The aim of this work is to demonstrate analytically under what conditions activating elasticity of demand of consumers could be beneficial for the social welfare. It has added to the literature on analyzing the use of price signals in eliciting demand response by an analytical approach. We develop so an analytical Nash model to quantify the effect of implementing demand response, via price signals, on social welfare and energy exchanges. A prior results show that the trade-off between producing locally and exporting energy depends on the opportunity cost of the energy and the global efficiency of the generation technology. Results are moreover impacted by the degree of integration between the countries. The novelty of this research is the demonstration of the existence of an optimal region of price signal for which demand response leads to increase the social welfare. This optimality region is negatively correlated to the degree of competitiveness of the generation technologies and to the market size of the system. We particularly notice that the value of un-served energy or energy reduction the producers could lose from such demand response program would limit the effectiveness of its implementation. This constraint is strengthened when energy exchanges between countries are limited. Finally, we demonstrate that when we only consider the impact in term of consumers' surplus, more aggressive DR could be adopted. The intensity of DR program is however negatively correlated to the degree of the elasticity of demand.
Cahier de recherche EDDEN, n°4/2013, 30 p. ; International audience In this paper we study the economic consequences of two real-time electricity market designs (with or without penalties) taking into account the opportunistic behaviors of market players. We implement a two-stage dynamic model to consider the interaction between the forward market and the real-time market where market players compete in a Nash manner and rely on supply/demand function oligopoly competition. Dynamic programming is used to deal with the stochastic environment of the market and the mixed complementarity problem is employed to find a solution to the game. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate how the optimal competitor's strategies could change according to the adoption or no adoption of a balancing mechanism and to the level of the penalty imposed on imbalances, regarding a variety of producers' cost structures. The main finding of this study is that implementing balancing mechanisms would increase forward contracts while raising electricity prices. Moreover, possible use of market power would not be reduced when imbalances are penalized.
"Der erste Teilerfolg der ägyptischen Revolution stößt auf einhellige Begeisterung. Und dennoch könnte sich das Erreichte noch in sein Gegenteil verkehren. Die Macht der Armee, die seit dem Putsch der Freien Offiziere 1952 das Land faktisch regiert, wurde durch Mubaraks Rücktritt in keiner Weise erschüttert. Die wirtschaftliche Situation ist dramatisch, und die Bildungschancen der breiten Masse sind - angesichts eines Dreiklassen-Bildungssystems und einer Analphabetenrate von über 30 Prozent - nach wie vor äußerst begrenzt." (Autorenreferat)
"This article discusses democratic elements in early Islamic sources and in the programs of the Algerian FIS (Front Islamique du Salut) and Annahda in Tunesia. According to historic writings, Islam includes the principles of democratic consensus, consultation, and freedom of opinion, and an understanding that the sources of Islamic jurisdiction are subject to interpretation, that the sharia can be changed, and that religious authorities' power to issue instructions on worldly matters is limited. These are the type of expectations that fundamentalist parties arouse when they speak of an Islamic caliphate as a state system. Against this background, an examination of the political system proposed until 1992 by the Algerian FIS shows that this system would have resulted in a very restrictive form of Islam. An investigation of the political system of the Tunisian fundamentalist leader Rached al-Ghannouchi reveals that the system he proposes may be designated as an Islamic democracy, since it takes into account separation of powers and pluralism of political parties. The head of state would be subject to the law in the same manner as the people. However, it is no liberal democracy, as he categorically rejects secularism, intends to punish apostates, and is only willing to allow political parties that are based on the religion of Islam. His state would only be a state of those citizens who follow Islam, completely neglecting secularist groups. Social conflicts and unrest are thus predetermined." (author's abstract)
This article discusses democratic elements in early Islamic sources and in the programs of the Algerian FIS (Front Islamique du Salut) and ANNAHDA in Tunesia. According to historic writings, Islam includes the principles of democratic consensus, consultation, and freedom of opinion, and an understanding that the sources of Islamic jurisdiction are subject to interpretation, that the sharia can be changed, and that religious authorities' power to issue instructions on worldly matters is limited. These are the type of expectations that fundamentalist parties arouse when they speak of an Islamic caliphate as a state system. Against this background, an examination of the political system proposed until 1992 by the Algerian FIS shows that this system would have resulted in a very restrictive form of Islam. An investigation of the political system of the Tunisian fundamentalist leader Rached al-Ghannouchi reveals that the system he proposes may be designated as an Islamic democracy, since it takes into account separation of powers and pluralism of political parties. The head of state would be subject to the law in the same manner as the people. However, it is no liberal democracy, as he categorically rejects secularism, intends to punish apostates, and is only willing to allow political parties that are based on the religion of Islam. His state would only be a state of those citizens who follow Islam, completely neglecting secularist groups. Social conflicts and unrest are thus predetermined. Adapted from the source document.
This article discusses democratic elements in early Islamic sources and in the programs of the Algerian FIS (Front Islamique du Salut) and ANNAHDA in Tunesia. According to historic writings, Islam includes the principles of democratic consensus, consultation, and freedom of opinion, and an understand- ing that the sources of Islamic jurisdiction are subject to interpretation, that the sharia can be changed, and that religious authorities' power to issue in- structions on worldly matters is limited. These are the type of expectations that fundamentalist parties arouse when they speak of an Islamic caliphate as a state system. Against this background, an examination of the political system proposed until 1992 by the Algerian FIS shows that this system would have resulted in a very restrictive form of Islam. An investigation of the political system of the Tunisian fundamentalist leader Rached al-Ghannouchi reveals that the system he proposes may be designated as an Islamic democracy, since it takes into account separation of powers and pluralism of po- litical parties. The head of state would be subject to the law in the same manner as the people. However, it is no liberal democracy, as he categorically rejects secularism, intends to punish apostates, and is only willing to allow political parties that are based on the religion of Islam. His state would only be a state of those citizens who follow Islam, completely neglecting secularist groups. Social conflicts and unrest are thus predetermined.