of hydropower plants within the Karoon river basin in Khuzestan Province (Iran) (i.e. Karoon 3, Karoon 1, and Masjid Soleyman hydropower plants). In this research nonlinear programming and dynamic systems were applied to the monthly data for the 2005–2015 period to optimize total revenue. This study calculated optimal water reserve and release of water from the dam reservoir as well as profitability of the considered hydropower plants for a period of 24 months. The profit maximization was performed considering the revenue generated from energy markets, reserve, by-services, and frequency control, along with production costs including, maintenance costs, and start and stop and penalty costs. Results indicated that profitability of the studied power plants was more sensitive to the water inflow of dams rather than fluctuations in electricity price. The results show that by using optimization methods, more profit can be obtained than the current operation of power plants.

Investigating connections between financial and oil markets is important for investors and policy makers. This knowledge allows for appropriate decision making. In this paper, we measure the dynamic connections of selected stock markets in the Middle East with oil markets, gold, dollar index and euro-dollar and pound-dollar exchange rates during the period February 2007 to August 2019 in networks with different weekly horizons. In this paper, we intend to evaluate the pairwise impact of crude oil and Middle East stock markets, in particular on the Tehran Stock Exchange, and to analyze this variance using different time horizons. The results show that in all time horizons the variance of prediction error in most markets is due to the shocks within each market. The Saudi Arabian Stock Exchange has the most impact on other Middle Eastern stock markets. The dynamic connections between oil and financial decreases over time. The most important factor that impacts financial markets is conditions in neighbouring stock markets, except the Tehran Stock Exchange. Dynamic connections of the gold market with other markets is not significant. Therefore, it can be used as a tool to hedge risk.

Energy is one of the factors used in most economic activities. The economic security of most countries depends on secure access to energy. Therefore, the production and consumption of energy and its optimal use are of particular importance. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between energy consumption and economic growth in the framework of nonlinear self-regression with extended interruptions (NARDL). We use seasonal data for the period 2002-2018 to investigate the asymmetric relationship between the chosen variables. The results indicate that a positive long-term shock on energy consumption had a positive effect on growth of the agricultural sector. A one percent increase or decrease in energy consumption increases economic growth in the agricultural sector by 0.8539 and 0.9657 percent, respectively. Also, the results of asymmetric causality test between energy consumption and growth of agricultural sector indicate that there is a symmetric causal relationship between energy consumption and growth of the agricultural sector.  There is a positive asymmetric causal relationship between positive energy consumption shocks and agricultural growth, and no asymmetric causal relationship between negative shocks to energy consumption and growth of the agricultural sector. Therefore, policymakers need to attract new capital to build new power plants in the country, so that they can accelerate energy production and ensure the energy needed for agriculture.

The primary sources of energy for countries rich in oil and gas like Iran are petroleum, petroleum products, and natural gas resources. Foreign investments in the petroleum industry are concluded in the form of collaboration agreements, and the key to developing countries’ success in such agreements is technological learning. In the present study, we use mixed-method research to analyze different aspects of technological learning in such agreements.  We started by interviewing experts of the field to arrive at an approach for this study  Our second step was to devlop questionnaires verified by the experts.  We then distributed the questinnaires among the statistical population, and the analyzed the results using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and SMART PLS software. In the study, the technological learning pattern (model) was categorized and tested for 84 indices (primary codes), 18 components, and 5 major classes.

In todaychr('39')s world, given limited fossil fuel resources and growing population, it is imperative to consider energy efficiency. In this regard, due to the spread of information and communication technology, using its capabilities to reduce energy consumption & intensity is worth consideration.  In this study we assess the effect of Information and communications technology on energy intensity in Iranian provinces during the period 2008-2017, using panel data techniques and generalized method of moments (GMM). The results show that ICT deployment has a negative and significant impact on energy intensity in Iran’s provinces. However, this effect is different among developed and less- developed provinces. The results imply that information and communication technology does not have significant effect on energy intensity in less- developed provinces. Besides,  relative energy prices and real per capita income have a negative and significant effect and number of vehicles, employment rate, and air temperature have a positive and significant effect on energy intensity.‎: Information and Communication Technology) ICT), energy intensity Index,‎) ICT) ‎Development Index.‎

In recent decades, the increase of pollution from consumption of oil and petroleum products has led to development of many environmental laws. It is important for Iranian policy makers to be informed about the impact of such laws on oil prices, given the dependence of the country’s budget on oil revenues. Under a new International Maritime Organization regulation passed in mid-2016, ships are required to use fuel with a maximum of half percent sulfur from the beginning of 2020. The rule reduces the demand for high-sulfur fuel oil products and increases demand for sweet crude oil for the production of low-sulfur products. The present study tested the effects of the rule on the price of benchmark Iranian oil prices, using the method of simultaneous equation system and daily time series data for the period 2010 to 2019. The results show that the rule has had a positive impact on Brent crude oil price and reduced the price of sour (Urals) crude in the Mediterranean market. This reduction in Urals crude price will lead to a reduction in the price of Iranian crude oil, which is among sour crude oils.

In recent years, fossil energy consumption has increased because of economic growth and this has led to carbon dioxide emissions and environmental crises.  Governments struggle to solve this problem by appropriate policies such as green or environmental tax policies. This policy is based on costs and can control pollution and increase renewable energy consumption as a substitute for fossil energies.  The main aim of this paper is to analyze the effects of green taxes on renewable energy consumption and CO2 emission for D8 group countries by applying the GMM method to 2000-2017 data. 

Fiscal regime of upstream oil and gas contracts is a crucial instrument that impacts sharing of revenue generated from petroleum project between host governments and oil company contractors. This regime consists of a variety of fiscal instruments and mechanisms, some of which have a legal and some others a contractual basis.  The most important legal instrument is project income taxation that is primarily derived from applicable host government laws.  This importance depends largely on the contract model and its structure.  Our findings indicate that income taxation has a less important role in revenue sharing in service contracts in comparison to the production sharing or concession agreements. Furthermore, income taxation in Iranian service contracts which have been concluded after the Islamic revolution of Iran, has a less important position compared to upstream oil and gas service contracts elsewhere. This is due to the need to maintain transparency and flexibility of the fiscal regime of Iran’s oil and gas projects.