Guest Editorial

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The energy sector in Romania consists of three sub-sectors: electricity, natural gas and heat. Among these, the sub-sector of thermal energy is in the most precarious situation because it has been neglected for a long time. This sub-sector is particularly important both due to the amount of final heat consumption (of over 50% of final energy consumption), and to the fact that it has a direct negative effect on the population, industry and services. This paper presents the main directions for developing a modern strategy of the thermal energy sub-sector, which would fit into Romania’s Energy Strategy that is still in preparation This is based on the author’s 50 years of experience in this field that includes knowledge about the processes and the equipment of thermal energy, expertise in the management and restructuring of energy companies and also knowledge of the specific legislation. It is therefore recommended, following the European regulations and practices, the promotion and upgrading of district heating systems using efficient cogeneration, using trigeneration in Romania, modernizing buildings in terms of energy use, using of renewable energy sources for heating, especially biomass, and modernizing the energy consumption of rural settlements.</abstract>

Romania needs a strategy for thermal energy

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Heating application efficiency is a crucial point for saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Today, EU legal framework conditions clearly define how heating systems should perform, how buildings should be designed in an energy efficient manner and how renewable energy sources should be used. Using heat pumps (HP) as an alternative “Renewable Energy System” could be one solution for increasing efficiency, using less energy, reducing the energy dependency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This scientific article will take a closer look at the different efficiency dependencies of such geothermal HP (GHP) systems for domestic buildings (small/medium HP). Manufacturers of HP appliances must document the efficiency, so called COP (Coefficient of Performance) in the EU under certain standards. In technical datasheets of HP appliances, these COP parameters give a clear indication of the performance quality of a HP device. HP efficiency (COP) and the efficiency of a working HP system can vary significantly. For this reason, an annual efficiency statistic named “Seasonal Performance Factor” (SPF) has been defined to get an overall efficiency for comparing HP Systems. With this indicator, conclusions can be made from an installation, economy, environmental, performance and a risk point of view. A technical and economic HP model shows the dependence of energy efficiency problems in HP systems. To reduce the complexity of the HP model, only the important factors for efficiency dependencies are used. Dynamic and static situations with HP´s and their efficiency are considered. With the latest data from field tests of HP Systems and the practical experience over the last 10 years, this information will be compared with one of the latest simulation programs with the help of two practical geothermal HP system calculations. With the result of the gathered empirical data, it allows for a better estimate of the HP system efficiency, their economic costs and benefits and their environmental impact.</abstract>

Energy efficiency model for small/medium geothermal heat pump systems

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">When talking about the future of Europe we also think about alternative energy sources. It is up to national governments to decide how to encourage investments in this field in order to contribute to the 20-20-20 EU-objective. Until the network delivery cost for electricity produced from renewable sources will be comparable to the cost for energy from traditional sources ("grid parity"), the development of businesses and markets for electricity from renewable sources is going to be driven by support schemes. The state of the grids and the facility of grid-access constitute another two key factors influencing the development of this sector. Last but not least, the question of policy consistency is raised within the business community. Over the past years some support schemes have proved to be more effective than others, and grid conditions have also evolved. Policies supporting the development of renewables also changed at EU-level and at national levels. Based on statistics, scientific literature and the feedback of the business community, this study aims to analyse the development of renewable energy sectors in the European Union by comparing Germany’s and Romania’s experience. Also this study describes the current and expected future market situation in these countries relying on data gained from questionnaires and interviews with specialists in the renewable field.</abstract>

Factors of impact on the evolution of electricity markets from renewable energy sources: a comparison between Romania and Germany

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Renewable energy has become a crucial element for the business environment as the need for new energy resources and the degree of climate change are increasing. As developed economies strive towards greater progress, sustainable business models are of the essence in order to maintain a balance between the triple bottom line: people, planet and profit. In recent years, European Union countries have installed important capacities of renewable energy, especially wind and solar energy to achieve this purpose. The objective of this article is to make a comparative study between the current sustainable business models implemented in companies that are active in the wind and solar energy sector in Romania. Both sectors underwent tremendous changes in the last two years due to changing support schemes which have had a significant influence on the mechanism of the renewable energy market, as well as on its development. Using the classical Delphi method, based on questionnaires and interviews with experts in the fields of wind and solar energy, this paper offers an overview of the sustainable business models of wind and solar energy companies, both sectors opting for the alternative of selling electricity to trading companies as a main source of revenue until 2013 and as the main future trend until 2020. Furthermore, the participating wind energy companies noted a pessimistic outlook of future investments due to legal instability that made them to reduce their projects in comparison to PV investments, which are expected to continue. The subject of the article is of interest to scientific literature because sustainable business models in wind and photovoltaic energy have been scarcely researched in previous articles and are essential in understanding the activity of the companies in these two fields of renewable energy.</abstract>

Sustainable business models for wind and solar energy in Romania

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The main theme of this paper is the evolution of theories and suppositions regarding environment and growth. The sustainable green growth and the sustainable green capitalism concepts have attracted the interest and imagination of policy makers and industry, and also stimulated many exciting new ideas and practical actions such as the “triple bottom line” which refers to harmonizing and balancing out the three interests that are linked with sustainable business: economic, environmental and social ones. The policy has to create a workable association between what the government can ensure and not tax and what it cannot ensure and must tax. In this manner we get a win-win regulation meaning that both sides win. National and supranational policies are part of the macro-level governance and very relevant for the sustainable development of the EU Member States and for the stability of the EU itself.</abstract>

The need of a win-win regulation regarding the harmonization of advantages for the renewable energy sector and the concerns about the environment

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">This article is part of a first year doctoral research regarding the current state of knowledge in environmental sustainability, energy economics and their impact on European enterprises. As the current changes and modifications of the German energy economics system are observed by people all around the globe, the current paper analyzes what has been said until now in the scientific literature on character of the new strategy for energy consumption and production in Germany and its impact on environmental and social sustainability. With the help of two questionnaire-based surveys conducted in 2013 and 2014 through the German DIHK1, German enterprises were surveyed in order to: identify potential differences and similarities between the two periods, identify the effects of the energy transition on companies’ profitability, and analyze these effects and compare the results in terms of potential trend developments. The research findings confirmed that changes in the energy system affect not only the environmental sustainability only, but also the economy, in some cases even independent of the stage in which the changing system of the economy presently is.</abstract>

German enterprises and the changes in energy economics due to increased concerns regarding environmental sustainability

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