Piera Patrizio

A Service Station Location Model to Explore Prospects and Policies for Alternative Transport Fuels: A Case of CNG Distribution in Italy

CNG is an example of alternative gaseous fuel whose market development requires supply infrastructure (pipelines), refuelling stations and alternative vehicles to exist at the same time, which is known as the “chicken and egg dilemma”. In this chapter, a case study of limited or locally nonexistent market development for CNG in an Italian frontier region is analyzed and a mixed integer non linear programming model is introduced to evaluate the effect of incentive measures envisaged by the regional government to foster refuelling station development. It is found that, taking an entrepreneurs’ perspective of maximizing profits, even with substantial capital grants investors are more likely to choose higher demand areas, in spite of fiercer competition, rather than areas without stations. Subsidies should be more specifically targeted to critical areas to be efficient.

Spatio-temporal Assessment of Integrating Intermittent Electricity in the EU Power Sector

The integration of solar and wind technologies into the energy supply system is becoming increasingly attractive as their costs per unit capacity drop and tight policies are being implemented against greenhouse gas emissions. However, their contribution to a power system is uncertain due to the intermittent nature of wind and insolation. Here, we investigate a power dispatch system that aims to supply the power demand of the EU based on low-carbon generation units enabled with expansion of biomass, solar, and wind energy. A spatially explicit techno-economic optimization tool simulates the EU power sector to explore policies for renewable energy deployment. Results show utility-scale deployment of intermittent electricity is feasible when incentivized with carbon tax. Expansion of transmissions capacity helps even-out intermittency of solar and wind technologies. Spatial assessment of bio-electricity potential (based on forest and crops residues) has small contribution to the optimal generation mix, limiting its effect as baseload.