An AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process)/ANP (Analytic Network Process)-based multi- criteria decision approach for the selection of solar-thermal power plant investment projects

In this paper the AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process) and the ANP (Analytic Network Process) are applied to help the managing board of an important Spanish solar power investment company to decide whether to invest in a particular solar-thermal power plant project and, if so, to determine the order of priority of the projects in the company's portfolio. Project management goes through a long process, from obtaining the required construction permits and authorizations, negotiating with different stakeholders, complying with complex legal regulations, to solving the technical problems associated with plant construction and distribution of the energy generated. The whole process involves high engineering costs. The decision approach proposed in this paper consists of three phases. In the first two phases, the managing board must decide whether to accept or reject a project according to a set of criteria previously identified by the technical team. The third phase consists of establishing a priority order among the projects that have proven to be economically profitable based on project risk levels and execution time delays. This work analyzes the criteria that should be taken into account to accept or reject proposals for investment, as well as the risks used to prioritize some projects over others.The translation of this paper has been funded by the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia.Aragonés Beltrán, P.; Chaparro González, FV.; Pastor Ferrando, JP.; Pla Rubio, A. (2014). An AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process)/ANP (Analytic Network Process)-based multi- criteria decision approach for the selection of solar-thermal power plant investment projects. Energy. 66:222-238. doi:10.1016/j.energy.2013.12.016S2222386

Competitiveness of the non-traditional agricultural sector in the OECS: a diagnostic analysis

Posee dos volúmenes.The study is presented in two volumes. In the following section of the present volume, the concept of competitiveness is clearly defined and the DRC methodology is detailed. Additionally, various institucional and infrastructural elements critical to achieving and sustaining competitive position in regional and international markets for non-traditional agricultural commodities are presented. The third section presents the empirical results of the study on both a commodity by commodity basis and across countries. The final section of Volume I, contains the conclusions and recommendations implied by the empirical results of the study. Volume II contains individual crop summaries including trade and market data, and the technical data used in the estimating the DRC estimates