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Inside Amazon’s surveillance-powered, no-checkout convenience store
Posted Jan 21, 2018 by Devin Coldewey
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Inside Amazon’s surveillance-powered, no-checkout convenience store
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By now many have heard of Amazon’s most audacious attempt to shake up the retail world, the cashless, cashierless Go store. Walk in, grab what you want, and walk out. I got a chance to do just that recently, as well as pick the brain of one of its chief architects. (The store, in downtown Seattle, is now open to the public.)
My intention going in was to try to shoplift something and catch these complacent Amazon types napping. But it became clear when I went in that this wasn’t going to be an option. I was never more than a foot or two from an Amazon PR rep, and as Dilip Kumar, the projects VP of Technology, convinced me, they’d already provided against such crude attacks on their system.
As you might have seen in the promo video, you enter the store (heretofore accessible to Amazon employees only) through a gate that opens when you scan a QR code generated by the Amazon Go app on your phone. At this moment (well, actually the moment you entered or perhaps even before) your account is associated with your physical presence and cameras begin tracking your every move.
The many, many cameras.
I wondered when the idea of Amazon’s cashierless store was first proposed how it would be accomplished. Cameras on the ceiling, behind the display cases, on pedestals? What kind? Proximity and weight sensors, face recognition? Where would this all be collated and processed?
Amazon’s approach wasn’t as complex as I expected, or rather not in the way I expected. Mainly the system is made up of dozens and dozens of camera units mounted to the ceiling, covering and recovering every square inch of the store from multiple angles. I’d guess there are maybe a hundred or so in the store I visited, which was about the size of an ordinary bodega or gas station mart.
These are ordinary RGB cameras, custom made with boards in the enclosure to do some basic grunt computer vision work, presumably things like motion detection, basic object identification, and so on.
They’re augmented by separate depth-sensing cameras (using a time-of-flight technique, or so I understood from Kumar) that blend into the background like the rest, all matte black.
The images captured from these cameras are sent to a central processing unit (for lack of a better term, not knowing exactly what it is), which does the real work of quickly and accurately identifying different people in the store and objects being picked up or held. Picking something up adds it to your “virtual shopping cart,” and you can pop it in a tote or shopping bag as fast as you like. No need to hold it up for the system to see.
This is where the secret sauce is, Kumar told me, and I believe him. As banal a problem as it may seem to determine which similarly dressed person picked up which nearly identical yogurt cup, it’s very difficult to get right at the speed and accuracy level needed in order to base an entire business on it.
A student, after all, with the resources available these days, could probably design a version of this store in a few weeks that would work 80 percent of the time. But to get it right 99.9 percent of the time, frictionlessly and instantly, is a challenge that requires a great deal of work.
Notably, there is no facial recognition used (I asked). Amazon perhaps sensed early on that this would earn them rebuke from privacy-conscious shoppers, though the idea of those people coming to this store strikes me as unlikely. Instead, the system uses other visual cues and watches for continuity between cameras — you’re never not in sight of a lens, so it’s easy for the system to see a shopper move from one camera to another and make the connection.
Should there be a technical problem with a camera or it gets sauce on its lens somehow, the system doesn’t break down entirely. It’s been tested with cameras missing, though naturally it wouldn’t be long before a replacement is put in place and the system re-re-calibrates.
In addition to the cameras, there are weight sensors in the shelves, and the system is aware of every item’s exact weight — so no trying to grab two yogurts at once and palm the second, as I considered trying. You might be able to do it Indiana Jones style, with a suitable amount of sand in a sack, but that’s more effort than most shoplifters are willing to put out.
And, as Kumar noted to me, most people aren’t shoplifters, and the system is designed around most people. Building a system that assumes ill intent rather than merely detecting discrepancies is not always a good design choice.
The error rate may be low enough that Amazon doesn’t care, but that didn’t stop it from happening to someone on the first day of operation:
This type of thing happens constantly in regular stores, things being mis-scanned or skipped, or outright stolen — a certain amount of “lossage” is anticipated. So the occasional fancy yogurt plus or minus won’t break the business model, but it’s not a good look for Amazon Go’s first day. (As if to self-flagellate for such mistakes, Amazon doesn’t really even have a way of rectifying these mistakes, and if you manage to get out without paying for something, the company officially doesn’t care. You can return stuff if you change your mind or buy too much, though.)
There is in fact a human in the loop should the system find itself in a bind, but Kumar said this was rare enough that it hardly needed to be considered. He also said that the difficulty of monitoring the store doesn’t increase with square footage, though of course you’ll need more cameras and more processing power.
It’s also been tested with serious crowds; we were there during a slow time in the mid-afternoon, but shortly before that was the lunch rush, they told me, when dozens rather than a handful of people could be found walking in and out without doing anything more than showing their phone to a sensor at the entrance.
There may not be cashiers, but there are staff: stockers who replenish inventory; an ID checker (and erstwhile sommelier I’m sure) in the wine and beer section, and chefs in the back throwing together fresh sandwiches and meal kits. Someone also hovers in the entrance area to help people with the app, answer questions, and take returns.
The selection was mainly grab-and-go lunches and snacks, with the usual handful of household items you grab at the bodega on the way home. Prices were what you’d expect at a supermarket rather than a convenience store, though.
As for the expected Amazon gambits that leverage its existing properties and hooks, few are to be found. The app is self-contained, and your purchases are tracked there rather than on your “main” Amazon account. Prime members don’t get lower prices. Whole Foods has a little section of its own but there’s no broader partnership (and no plans to convert any of those stores to Go, though I can’t imagine why not).
Overall I’m impressed with the seamlessness of the system, and I can see these things successfully operating here and there.
On the philosophical side, I’m troubled, of course — a convenience store you just walk out of is a friendly mask on the face of a highly controversial application of technology: ubiquitous personal surveillance.
It’s a bit overkill, I think, to replace a checker or self-checkout stand with a hundred cameras that unblinkingly record every tiny movement. What’s to gain? 20 or 30 seconds of your time back? Lack of convenience has hardly been a complaint for this market — it’s right there in the name: “convenience store.”
Like so many ways companies are applying tech today, this seems to me an immense amount of ingenuity and resources being used to “solve” something that few people care about and fewer still consider a problem. As a technical achievement it’s remarkable, but then again, so is a robotic dog.
The store works — that much I can say for it. Where Amazon will take it from here I couldn’t say, nor would anyone respond meaningfully to my questions along these lines. Amazon Go will be open to the public starting this week, but whether anyone will find it to be anything more than a novelty is yet to be seen.
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Tearsheet/Tanaya Macheel : We’re living in the golden age of payments’: How JPMorgan Chase is integrating payments into banking
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‘We’re living in the golden age of payments’: How JPMorgan Chase is integrating payments into banking
Historically, banking and payments have been separate, but related, and JPMorgan Chase is now waking up to the fact that payments has become an integral component of its’ offerings
JPM has been ramping up its payments investments and partnerships over the last two years and is the only U.S. bank with scalable businesses in every major payments vertical
Tanaya Macheel | FEBRUARY 27, 2018
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JPMorgan Chase is waking up to the fact that, like banking and technology, banking and payments are one and the same.
The company made payments — from consumer peer-to-peer transactions to its correspondent banking business — one of the main focuses of its Investor Day presentation Tuesday morning given by chief financial officer Marianne Lake, who said payments is a natural extension of the digital banking conversation.
“Digital and payments strategies transcend all of our businesses,” she said. “At it’s most basic level, if you think about a checking account it’s not just a checking account it’s actually a payments account. Payments drive significant value to our core franchise, who are retail and operating deposits.”
JPMorgan has been ramping up its payments investments and partnerships over the last two years. In 2016 it launched its own digital wallet, Chase Pay and shortly after partnered with order-and-pay-ahead app LevelUp. In May 2017 it co-led a $50 million investment of debt and equity in LevelUp. Midway through the year it brought its peer-to-peer payments product, Chase Quick Pay (launched in 2010), onto Early Warning Services’ Zelle network. In September the bank partnered with Bill.com to allow its customers to send and receive electronic payments and invoices; a month later it co-led a $100 million investment in the company. Around the same time it spent $400 million to acquire small business payments company WePay.
It’s the only U.S. bank with scalable businesses in every major payments vertical, allowing it to serve “the 360-degree need of customers” in every segment, Lake said.
That may be, but there’s an emergence in other markets like China of payments that are not necessarily linked to the traditional payments networks and are creating critical mass and evolving upward quickly, like WeChat Pay and Alipay. JPMorgan is well positioned to capture a significant share of the traditional payments market but not really well positioned to go after non traditional payments alternatives, said Thad Peterson, a senior analyst at Aite.
“Companies like JPMC will have a real hard time either integrating or competing with those because there’s not much of an economic advantage for an issuer like JPMC to participate with something like Alipay,” he said.
Historically, banking and payments have been separate, but related. The same can be said for technology and digital functions, which banks now recognize as elements they need to deploy across their entire organizations and not just within the tech and digital departments. The young fintech industry has demonstrated the power of design thinking to differentiate user experiences and drive new levels of customer engagement, said Matt Kane, CEO of Chase Merchant Services.
With everything becoming more and more digital— not just in banking — JPMorgan, which has always ben a scale-level player, has spent the last two years coming to terms with the fact that the digital element is they key to maintaining deeply engaged relationships with customers.
“Historically digital was the geared in the back room that took care of the website,” Kane said. “The banks have realized and are rapidly catching up as we adopt the principles around design thinking. You see that same analog in payments… it has become an integral component of the banks’ offerings.”
JPMorgan sees the payments opportunity as a continuum. It starts on the consumer side with checking and savings accounts and credit cards and payment methods — peer-to-peer, consumer-to-business, digital wallets, direct marketing relationships with individual merchants. In the wholesale space the bank accepts payments from merchants and processes credit cards for clients of all sizes. Once it has the money it helps clients move it across the globe, sometimes in different currencies, sometimes in real time. On this continnum, every company, even non-banks, are competitors.
The continuum is “definitionally, soup-to-nuts the payments industry,” Kane said. “So we are definitively in competition with everyone in the payments space.”
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Tanaya Macheel | FEBRUARY 20, 2018
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Chase is using memes and GIFs to bring millennials to QuickPay
Chase is rolling out a GIF campaign across its social media channels to build customer relationships and promote its peer-to-peer payments feature, which is powered by Zelle
The campaign signals a shift in banks’ digital marketing and messaging to customers as their interactions with every other brand become faster, more personalized, more relevant and more meaningful
Tanaya Macheel | JANUARY 31, 2018
© 2017 Tearsheet. All rights reserved.
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SWI swissinfo.ch: Federal police launch proceedings into PostBus subsidies scandal
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PostBus scandal
Federal police launch proceedings into PostBus subsidies scandal
Politics
Business
This content was published on February 27, 2018 6:42 PMFeb 27, 2018 - 18:42
A PostBus drives through the Swiss capital, Bern
A PostBus drives through the Swiss capital, Bern
(Keystone)
The Federal Office of Police (Fedpol) is undertaking administrative proceedings against Swiss Post to examine irregularities in connection with federal and cantonal subsidies received by its subsidiary PostBus.
The Federal Council (executive body) announced in a statement external linkon Tuesday that Fedpol would investigate the financial irregularities. PostBus is accused of having claimed tens of millions of francs in illegal subsidies.
+ Background to the PostBus scandal
This decision was taken because the Federal Department of Justice and Police, to which Fedpol belongs, does not have any conflict of interest in the matter, unlike other authorities such as the Federal Office of Transport and the Federal Office of Finance, the Swiss News Agency reported.
The Federal Council said Fedpol is therefore able to “conduct proceedings in an impartial and independent manner”. It added that depending on the results and possible legal action, it could take years before a final verdict is reached.
In an interviewexternal link with the German-speaking newspaper NZZ last Saturday, Federal Councillor Doris Leuthard said she expected the first results of the investigation within six to eight weeks. Proceedings must begin swiftly, in light of the “damage to the Post’s reputation”, she said. In the meantime, the presumption of innocence should be applied to Swiss Post’s CEO Susanne Ruoff, Leuthard said.
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Front page - SWI swissinfo.ch
swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR
PostBus scandal
Federal police launch proceedings into PostBus subsidies scandal
Politics
Business
This content was published on February 27, 2018 6:42 PMFeb 27, 2018 - 18:42
A PostBus drives through the Swiss capital, Bern
A PostBus drives through the Swiss capital, Bern
(Keystone)
The Federal Office of Police (Fedpol) is undertaking administrative proceedings against Swiss Post to examine irregularities in connection with federal and cantonal subsidies received by its subsidiary PostBus.
The Federal Council (executive body) announced in a statement external linkon Tuesday that Fedpol would investigate the financial irregularities. PostBus is accused of having claimed tens of millions of francs in illegal subsidies.
+ Background to the PostBus scandal
This decision was taken because the Federal Department of Justice and Police, to which Fedpol belongs, does not have any conflict of interest in the matter, unlike other authorities such as the Federal Office of Transport and the Federal Office of Finance, the Swiss News Agency reported.
The Federal Council said Fedpol is therefore able to “conduct proceedings in an impartial and independent manner”. It added that depending on the results and possible legal action, it could take years before a final verdict is reached.
In an interviewexternal link with the German-speaking newspaper NZZ last Saturday, Federal Councillor Doris Leuthard said she expected the first results of the investigation within six to eight weeks. Proceedings must begin swiftly, in light of the “damage to the Post’s reputation”, she said. In the meantime, the presumption of innocence should be applied to Swiss Post’s CEO Susanne Ruoff, Leuthard said.
ATS-SDA/ln
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A picture of a CarPostalbus
Subsidies scandal
Swiss Post Bus company invested heavily in France and lost millions
The Post has been operating its French subsidiary, CarPostal France at a huge financial loss, reported Swiss public television, SRF, on Monday.
Business
swiss post
Subsidies scandal
Under-fire Swiss Post CEO secures directors’ backing
Swiss Post’s Board of Directors has affirmed its confidence in chief executive Susanne Ruoff as the fall-out from a subsidies scandal continues.
Politics
See in other languages: 2
A PostBus climbs the Altdorf-Isenthal road in canton Uri
Subsidies scandal
Swiss Post CEO rejects blame for PostBus subsidies scandal
By swissinfo.ch
The head of Swiss Post, Susanne Ruoff, has refused to step down for errors she admits were made at the PostBus subsidiary company.
Business
See in another language: 1
A PostBus drives through the snow
Subsidies scandal
Swiss PostBus company claimed millions in illegal subsidies
By swissinfo.ch
The Swiss PostBus company has claimed almost CHF80 million in excessive subsidies over the past decade by manipulating accounts.
1 There is one comment on this article.
Business
See in another language: 1
Footer
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World partners:
Radio Netherlands Worldwide | Radio Canada International | Radio Praha | Polskie Radio
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Front page - SWI swissinfo.ch
swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR
Thrive Global- Business Insider/Christina DesMarais: 24 CEOs and Execs on the Daily Habits That Made Them Successful
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Wisdom // January 19, 2018
24 CEOs and Execs on the Daily Habits That Made Them Successful
Many high-achievers credit their simple daily routines to their success.
by Business Insider
Courtesy of Annie Spratt/Unsplash
By Christina DesMarais
Ever wonder what sets highly successful people apart?
I've polled countless executives and entrepreneurs about the things they're doing every day which help them succeed, and it's not rocket science. In fact, often they credit simple daily routines which have been proven over time to give them an edge.
Check out these quotes from 24 high-achieving individuals who share the habits which help them get ahead in business and life.
1. Give yourself unrealistic deadlines.
"To boost productivity, it's important to set deadlines that are on aggressive side. Not outrageously aggressive, but difficult to achieve. Setting milestones makes it possible to measure progress. It creates a process, forces transparency, and definitely fosters urgency."
—Todd Krizelman, CEO of MediaRadar, an advertising intelligence company
2. Do more outdoors.
"Use the outdoors to clear your head and get priorities in order. I usually sit outside, admire the golden hour, and write down what I want to accomplish for the day. Start with the four most important things, then list everything else (perhaps things you didn't get done the day before). Then think about what you can delegate or combine."
—Josh Sowin, CEO of Brainjolt,a viral content company that makes articles, quizzes and videos for the social-web with content which reaches half the U.S. population and 300 million people worldwide every month
3. Visualize while you exercise.
"Where does your mind go when you exercise? For me, exercise has become a daily habit that contributes a lot to my success but so does visualizing success before it happens. As someone who is always trying to improve my effectiveness and efficiency, I noticed that while I exercised I had mental time that I wasn't using effectively. Usually, while I'm exercising my mind would wander and worry about the day ahead or just daydream about random topics that didn't matter. I then realized I could use this time to combine my daily visualizing. Both created a synergy, the workout became more enjoyable and the visualizing became more vivid."
—Seth Au, CEO atDorado Financial, an alternative investment company increasing clients wealth through real estate
4. Feed your soul.
"Every day I make sure to make a connection with my customers. As a hospital leader that includes our patients, associates and physicians. Hearing from them about compassion, caring, healing and a strong dose of empathy...it feeds my soul. It gives me the knowledge to know how to align our organization with their needs. When I talk to the patients, I can better inspire our associates and be a better partner to our physicians. This is amazing work and has been my formula for success and what drives me every day."
—J. Scott Steiner, CEO ofDetroit Medical Center's Detroit Receiving and Harper-Hutzel Hospitals
5. Give more than you take.
"Touch base with someone who's helped you or your company, and in turn respond — even if briefly — to someone who's asked for help. A few years ago, I met Adam Grant, a Wharton professor who'd put some science behind this and just published 'Give and Take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success.' In the end, it comes down to giving a bit more, and showing gratitude."
—Leona Hiraoka, president and CEO ofKeiro, a mission-driven organization engaged in improving the quality of life for older adults and their caregivers in the Japanese American and Japanese community of Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties
6. Make sure you are looking around the next corner.
"I have always approached each day with a curiosity about what's around the next corner. No matter the project, the plan or the client relationship, it's about creating value and helping others to look at the incoming 'radar blips' and begin to understand how they will affect things immediately, in the near and long-term future business cycles. Triangulating data and preparing for sudden movement are vital. It's about strategic visioning and reading the road map. This habit has brought me success in my career, great value to my clients and enduring professional relationships with those I have had the privilege of working with and learning from."
—Michael Hunn, founder and president ofHUNN GROUP LLC - Healthcare Advisors, a California-based healthcare advisory firm specializing in health system, hospital, health plan and medical group operations, finance, M&A, strategic planning, marketing and media relations
7. Get your day off to a good start.
"I find that having a productive morning routine keeps me on track for the rest of the day. If you start behind you'll likely finish behind. Starting focused early on and limiting distractions from the get-go should lead to better afternoons and evenings."
—David Johnson, COO ofFireman's Brew, a collection of micro-brewed beers, sodas and coffee
8. Take time to mediate.
"Meditation lets me create space and get clear about what I want out of the day. Closing your eyes for just five minutes is eye-opening (no pun intended). When you set some time aside to listen to the voice, it will guide you."
—Rick Steele, founder and CMO ofSelect Shops and author of "30 Days to Launch, An Entrepreneur's Diary to Building a Billion-Dollar Business"
9. Practice kindness.
"Normative Behaviour in business tends to favour people who are selfish and take what they want. Relationship and family oriented people tend to take a broader approach. Practicing kindness to yourself and others is a free investment you can make in your health, work, and community every day. Giving without expectation of return or extending gratitude brings me a lot of happiness every day, and others appreciate it too."
—Ryan Smith, founder and CEO of FTSY("footsy"), an AI platform for matching people to shoes that fit
10. Cleanse your brain of thoughts.
"I begin my day at 6 a.m., grab a coffee and practice my journaling. There is a famous saying, 'garbage in, garbage out.' Over the course of the day we collect energy, thoughts, and ideas that pull us into many directions. This collection of days can often add up and narratives begin to plague the mind of these collective waves of knowledge, data points, and emotions. Each morning I get them out. I cleanse my brain of thoughts so that I am able to be fully present where I am. To look at the information I do receive in a day and see how it fits into the big picture. This can only transpire effectively when the mind is clear. Once I write, meditate, and exercise, I am free to focus on the day ahead and the next hand life may deal me in the pursuit of a dream."
—Janice Taylor, founder and CEO ofMazu, a social media village built on core values, safety, and curated content for families
11. Say "thank you."
"As a leader, it's important for your team to understand your appreciation for all the risks they've taken to be part of the journey and all their hard work. A simple 'thank you' every day will go a long way. Make it a habit."
—Derrick Fung, CEO of Drop, a millennial-focused reward program that lets users accrue points while shopping their favorite brands
12. Practice perfect punctuality.
"Although the virtue of punctuality seems to have been lost in our over-scheduled world, I practice it with near religious zest. In fact, I can count on two hands how many times I've been late in the last 10 years. Whether I'm meeting with a colleague, client, or partner, you can guarantee that I'll always arrive on-time and prepared."
—Michael Parrish DuDell, millennial expert and chief strategy officer of CouponFollow
13. Get some rest.
"Getting the right amount of quality sleep is the most important thing I believe improves one's ability to be productive, creative, and enjoy life. I have learned this over the last five years with my work at Sommetrics, a company focused on improving sleep quality starting with the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea and snoring. I used to think that sleep was a waste of time. Now, I believe that it is one of the three pillars of health, the other two being exercise and diet. I also believe it's important to have a regular schedule. I pretty much eat at the same time, go to sleep at the same time, and sleep the same amount every day. It may sound boring but I feel like a million dollars (actually millions of dollars).
—Avram Miller, former corporate VP of business development at Intel, the cofounder of Intel Capital, and current board vice chairman ofSommetrics, a company developing products and services aimed at enhancing health and well-being by improving sleep quality
14. Suck up the blame and push down the praise.
"Leadership is an achievement of trust. How a leader reacts in times of failure or success shows the level of trust he or she has in their team. In times of failure, instead of finger pointing I take as much responsibility as possible, thus protecting my team and gaining their trust. In times of success, I try to deliberately recognize the wins and give credit where praise is deserved. When leaders deflect blame or take all of the credit, the trust bond is broken between the leader and his or her team. Once trust is broken it becomes very difficult to lead and inspire a team effectively."
—Matt Clark, COO of Corcentric, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AmeriQuest Business Services, LLC., which provides cloud-based financial process automation solutions which protect the financial assets of organizations
15. Schedule think time.
"It's easy to get lost in the day-to-day of answering emails, reviewing work, and producing components of short-term needs. My calendar runs my world, so I set aside time to think every week about the bigger picture. I'm attuned to the time of day and week when I'm my most creative, so I make sure to set this time aside to explore the 'what if' and tackle larger challenges."
—Jason Grunberg, VP of marketing at Sailthru, a cross-channel experience management platform for retail and media companies
16. Ask yourself: "What if I started over?"
"It's really easy to fall in love with the first draft of any project, so I try to check in with myself at every stage of the process with this question. It forces me to re-think all of my assumptions and consider all of the choices I've made up to that point. If I can come up with a better solution, then it means I need to go back to the drawing board. And if I can't come up with a better solution, then I have that much more confidence in my approach."
—Mitch Grasso, CEO and founder ofpresentation software company
17. Make a list.
"Like most busy CEOs, I am most successful when I stay laser focused on my goals. I firmly believe that if you are not addressing your company's biggest challenges head on, you cannot thrive, so at the beginning of each month, I make a list of the top five issues I need to address to reach our goals. Every morning, I block out time to focus on and tackle one of those issues. I listen to classical music while I work in the early mornings which helps me keep my mind from wandering and be productive. This allows me to accomplish a lot of my agenda before the rest of the day's meetings and while my mind is fresh. I work to quickly troubleshoot and delegate so I can pull myself back to my list of goals to get me where I want to go."
—Saagar Govil, CEO ofCemtrex Inc.,a ;550-person public company focused on industrial and electronics manufacturing solution.
18. Seek inspiration.
"The first thing that I do when I wake up is have cup of coffee and go through all major social media platforms. It's important for me to stay up to date with the fashion industry and seek inspiration before I tackle my day. Being on top of everything that has to do with my business helps [my company] stay relevant and creative."
—Nick Leonidou, founder ofNikleon, a luxury handmade handbag provider
19. Seek simplicity.
"My three-mile walk before sunrise, is not only my most important daily habit, but it also led me to start my company. During these quiet moments, I am able to see, hear, and feel the simplicity within the complexity of the things around me — the sun rising, the trees waving in the wind, the dew on the grass. This appreciation for simplicity is both the genesis of our platform design, as well as my constant reminder to provide an effortless experience to our customers."
—Chris Meyer, cofounder and CEO of Magilla Loans, a search engine for loans which connects borrowers to banks without requesting personal information
20. Focus on positivity.
"When you manage a results oriented company you must find a way to be positive about approaching each situation and resolving it while ensuring a positive outcome. At the end of the day, never confuse activities with success. Regardless of the situation, results are what counts so look to accomplish something major every day, approach it with a positive mindset and produce a positive result."
—Joe Sardano, cofounder, chairman and CEO of Sensus Healthcare, a medical device company providing non-invasive and cost-effective treatment options for non-melanoma skin cancers and keloids
21. Always be learning.
"Whether you're a CEO, business leader or entrepreneur, it's important that you feel passionate about what you do on a day-to-day basis. When you get home at the end of the day, having creative interests will ensure you don't feel burned out. What I try to do to keep my mind fresh is constantly read about new topics that peak my interest. At the end of each day, I'm consuming knowledge that keeps me curious and gets my mindset outside of the day-to-day tasks. For example, I'm currently reading about quantum computing because not only does the technology provide immense opportunity, it will completely transform the way we think about mobile infrastructure and cyber security over the next decade."
—Carl Rodrigues, founder, president and CEO of SOTI, Inc., a provider of mobile and IoT device management solutions, with more than 17,000 enterprise customers and millions of devices managed worldwide
22. Prioritize your work-life balance.
"For me, it's about setting priorities and not letting the daily minutiae distract you from your bigger goals. Although the pace of a startup can be hectic and stressful at times, it's important to strive for work-life balance in order to avoid mental burnout. I achieve that balance by getting outside to exercise, where I often do my best thinking. So, I find the mantra of 'healthy body, healthy mind' to be very true."
—Jack Regan, CEO of LexaGene, a biotech company that is developing a rapid, sensitive, automated pathogen detection technology that will transform the way that industries all over the world - from food safety and water quality testing to veterinary diagnostics and even human pandemic prevention - prevent and diagnose disease
23. Don't let naysayers derail or affect your progress.
"I listen and adjust if appropriate, but for most cases, this type of negative energy offers little in the way of solutions. I keep focused on the real goal and pursue every solution toward that goal. Perseverance and tenacity often solve the most complex challenges."
—Dean Irwin, CEO of Ra Medical Systems, maker of cardiovascular and dermatology catheters and excimer lasers
24. Read about your industry and beyond.
"I spend an hour, usually after dinner, reading about my industry, related industries, current events and pop culture. I start with daily curation emails like Jason Hirschhorn's REDEF series and then branch out. I bookmark and tag (first with Delicious, now with Evernote) posts that I like and might refer to later. When possible, I share these posts, along with a brief summary of my rationale for sharing, with my team or friends. If nothing else, this process helps me remember the salient parts of the post and gives me time to explore how they fit into my larger view of things. This is my version of something Alvin Toffler wrote about that likened our world view to a filing cabinet in our brains: whenever new information gets presented to us, we Catalogue and file it and then it goes on to inform our worldview in some small way. There's tremendous power and opportunity in understanding how seemingly unrelated trends and events will go on to affect the work you're doing."
—P.J. Worsfold, head of product,FTSY("footsy"), an A.I. platform for matching people to shoes that fit
Originally published at www.businessinsider.com
More From Business Insider:
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The Washington Post/David Ignatius: The crown prince of Saudi Arabia is giving his country shock therapy
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The crown prince of Saudi Arabia is giving his country shock therapy
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. (Bandar Algaloud/Saudi Royal Court via Reuters)
By David Ignatius Opinion writer February 27 at 7:37 PM Email the author
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia
In a wide-ranging late-night interview at his palace here, Saudi Arabia’s young Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman described a new wave of reforms as part of the “shock” therapy needed to modernize the kingdom’s cultural and political life.
“MBS,” as the headstrong 32-year-old crown prince is known, began the conversation just before midnight Monday, at the end of a day that had brought new royal decrees shaking up the Saudi military and government bureaucracy and appointing a woman to a cabinet ministry, Tamadur bint Youssef al-Ramah as deputy minister for labor. For more than two hours, MBS discussed his campaigns against corruption and Muslim extremism, as well as his strategy for the region.
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The crown prince said he has public support, not just from restless younger Saudis but also from a chastened royal family. He rejected criticism of his domestic and regional policies, which some have described as risky, and argued that the changes are essential to finance the kingdom’s development and combat its enemies, such as Iran. Asked whether he might release human rights activists before his visit to the United States in late March, he said Saudi standards were different than American ones and “if it works, don’t fix it,” but he added later through an aide that he would consider reforms in this area, as in others.
During my brief visit to the kingdom, it was impossible to assess how well MBS’s reforms are working. Certainly, there’s a cultural ferment: Women tell visitors what kind of cars they plan to buy when they’re allowed to drive in June; new gyms for women are opening; female entrepreneurs are operating food trucks; and female sports fans are attending public soccer games.
Conservative dissent may exist underground, but a September 2017 independent poll by Ipsos of Saudi millennials found that 74 percent were optimistic about the future; topping their worries were high prices, unemployment and corruption.
MBS spoke entirely in English; in two previous interviews with me, he had taken questions in English and answered in Arabic. He dismissed concerns among some supporters in the United States that he’s fighting on too many fronts and taking too many chances — arguing that the breadth and pace of change are necessary for success.
The crown prince said the shake-up announced Monday night by his aging father, King Salman, was an effort to install “high energy” people who could achieve modernization targets. “We want to work with believers,” he said. The decrees appoint younger royals to key governorates, including Prince Turki bin Talal as deputy governor of Asir. This appointment suggests royal-family accord, since his brother, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, was among 381 arrested on corruption charges last November. (He was later released.)
MBS sacked the defense chief of staff and appointed new military leaders, changes he said had been planned for several years to get better results for Saudi defense spending; he said the kingdom, with the world’s fourth-largest defense budget, has only the 20th or 30th best army. He described ambitious plans to mobilize Yemeni tribes against the Houthis and their Iranian backers in Yemen, a war that has dragged on longer than the Saudis hoped.
MBS said his anti-corruption putsch in November was an example of the shock therapy the kingdom needed, because of endemic corruption. “You have a body that has cancer everywhere, the cancer of corruption. You need to have chemo, the shock of chemo, or the cancer will eat the body.” The kingdom couldn’t meet budget targets without halting this looting, he said.
The crown prince said he remembers corruption personally, as people tried to use his name and connections starting in his late teens. “The corrupted princes were a minority, but the bad actors got more attention. It harmed the energy of the royal family.” All but 56 of those arrested have now been freed after paying restitution: “Most of them know they have made big mistakes, and they have settled.”
MBS said that a “shock” was also needed to check Islamist extremism in the kingdom. He said his reforms, giving greater rights to women and fewer to the religious police, were simply an effort to reestablish the practices that applied in the time of the prophet Muhammad.
1:34
Saudi Arabia is rocked by corruption purge, missile strike and helicopter crash
Saudi Arabia is rocked by corruption purge, missile strike and helicopter crash (The Washington Post)
The crown prince said he had been unfairly criticized for pressuring Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri to resign in November. “Now he’s in a better position” in Lebanon, relative to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia, MBS said. Hariri is visiting the kingdom soon for talks.
MBS’s enthusiasts sometimes liken his bid to consolidate power to that of Abdul Aziz ibn Saud, the founder of modern Saudi Arabia. But MBS dismissed this comparison, adding a contemporary twist: “You can’t create a new smartphone. Steve Jobs already did it. What we are trying to bring here is something new.”
Twitter: @IgnatiusPost
Read more from David Ignatius’s archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Read more on this topic:
The Post’s View: The dark underside of Saudi Arabia the crown prince is loath to change
David Ignatius: A young prince is reimagining Saudi Arabia. Can he make his vision come true?
Charles Krauthammer: Why Middle East peace starts in Saudi Arabia
David Ignatius: Saudi Arabia’s prince is doing damage control
The Post’s View: Saudi Arabia’s crown prince of hypocrisy
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Gulf Business: All VAT-registered UAE firms must submit returns, pay tax by Feb-end
Gulf Business
All VAT-registered UAE firms must submit returns, pay tax by Feb-end
The penalty for those who fail to pay tax is no less than Dhs500
Staff writer
Tuesday 27 February 2018
All the businesses registered for value added tax (VAT) in the UAE must submit their tax returns and pay their due taxes by February 28, the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) has said.
The first tax period for registered entities end on January 31, 2018. The 5 per cent tax came into effect on January 1 this year.
Those found in violation of the deadline will face administrative penalties. The penalty for those who fail to pay tax is no less than Dhs500 ($136) and no more than triple the value of the tax on the transaction in question. A first incorrect tax filing will result in a fine of Dhs3,000 ($817). Each following error will then result in a Dhs5,000 ($1,361) fine.
Also read: UAE tax authority extends first VAT filing period for some firms
Khalid Al Bustani, FTA director general, said the authority has provided a “simplified process” to submit VAT returns and pay due taxes and urged businesses to use the online system to complete the procedures.
Taxable persons can submit their returns and process the payments 24/7 online.
Al Bustani also confirmed that various channels and mechanisms have been activated to facilitate paying tax fees through a wide network of banks, exchange offices and finance companies in the country.
Registrants also can pay the taxes through the UAE Funds Transfer System (UAEFTS), which offers direct linkage between the Central Bank of the UAE and the FTA. This will enable immediate transactions of tax payments to entities covered by the system through bank accounts and from 77 bank branches, exchange offices and finance companies around the UAE.
Overall, the FTA has provided seven different payment methods to process any payable tax through the E-Dirham platform in the e-services portal on its website.
Al Bustani also stressed that the data submitted should be thoroughly checked and accurately entered when filing the tax return. It should include: the taxable person’s name; address; Tax Registration Number (TRN); the tax period of the tax return; submission date; the value of standard-rated supplies made in the tax period and the output tax charged; the value of zero-rated supplies made in the tax period; the value of exempt supplies made in the tax period.
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Copyright © 2018 by Gulf Business.
All VAT-registered UAE firms must submit returns, pay tax by Feb-end
The penalty for those who fail to pay tax is no less than Dhs500
Staff writer
Tuesday 27 February 2018
All the businesses registered for value added tax (VAT) in the UAE must submit their tax returns and pay their due taxes by February 28, the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) has said.
The first tax period for registered entities end on January 31, 2018. The 5 per cent tax came into effect on January 1 this year.
Those found in violation of the deadline will face administrative penalties. The penalty for those who fail to pay tax is no less than Dhs500 ($136) and no more than triple the value of the tax on the transaction in question. A first incorrect tax filing will result in a fine of Dhs3,000 ($817). Each following error will then result in a Dhs5,000 ($1,361) fine.
Also read: UAE tax authority extends first VAT filing period for some firms
Khalid Al Bustani, FTA director general, said the authority has provided a “simplified process” to submit VAT returns and pay due taxes and urged businesses to use the online system to complete the procedures.
Taxable persons can submit their returns and process the payments 24/7 online.
Al Bustani also confirmed that various channels and mechanisms have been activated to facilitate paying tax fees through a wide network of banks, exchange offices and finance companies in the country.
Registrants also can pay the taxes through the UAE Funds Transfer System (UAEFTS), which offers direct linkage between the Central Bank of the UAE and the FTA. This will enable immediate transactions of tax payments to entities covered by the system through bank accounts and from 77 bank branches, exchange offices and finance companies around the UAE.
Overall, the FTA has provided seven different payment methods to process any payable tax through the E-Dirham platform in the e-services portal on its website.
Al Bustani also stressed that the data submitted should be thoroughly checked and accurately entered when filing the tax return. It should include: the taxable person’s name; address; Tax Registration Number (TRN); the tax period of the tax return; submission date; the value of standard-rated supplies made in the tax period and the output tax charged; the value of zero-rated supplies made in the tax period; the value of exempt supplies made in the tax period.
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RBS Returns Qatar Banking licence, Country Head Departs
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UAE tax authority extends first VAT filing period for some firms
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UAE tax authority warns VAT deadline approaching
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UAE’s tax authority urges businesses to pay excise tax by November 15
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Copyright © 2018 by Gulf Business.
Gulf Business: UAE’s Emirates Global Aluminium hopes to list in 2018
Gulf Business
UAE’s Emirates Global Aluminium hopes to list in 2018
EGA was created in 2013 when state-owned companies Dubai Aluminium and Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Aluminium merged
Reuters
Tuesday 27 February 2018
Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) aims to list in 2018, subject to market conditions, a senior executive said on Tuesday.
“We hope EGA will become a public company in 2018, subject to market conditions,” EGA Chief Executive Abdulla Kalban told Reuters.
His comment echoed those made by Abu Dhabi state investor Mubadala, which owns half of EGA, last October.
Read: Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala mulls Emirates Global Aluminium IPO in 2018
EGA was created in 2013 when state-owned companies Dubai Aluminium and Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Aluminium merged. Its enterprise value was put at $15bn at the time.
Dubai is the likely destination for the listing, people familiar with the matter said, but the company has not said where it will list.
EGA on Tuesday also reported its 2017 earnings, reporting a 59 per cent rise in full-year profit to Dhs3.3bn ($900m) on stronger aluminium prices and record production levels.
It produced 2.6 million tonnes of cast metal, exceeding 2016’s 2.5 million tonnes and making EGA the third-largest producer of primary aluminium outside China, it said.
Kalban said preparations for the initial public offering of shares were continuing with advisers which he did not identify.
Reuters reported last year, quoting sources, that EGA had picked Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan to advise on its IPO.
A source familiar with the matter said 10 to 15 per cent of the company was likely to be floated.
Mubadala has started the process to list another two companies, a spokesman for the state investor told Reuters without providing further details.
Mubadala had assets of Dhs465.5bn ($126.8bn) at the end of June and is Abu Dhabi’s second biggest state investor after the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.
Like neighbouring Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi is restructuring its industrial sector, hoping to attract foreign investors via privatisations after lower energy prices depleted its coffers.
After the listing of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co’s distribution unit, banking sources have told Reuters Abu Dhabi could list Abu Dhabi Ports and industrial conglomerate Senaat.
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Saudi government to hire first women 'soldiers'
Saudi Arabia to auction detained billionaire's real estate, cars
Philippines delegation to visit Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi to demand worker protection
Dubai real estate slump to continue for another two years - S&P
Oman announces new visa rules
FIFA could strip Qatar of 2022 World Cup - reports
Saudi moves ahead with plans to bar foreign workers from some sectors
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Editor's Picks
Dubai International Airport's southern runway to close for 45 days in 2019
Bollywood actress found dead in Dubai hotel room drowned – police
Saudi Arabia to auction detained billionaire's real estate, cars
Saudi government to hire first women 'soldiers'
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR DAILY NEWSLETTER
Advertisement
Advertise With Us
Privacy Policy
Contact us
Subscribe
Copyright © 2018 by Gulf Business.
UAE’s Emirates Global Aluminium hopes to list in 2018
EGA was created in 2013 when state-owned companies Dubai Aluminium and Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Aluminium merged
Reuters
Tuesday 27 February 2018
Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) aims to list in 2018, subject to market conditions, a senior executive said on Tuesday.
“We hope EGA will become a public company in 2018, subject to market conditions,” EGA Chief Executive Abdulla Kalban told Reuters.
His comment echoed those made by Abu Dhabi state investor Mubadala, which owns half of EGA, last October.
Read: Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala mulls Emirates Global Aluminium IPO in 2018
EGA was created in 2013 when state-owned companies Dubai Aluminium and Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Aluminium merged. Its enterprise value was put at $15bn at the time.
Dubai is the likely destination for the listing, people familiar with the matter said, but the company has not said where it will list.
EGA on Tuesday also reported its 2017 earnings, reporting a 59 per cent rise in full-year profit to Dhs3.3bn ($900m) on stronger aluminium prices and record production levels.
It produced 2.6 million tonnes of cast metal, exceeding 2016’s 2.5 million tonnes and making EGA the third-largest producer of primary aluminium outside China, it said.
Kalban said preparations for the initial public offering of shares were continuing with advisers which he did not identify.
Reuters reported last year, quoting sources, that EGA had picked Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan to advise on its IPO.
A source familiar with the matter said 10 to 15 per cent of the company was likely to be floated.
Mubadala has started the process to list another two companies, a spokesman for the state investor told Reuters without providing further details.
Mubadala had assets of Dhs465.5bn ($126.8bn) at the end of June and is Abu Dhabi’s second biggest state investor after the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.
Like neighbouring Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi is restructuring its industrial sector, hoping to attract foreign investors via privatisations after lower energy prices depleted its coffers.
After the listing of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co’s distribution unit, banking sources have told Reuters Abu Dhabi could list Abu Dhabi Ports and industrial conglomerate Senaat.
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Emirates Global Aluminium Says Exports To Fall As Local Demand Grows
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Gulf Business: Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
Gulf Business
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
The highest ranking entries originating from the UAE in Gulf Business’ annual Arab power list
Staff Writer
Wednesday 28 February 2018
UAE nationals are the largest group in our 2018 Arab Power list with 38 entries.
This year an Emirati also holds the number one spot and there is significant UAE representation in the top 20 with 11 entries.
Among the most prominent new additions the list in 2018 include Dubai Holding and Meraas chairman HE Abdulla Al Habbai.
We have also included First Abu Dhabi Bank CEO Abdulhamid Mohammed Saeed.
Read on to find out the top five most powerful Arabs from the UAE –
1. HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum
Chairman, Emirates / Emirates NBD
Sector: Diversified
Overall rank: 1
The uncle of Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum takes his position at the top of our list this year in part due to the diminishing fortunes of those around him, but few would argue he doesn’t deserve to be here after decades overseeing some of Dubai’s most important businesses, and a particularly impressive 2017. He was appointed as president of Dubai’s Department of Civil Aviation in 1985 and has since led its associated businesses – Dubai Airports and Dubai Duty Free – plus the carrier founded at the same time, Emirates, to punch far above their weight and become global leaders in their respective fields. Among the highlights of the last 12 months was a return to form at Emirates, which saw net profit rise 111 per cent in the first half of its fiscal year despite challenging conditions. He also oversaw a partnership of the airline and its low cost sister flydubai and major Boeing aircraft orders by the two at the Dubai Airshow worth $42.1bn at list prices. This is of course not to mention the progress at the various other entities Sheikh Ahmed chairs including rising passenger traffic at Dubai International Airport, a 17 per cent Q4 profit rise at Dubai’s largest bank Emirates NBD and the ground breaking of the UAE pavilion at the Expo 2020 site.
2. HE Mohamed Alabbar
Chairman, Emaar / Eagle Hills
Sector: Real estate
Overall rank: 6
Despite mostly being known for his property empire via Emaar and Abu Dhabi venture Eagle Hills, it was Mohammed Alabbar’s moves in e-commerce that captured media attention in 2017. After missing out on the acquisition of Souq.com to Amazon, the Emirati billionaire made a series of deals in the space including the purchase of a large stake in regional venture capital fund Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), the acquisition of online selling platform JadoPado via an investment consortium and Emaar Malls’ deal to buy 51 per cent of fashion site Namshi for $151m. These moves were followed by the September launch of his long-awaited $1bn e-commerce platform Noon.com in the UAE after it achieved new backing from investors including Kuwaiti retailer MH Alshaya. A Saudi launch followed in December and in the time in between Alabbar led Dubai’s first major IPO in three years with the listing of Emaar’s development unit for around $1.3bn. On top of this, Emaar opened a new mega mall in Turkey, laid the foundation for a new record-breaking tower to rival its Burj Khalifa at Dubai Creek and saw its Q3 profit increase 32 per cent. All showing property was still very much on Alabbar’s mind.
3. HE Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak
Group CEO and managing director, Mubadala Investment Company
Sector: Diversified
Overall rank: 8
It has been a landmark year for Al Mubarak, a prolific businessman and trusted advisor to Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince, HH Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, after the official unveiling of new state investment vehicle Mubadala Investment Company. This followed the January merger of Mubadala Development Company and International Petroleum Investment Company. He now has a business with $127bn of assets under management, a presence in 13 sectors and more than 30 countries and 68,000 employees, and initial indications are positive. Mubadala made a net profit of Dhs4.2bn ($1.14bn) in the first half of the year from a net loss of Dhs4.7bn in the first half of 2016 and made a number of key announcements including the setting up of a venture capital arm. The San Francisco-based operation will also oversee a confirmed $15bn commitment to SoftBank’s Vision fund confirmed earlier in the year through which 15-16 investments have already been made. Mubadala also said in November it would invest up to $1.2bn in French businesses under a deal signed with French investment vehicles CDC International Capital and Bpifrance.
4. HE Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair
CEO, Mashreq
Sector: Finance
Overall rank: 10
The Al Ghurair family has had an unquestionable impact on the UAE’s banking community since the founding of Mashreq in 1967, with Abdul Aziz only growing this perception in recent years as chairman of the UAE Banks Federation. Among his main moves in 2017 were to direct Mashreq towards a more digital future, with the launch of a digital banking platform and plans to shrink physical branches in favour of online banking services over the next three years. Outside of the UAE’s third largest lender, which posted a 12 per cent increase in profit for the first nine months of 2017, Al Ghurair is also playing a major role in his family’s philanthropic efforts. The Abdullah Al Ghurair Foundation for Education said in December it had provided 787 scholarships to Arab students less than two years after Al Ghurair’s father pledged to donate a third of his wealth – or $1.1bn – to form the philanthropic organisation. Even with these efforts, the Al Ghurair family is still the second richest in the UAE, according to Forbes, with a net worth of $7.3bn in January 2018.
5. HE Dr Sultan Al Jaber
Director general and CEO, ADNOC
Sector: Energy
Overall rank: 11
Sultan Al Jaber has led a major shake-up of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company since taking the reins in February 2016, with a focus on efficiency and consolidation in a period of low oil prices. An oil rally since then has given ADNOC some breathing space but Al Jaber shows no sign of slowing down the firm’s 2030 strategy to boost oil production and triple petrochemical output. Among the key moves he oversaw in late 2017 was the initial public offering of the company’s fuel distribution unit. The December listing was the first on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange for six years and raised $851m. ADNOC also awarded engineering design contracts worth hundreds of millions of dirhams for the production of sour gas from its Hail, Ghasha and Dalma marine fields, while on the renewable side of things the firm he previously led as CEO, Masdar, has gone from strength to strength with work progressing on major projects in Dubai, Scotland, Oman and Sharjah.
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Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs from the UAE
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Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in finance
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Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in Qatar
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Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in Saudi Arabia
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Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
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Top 50 GCC Banks 2016
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Copyright © 2018 by Gulf Business.
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
The highest ranking entries originating from the UAE in Gulf Business’ annual Arab power list
Staff Writer
Wednesday 28 February 2018
UAE nationals are the largest group in our 2018 Arab Power list with 38 entries.
This year an Emirati also holds the number one spot and there is significant UAE representation in the top 20 with 11 entries.
Among the most prominent new additions the list in 2018 include Dubai Holding and Meraas chairman HE Abdulla Al Habbai.
We have also included First Abu Dhabi Bank CEO Abdulhamid Mohammed Saeed.
Read on to find out the top five most powerful Arabs from the UAE –
1. HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum
Chairman, Emirates / Emirates NBD
Sector: Diversified
Overall rank: 1
The uncle of Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum takes his position at the top of our list this year in part due to the diminishing fortunes of those around him, but few would argue he doesn’t deserve to be here after decades overseeing some of Dubai’s most important businesses, and a particularly impressive 2017. He was appointed as president of Dubai’s Department of Civil Aviation in 1985 and has since led its associated businesses – Dubai Airports and Dubai Duty Free – plus the carrier founded at the same time, Emirates, to punch far above their weight and become global leaders in their respective fields. Among the highlights of the last 12 months was a return to form at Emirates, which saw net profit rise 111 per cent in the first half of its fiscal year despite challenging conditions. He also oversaw a partnership of the airline and its low cost sister flydubai and major Boeing aircraft orders by the two at the Dubai Airshow worth $42.1bn at list prices. This is of course not to mention the progress at the various other entities Sheikh Ahmed chairs including rising passenger traffic at Dubai International Airport, a 17 per cent Q4 profit rise at Dubai’s largest bank Emirates NBD and the ground breaking of the UAE pavilion at the Expo 2020 site.
2. HE Mohamed Alabbar
Chairman, Emaar / Eagle Hills
Sector: Real estate
Overall rank: 6
Despite mostly being known for his property empire via Emaar and Abu Dhabi venture Eagle Hills, it was Mohammed Alabbar’s moves in e-commerce that captured media attention in 2017. After missing out on the acquisition of Souq.com to Amazon, the Emirati billionaire made a series of deals in the space including the purchase of a large stake in regional venture capital fund Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), the acquisition of online selling platform JadoPado via an investment consortium and Emaar Malls’ deal to buy 51 per cent of fashion site Namshi for $151m. These moves were followed by the September launch of his long-awaited $1bn e-commerce platform Noon.com in the UAE after it achieved new backing from investors including Kuwaiti retailer MH Alshaya. A Saudi launch followed in December and in the time in between Alabbar led Dubai’s first major IPO in three years with the listing of Emaar’s development unit for around $1.3bn. On top of this, Emaar opened a new mega mall in Turkey, laid the foundation for a new record-breaking tower to rival its Burj Khalifa at Dubai Creek and saw its Q3 profit increase 32 per cent. All showing property was still very much on Alabbar’s mind.
3. HE Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak
Group CEO and managing director, Mubadala Investment Company
Sector: Diversified
Overall rank: 8
It has been a landmark year for Al Mubarak, a prolific businessman and trusted advisor to Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince, HH Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, after the official unveiling of new state investment vehicle Mubadala Investment Company. This followed the January merger of Mubadala Development Company and International Petroleum Investment Company. He now has a business with $127bn of assets under management, a presence in 13 sectors and more than 30 countries and 68,000 employees, and initial indications are positive. Mubadala made a net profit of Dhs4.2bn ($1.14bn) in the first half of the year from a net loss of Dhs4.7bn in the first half of 2016 and made a number of key announcements including the setting up of a venture capital arm. The San Francisco-based operation will also oversee a confirmed $15bn commitment to SoftBank’s Vision fund confirmed earlier in the year through which 15-16 investments have already been made. Mubadala also said in November it would invest up to $1.2bn in French businesses under a deal signed with French investment vehicles CDC International Capital and Bpifrance.
4. HE Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair
CEO, Mashreq
Sector: Finance
Overall rank: 10
The Al Ghurair family has had an unquestionable impact on the UAE’s banking community since the founding of Mashreq in 1967, with Abdul Aziz only growing this perception in recent years as chairman of the UAE Banks Federation. Among his main moves in 2017 were to direct Mashreq towards a more digital future, with the launch of a digital banking platform and plans to shrink physical branches in favour of online banking services over the next three years. Outside of the UAE’s third largest lender, which posted a 12 per cent increase in profit for the first nine months of 2017, Al Ghurair is also playing a major role in his family’s philanthropic efforts. The Abdullah Al Ghurair Foundation for Education said in December it had provided 787 scholarships to Arab students less than two years after Al Ghurair’s father pledged to donate a third of his wealth – or $1.1bn – to form the philanthropic organisation. Even with these efforts, the Al Ghurair family is still the second richest in the UAE, according to Forbes, with a net worth of $7.3bn in January 2018.
5. HE Dr Sultan Al Jaber
Director general and CEO, ADNOC
Sector: Energy
Overall rank: 11
Sultan Al Jaber has led a major shake-up of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company since taking the reins in February 2016, with a focus on efficiency and consolidation in a period of low oil prices. An oil rally since then has given ADNOC some breathing space but Al Jaber shows no sign of slowing down the firm’s 2030 strategy to boost oil production and triple petrochemical output. Among the key moves he oversaw in late 2017 was the initial public offering of the company’s fuel distribution unit. The December listing was the first on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange for six years and raised $851m. ADNOC also awarded engineering design contracts worth hundreds of millions of dirhams for the production of sour gas from its Hail, Ghasha and Dalma marine fields, while on the renewable side of things the firm he previously led as CEO, Masdar, has gone from strength to strength with work progressing on major projects in Dubai, Scotland, Oman and Sharjah.
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Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs from the UAE
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in finance
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in finance
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Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in Qatar
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in Saudi Arabia
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in Saudi Arabia
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Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
Revealed: Top 5 most powerful Arabs in the UAE
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Top 100 Most Powerful Arabs 2017
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Top 50 GCC Banks 2016
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Dubai real estate slump to continue for another two years - S&P
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Saudi government to hire first women 'soldiers'
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR DAILY NEWSLETTER
Advertisement
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Copyright © 2018 by Gulf Business.
Over 150 High-Level Speakers to Grace the Africa Trade & Investment Global Summit (ATIGS) 2018 in Washington, D.C
“Driving Trade, Unleashing Investment and Enhancing Economic Development: the Gateway to African Markets”
WASHINGTON D.C., United States of America, February 28, 2018/ -- Business leaders and prominent personalities are expected to speak at the Africa Trade & Investment Global Summit (ATIGS) 2018 (http://ATIGS2018.com) to be held on June 24 to June 26 at World Trade Center – Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C. The prestigious biennial business conference and exhibition will bring together delegates from more than 70 countries including government delegations, high-profile African leaders, project developers, and international investors. The event has a well-structured format for facilitating direct peer engagement, for more advanced deal-making, showcasing fundable companies, co-investments and financing engagements, strategic partnerships, and business networking.
The 2018 Summit will feature as panelist and speakers a wide array of senior officials and distinguished personalities including, Hon Senator Ike Ekwerenmadu, Deputy Senate President of Nigeria; H.E. Adonia Ayebare, Uganda's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations; H.E.Clyde Rivers Ph.D. Ambassador of Republic of Burundi, and Advisor to the President of Burundi; Hon Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, former Minister for Trade & Industry, and former Ambassador of Ghana to the USA; Hon. Ibrahim Awaal Mohammed, Minister for Business Development in Ghana; Hon. Sebastian Kopulande, CEO, Zambian International Trade and Investment Centre (ZITIC) in Zambia; Andrew Herscowit, Coordinator, Power Africa - U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in USA; Asma ALAOU, CEO, Africa Key Partners in Morocco; Arnon Rosenbaum, VP Global Projects, Netafim in Israel; Belarmino Van-Dúnem, Chairman of Angola's Investment and Exports Promotion Agency (APIEX); Maria Goravanchi, Director, Overseas Private Investment Corporation in USA; Dr. Mohamed Doumbouya, Minister of Budget, Republic of Guinea; Raj Kumar, Founding President of Devex in United States, Dr. Belachew Mekuria, Industrial Park Division Deputy Commissioner of Ethiopian Investment Commission; Dr. Mima S. Nedelcovych, President & CEO of Initiative for Global Development in USA; Pablo MartÃn Carbajal, Deputy head for African Affairs, and CEO of Proexca, Government of the Canary Islands; Bernadette Fernandes, Founder of The Varanda Network in Canada; Chris Kirubi, Director, Centum Investment in Kenya; Chris Knight, Global Commercial Director for fDi Intelligence, Financial Times Group in UK; Dr. Richmond Annan, President, iRichie Group Inc in USA; Dr. Munir Ahmad Ch, President, Aspire World Investments LLC - United Arab Emirates; Dr. Mima S. Nedelcovych, President & CEO of Initiative for Global Development in USA; Joseph Lititiyo, Deputy Executive Secretary of Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries in Rwanda; Matthew Downing, Chairman & CEO, Ethium Group in Australia; Prince Adetokunbo Kayode, President of Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Nigeria; Vanessa Adams, Director of Strategic Partnerships of DAI in France; Walid Loukil, Deputy Managing Director of Loukil Group in Tunisia; Xoliswa Daku, Founder & CEO, Daku Group of Companies in South Africa; Zekarias Amsalu, Founder and MD of IBEX Frontier, IBEX Financial Consultancy Ltd in Ethiopia, and many more.
For all speaker’s line-up and for all latest developments. visit www.ATIGS2018.com
ATIGS 2018 will feature unique activities, top rated speakers, and high-level participation. To register for the event, visit www.ATIGS2018.com/eventbrite, and for exhibition, contact ATIGS@gaadvancement.com
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Trade & Investment Global Summit (ATIGS).
View multimedia content
Media Contact: Melissa Brown, Media Relations, Global Attain Advancement | ATIGS@gaadvancement.com
SOURCE
Africa Trade & Investment Global Summit (ATIGS)
WASHINGTON D.C., United States of America, February 28, 2018/ -- Business leaders and prominent personalities are expected to speak at the Africa Trade & Investment Global Summit (ATIGS) 2018 (http://ATIGS2018.com) to be held on June 24 to June 26 at World Trade Center – Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C. The prestigious biennial business conference and exhibition will bring together delegates from more than 70 countries including government delegations, high-profile African leaders, project developers, and international investors. The event has a well-structured format for facilitating direct peer engagement, for more advanced deal-making, showcasing fundable companies, co-investments and financing engagements, strategic partnerships, and business networking.
The 2018 Summit will feature as panelist and speakers a wide array of senior officials and distinguished personalities including, Hon Senator Ike Ekwerenmadu, Deputy Senate President of Nigeria; H.E. Adonia Ayebare, Uganda's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations; H.E.Clyde Rivers Ph.D. Ambassador of Republic of Burundi, and Advisor to the President of Burundi; Hon Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, former Minister for Trade & Industry, and former Ambassador of Ghana to the USA; Hon. Ibrahim Awaal Mohammed, Minister for Business Development in Ghana; Hon. Sebastian Kopulande, CEO, Zambian International Trade and Investment Centre (ZITIC) in Zambia; Andrew Herscowit, Coordinator, Power Africa - U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in USA; Asma ALAOU, CEO, Africa Key Partners in Morocco; Arnon Rosenbaum, VP Global Projects, Netafim in Israel; Belarmino Van-Dúnem, Chairman of Angola's Investment and Exports Promotion Agency (APIEX); Maria Goravanchi, Director, Overseas Private Investment Corporation in USA; Dr. Mohamed Doumbouya, Minister of Budget, Republic of Guinea; Raj Kumar, Founding President of Devex in United States, Dr. Belachew Mekuria, Industrial Park Division Deputy Commissioner of Ethiopian Investment Commission; Dr. Mima S. Nedelcovych, President & CEO of Initiative for Global Development in USA; Pablo MartÃn Carbajal, Deputy head for African Affairs, and CEO of Proexca, Government of the Canary Islands; Bernadette Fernandes, Founder of The Varanda Network in Canada; Chris Kirubi, Director, Centum Investment in Kenya; Chris Knight, Global Commercial Director for fDi Intelligence, Financial Times Group in UK; Dr. Richmond Annan, President, iRichie Group Inc in USA; Dr. Munir Ahmad Ch, President, Aspire World Investments LLC - United Arab Emirates; Dr. Mima S. Nedelcovych, President & CEO of Initiative for Global Development in USA; Joseph Lititiyo, Deputy Executive Secretary of Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries in Rwanda; Matthew Downing, Chairman & CEO, Ethium Group in Australia; Prince Adetokunbo Kayode, President of Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Nigeria; Vanessa Adams, Director of Strategic Partnerships of DAI in France; Walid Loukil, Deputy Managing Director of Loukil Group in Tunisia; Xoliswa Daku, Founder & CEO, Daku Group of Companies in South Africa; Zekarias Amsalu, Founder and MD of IBEX Frontier, IBEX Financial Consultancy Ltd in Ethiopia, and many more.
For all speaker’s line-up and for all latest developments. visit www.ATIGS2018.com
ATIGS 2018 will feature unique activities, top rated speakers, and high-level participation. To register for the event, visit www.ATIGS2018.com/eventbrite, and for exhibition, contact ATIGS@gaadvancement.com
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Trade & Investment Global Summit (ATIGS).
View multimedia content
Media Contact: Melissa Brown, Media Relations, Global Attain Advancement | ATIGS@gaadvancement.com
SOURCE
Africa Trade & Investment Global Summit (ATIGS)
Solar success in rural Senegal: “Seize the obvious”
Two limitless local resources—energy from the sun and local confidence— that's what it takes to win,” asserts CEO of Energy Resources Senegal, Moustapha Sene
DAKAR, Senegal, February 28, 2018/ -- Moustapha Sene is soft-spoken, but he is sure of what he's doing, and has proved a rare knack for seeing the obvious. A company his family started 25 years ago, Sahel Gaz, has been transforming free air from the atmosphere to produce oxygen for local hospitals. The idea of converting nature into revenue while building communities has become a passion.
One afternoon in 2015 while the sun beat down on his SUV in Dakar traffic, Sene, whose family-owned cluster of companies including edible oil, metallic construction, and industrial and medical gases, was struck again by the obvious. “Widely available technology, dropping cost of solar panels, and free, unlimited sunshine,” he reasoned. “What business person would not see the value of acquiring your primary ingredient as a gift from Nature?” The value-proposition for Sene was secured with imagination and confidence.
Three years later, Senegal's first indigenous solar power station has begun to produce 20 megawatts of electricity which Sene's company Energy Resources Senegal (ERS) (www.ERSenegal.com) sells back to the state-owned power company Senelec as part of a well-structured power purchase agreement.
Beyond the free sunlight — his 40-hectare solar farm in the Koalack region 200 kilometers from Dakar receives 3000 hours of direct sunlight a year — Sene woke up to another truth: Senegal's priority for quality education produces great local technical talent and highly skilled labor. “Why should we think we need to import brains?” he asks. His entire team is Senegalese and locally educated from the electrical engineers to his financial advisors. ERS employs 15 people, and is growing.
Senegalese President Macky Sall has placed renewable energy high on his list of national goals, and four solar plants have come online in the last 18 months with the percentage of citizens using clean energy in this West African nation of 15 million, rising at an astounding pace from about 10% to over 21% in less than two years. President Macky Sall predicts the rate will rise to over 30% in the near future. “At this rate, solar and wind energy will entirely drive Senegal's power needs sooner than we anticipated,” Sene adds.
The Kahone solar plant is already bringing electricity to over 150 000 households in this central region of the country where everyone feels the need for electricity. One local tailor remembers the days he was unable to work at all because the current was cut. “We were at a standstill until the juice for our sewing machines came back. Those days are over.”
Energy Resources Senegal is helping to keep local businesses in business, and is now even able to help provide basic services to communities that have been socially off-the-grid as well. One of Sene's personal goals is to renovate and upgrade the often decrepit structures used for community schools.
Moustapha Sene who was educated in Dakar and in Canada could have opted for a corporate position in Europe or North America, but his respect for his father, Alla Sene, who started the first family business in the streets of Dakar back in the 50s with no education and no cash, combined with his hope for his children to believe in a truly emerging Africa has kept him invested in a Senegal that he has helped evolve. His 22 year old daughter finishes an MBA at NYU this semester in energy and the environment and plans to bring her knowledge back home too.
“What we have done in Koalack with the Kahone solar plant we can share with local entrepreneurs across West Africa and beyond,” he told a group of regional investors. “We have the local know-how and engineering, we have local financial talent to provide and structure economic models for the Industry. And of course there is no shortage of sun. We have to learn how to master technologies on our own and start to invest more in our own confidence to produce local wealth,” he says.
The Senegalese Ministry of Energy and the pro-active Senelec, with its Plan Yeesal (meaning renewal in Wolof), is proving to be among Africa's most ambitious players in the renewables sector. Power Purchase Agreements, the kind that Energy Resources Senegal has signed — a 25-year engagement — is proving that as long as the sunlight is free, native solutions to old problems in the energy sector have arrived.
“Curiously,” Sene adds “the greatest challenge to creating new wealth is not the cost of innovation as many think; it is the work to get beyond our traditional reflexes.”
If Sene keeps seizing the obvious ERS’s ambition to develop and build a total of 500MW solar and wind projects on the African continent before end of 2025, just may happen.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Resources Senegal (ERS).
View multimedia content
Contact:
Saliou Diagne
SalDiagne@gmail.com
+221 77 674 10 34
SOURCE
Energy Resources Senegal (ERS)
DAKAR, Senegal, February 28, 2018/ -- Moustapha Sene is soft-spoken, but he is sure of what he's doing, and has proved a rare knack for seeing the obvious. A company his family started 25 years ago, Sahel Gaz, has been transforming free air from the atmosphere to produce oxygen for local hospitals. The idea of converting nature into revenue while building communities has become a passion.
One afternoon in 2015 while the sun beat down on his SUV in Dakar traffic, Sene, whose family-owned cluster of companies including edible oil, metallic construction, and industrial and medical gases, was struck again by the obvious. “Widely available technology, dropping cost of solar panels, and free, unlimited sunshine,” he reasoned. “What business person would not see the value of acquiring your primary ingredient as a gift from Nature?” The value-proposition for Sene was secured with imagination and confidence.
Three years later, Senegal's first indigenous solar power station has begun to produce 20 megawatts of electricity which Sene's company Energy Resources Senegal (ERS) (www.ERSenegal.com) sells back to the state-owned power company Senelec as part of a well-structured power purchase agreement.
Beyond the free sunlight — his 40-hectare solar farm in the Koalack region 200 kilometers from Dakar receives 3000 hours of direct sunlight a year — Sene woke up to another truth: Senegal's priority for quality education produces great local technical talent and highly skilled labor. “Why should we think we need to import brains?” he asks. His entire team is Senegalese and locally educated from the electrical engineers to his financial advisors. ERS employs 15 people, and is growing.
Senegalese President Macky Sall has placed renewable energy high on his list of national goals, and four solar plants have come online in the last 18 months with the percentage of citizens using clean energy in this West African nation of 15 million, rising at an astounding pace from about 10% to over 21% in less than two years. President Macky Sall predicts the rate will rise to over 30% in the near future. “At this rate, solar and wind energy will entirely drive Senegal's power needs sooner than we anticipated,” Sene adds.
The Kahone solar plant is already bringing electricity to over 150 000 households in this central region of the country where everyone feels the need for electricity. One local tailor remembers the days he was unable to work at all because the current was cut. “We were at a standstill until the juice for our sewing machines came back. Those days are over.”
Energy Resources Senegal is helping to keep local businesses in business, and is now even able to help provide basic services to communities that have been socially off-the-grid as well. One of Sene's personal goals is to renovate and upgrade the often decrepit structures used for community schools.
Moustapha Sene who was educated in Dakar and in Canada could have opted for a corporate position in Europe or North America, but his respect for his father, Alla Sene, who started the first family business in the streets of Dakar back in the 50s with no education and no cash, combined with his hope for his children to believe in a truly emerging Africa has kept him invested in a Senegal that he has helped evolve. His 22 year old daughter finishes an MBA at NYU this semester in energy and the environment and plans to bring her knowledge back home too.
“What we have done in Koalack with the Kahone solar plant we can share with local entrepreneurs across West Africa and beyond,” he told a group of regional investors. “We have the local know-how and engineering, we have local financial talent to provide and structure economic models for the Industry. And of course there is no shortage of sun. We have to learn how to master technologies on our own and start to invest more in our own confidence to produce local wealth,” he says.
The Senegalese Ministry of Energy and the pro-active Senelec, with its Plan Yeesal (meaning renewal in Wolof), is proving to be among Africa's most ambitious players in the renewables sector. Power Purchase Agreements, the kind that Energy Resources Senegal has signed — a 25-year engagement — is proving that as long as the sunlight is free, native solutions to old problems in the energy sector have arrived.
“Curiously,” Sene adds “the greatest challenge to creating new wealth is not the cost of innovation as many think; it is the work to get beyond our traditional reflexes.”
If Sene keeps seizing the obvious ERS’s ambition to develop and build a total of 500MW solar and wind projects on the African continent before end of 2025, just may happen.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Resources Senegal (ERS).
View multimedia content
Contact:
Saliou Diagne
SalDiagne@gmail.com
+221 77 674 10 34
SOURCE
Energy Resources Senegal (ERS)
One Step Off The Grid/Giles Parkinson: “Interest free” loans for solar and storage for South Australia households
One Step Off The Grid
“Interest free” loans for solar and storage for South Australia households
By Giles Parkinson on February 22, 2018
The South Australia Labor government continues to push the renewable energy button, offering “interest free” loans to 10,000 households to install rooftop solar and battery storage if it is re-elected in next month’s election.
The initiative, unveiled by Premier Jay Weatherill and energy minister Tom Koutsantonis, will offer the loans to 10,000 homeowners in the state, with no interest charged for the first seven years.
It follows the unveiling of Labor’s new 75 per cent renewable energy target for 2025, along with a 25 per cent “renewable storage” target by the same date, which equates to 750MW of battery, pumped hydro, hydrogen or solar thermal storage.
The new rooftop solar scheme is over and above the Tesla-led “virtual power plant” that will week to install and link rooftop solar and battery storage systems in 50,000 low income households, with a discounted electricity rate and no upfront payments.
It will favour locally made products.
Weatherill says that 33,000 households had already applied for that virtual power plant scheme, highlighting the deep interest in solar and storage.
Analysis from Bruce Mountain, of CME, on the costs of rooftop solar and storage shows it is “significantly” cheaper than the cost of grid-based power, particularly in South Australia, although many households cannot afford the up-front cost.
South Australia already has the highest penetration of rooftop solar in Australia, and likely the world, with more than 220,000 households, or 31 per cent.
Rooftop solar contributes more than 7.5 per cent to the state’s electricity demand, and is forecast by the Australian Energy Market Operator to reduce grid based demand to near zero on some days within the next decade.
“This scheme will help to significantly lower energy bills for those who access the no-interest loans to purchase a battery and solar PV system,” Koutsantonis said in a statement.
“As with the virtual power plant and other renewables project …. these systems will also reduce peak demand on the grid, which lowers prices for all South Australians.
The election is due to be held on March 17.
Categories Battery/Storage Solar Tags battery storage solar south australia Theme Households
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© One Step Off The Grid 2018
“Interest free” loans for solar and storage for South Australia households
By Giles Parkinson on February 22, 2018
The South Australia Labor government continues to push the renewable energy button, offering “interest free” loans to 10,000 households to install rooftop solar and battery storage if it is re-elected in next month’s election.
The initiative, unveiled by Premier Jay Weatherill and energy minister Tom Koutsantonis, will offer the loans to 10,000 homeowners in the state, with no interest charged for the first seven years.
It follows the unveiling of Labor’s new 75 per cent renewable energy target for 2025, along with a 25 per cent “renewable storage” target by the same date, which equates to 750MW of battery, pumped hydro, hydrogen or solar thermal storage.
The new rooftop solar scheme is over and above the Tesla-led “virtual power plant” that will week to install and link rooftop solar and battery storage systems in 50,000 low income households, with a discounted electricity rate and no upfront payments.
It will favour locally made products.
Weatherill says that 33,000 households had already applied for that virtual power plant scheme, highlighting the deep interest in solar and storage.
Analysis from Bruce Mountain, of CME, on the costs of rooftop solar and storage shows it is “significantly” cheaper than the cost of grid-based power, particularly in South Australia, although many households cannot afford the up-front cost.
South Australia already has the highest penetration of rooftop solar in Australia, and likely the world, with more than 220,000 households, or 31 per cent.
Rooftop solar contributes more than 7.5 per cent to the state’s electricity demand, and is forecast by the Australian Energy Market Operator to reduce grid based demand to near zero on some days within the next decade.
“This scheme will help to significantly lower energy bills for those who access the no-interest loans to purchase a battery and solar PV system,” Koutsantonis said in a statement.
“As with the virtual power plant and other renewables project …. these systems will also reduce peak demand on the grid, which lowers prices for all South Australians.
The election is due to be held on March 17.
Categories Battery/Storage Solar Tags battery storage solar south australia Theme Households
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From Our Sister Site Renew Economy
Energy market heavies find an expensive way to stand still
SA Best: 90% renewables by 2030 is feasible, but not a target
What’s Best for South Australia’s energy policy
Downsized NSW wind farm rejected, again, by state planning department
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© One Step Off The Grid 2018
One Step Off The Grid/Sophie Vorrath: Chinese solar inverter brand de-listed over safety issues
One Step Off The Grid
Chinese solar inverter brand de-listed over safety issues
By Sophie Vorrath on February 22, 2018
The Clean Energy Council’s crackdown on rooftop solar system quality in Australia has claimed another scalp, this time the inverters of China-based company Shenzhen Sofarsolar.
The CEC said on Wednesday that all inverters made by Shenzhen Sofarsolar had been “de-listed” from the organisation’s catalogue of compliant products, after tests turned up a potential safety issue.
“A PV grid-connect inverter of model Sofar 3000TL has failed testing by the Clean Energy Council for compliance with AS 4777-2,” a statement from the Council said.
“As a result of failing the Passive Anti-islanding test, the Active Anti-islanding test and other issues, all inverters from Shenzhen Sofarsolar have been de-listed as of 21 February 2018.
“This failure is regarded by the CEC as a potential safety issue for personnel as the inverter may not shut down under some grid failure conditions,” the statement said.
The CEC conceded that this might not be the case for all of the company’s inverters, but said that – as it was not practical to test all of the manufacturer’s products – it was taking the results of the testing on this model as representative of other models until demonstrated otherwise.
It also advised solar installers who had stock of the brand to stop using it – and to seek advice from the manufacturer or the electrical safety authorities on what to with inverters that had already been installed.
At this stage, the CEC said, no advice had been given by the company or electrical safety authorities.
As we have reported on One Step Off The Grid, the CEC has been working hard to tighten the rules and standards of Australia’s booming rooftop solar market, since introducing a suite of new guidelines and standards in early 2016.
The new rules have allowed the CEC to take action against suppliers that fail to meet standards, and also introduced a random testing program for solar panels and inverters to ensure the performance of products being sold in Australia was living up to marketing claims and safety standards.
As regular One Step Off The Grid contributor and long-time solar industry insider Nigel Morris noted, the new rules had a swift and major effect on the market.
By November 2016, the CEC had slashed the list of approved solar panels for the Australian market from more than 400 to 217.
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Chinese solar inverter brand de-listed over safety issues
By Sophie Vorrath on February 22, 2018
The Clean Energy Council’s crackdown on rooftop solar system quality in Australia has claimed another scalp, this time the inverters of China-based company Shenzhen Sofarsolar.
The CEC said on Wednesday that all inverters made by Shenzhen Sofarsolar had been “de-listed” from the organisation’s catalogue of compliant products, after tests turned up a potential safety issue.
“A PV grid-connect inverter of model Sofar 3000TL has failed testing by the Clean Energy Council for compliance with AS 4777-2,” a statement from the Council said.
“As a result of failing the Passive Anti-islanding test, the Active Anti-islanding test and other issues, all inverters from Shenzhen Sofarsolar have been de-listed as of 21 February 2018.
“This failure is regarded by the CEC as a potential safety issue for personnel as the inverter may not shut down under some grid failure conditions,” the statement said.
The CEC conceded that this might not be the case for all of the company’s inverters, but said that – as it was not practical to test all of the manufacturer’s products – it was taking the results of the testing on this model as representative of other models until demonstrated otherwise.
It also advised solar installers who had stock of the brand to stop using it – and to seek advice from the manufacturer or the electrical safety authorities on what to with inverters that had already been installed.
At this stage, the CEC said, no advice had been given by the company or electrical safety authorities.
As we have reported on One Step Off The Grid, the CEC has been working hard to tighten the rules and standards of Australia’s booming rooftop solar market, since introducing a suite of new guidelines and standards in early 2016.
The new rules have allowed the CEC to take action against suppliers that fail to meet standards, and also introduced a random testing program for solar panels and inverters to ensure the performance of products being sold in Australia was living up to marketing claims and safety standards.
As regular One Step Off The Grid contributor and long-time solar industry insider Nigel Morris noted, the new rules had a swift and major effect on the market.
By November 2016, the CEC had slashed the list of approved solar panels for the Australian market from more than 400 to 217.
Categories Software/Gadgets Solar Tags CEC Clean Energy Council inverter rooftop solar Shenzhen Sofarsolar Theme Households
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From Our Sister Site Renew Economy
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One Step Off The Grid/Sophie Vorrath: University of Newcastle rolls out 2MW solar system at Callaghan Campus
One Step Off The Grid
University of Newcastle rolls out 2MW solar system at Callaghan Campus
By Sophie Vorrath on February 27, 2018
The University of Newcastle has made a major down-payment on aspirations to take its Callaghan Campus in New South Wales to 100 per cent renewable by 2020, with the installation of a $4 million, 2MW PV system installed across its across 25 buildings.
The new solar system, which is being installed over the course of 2018, is expected to generate around 2.8 million kWh a year, and cut the University’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2800 tonnes CO2-equivalent compared with conventional grid-sourced electricity.
It follows a 2016 feasibility report, which found that the Hunter Valley-based campus could reach 100 per cent renewables by 2020 by installing up to 12MW of rooftop and ground-mounted solar PV and 5MWh of battery storage.
The feasibility study – conducted by the Tom Farrell Institute (the UON’s environmental research and teaching hub, based at Callaghan) with CLEANaS – determined that this would be both technically feasible and financially beneficial for the UON.
“With a healthy return on investment of approximately 8 per cent, finance for this cost-neutral project has a payback time of around 10 years,” a report on the Tom Farrell Institute website says.
The solar and storage would supply up to 85 per cent of the university’s daytime electricity needs, with the possibility of feeding excess energy into the grid, or storing it for when the sun goes down. Remaining demand will be met through energy efficiency, or buying green power.
Whether these plans are realised remains to be seen, but in the meantime, the UON said it would use the new Callaghan solar system as a “living laboratory for sustainable futures” – offering added value to students and inspiration to come up with new ideas and innovations.
More broadly, the UON has overarching target to deliver a 20 per cent reduction on CO2 emissions per meter square of gross floor area by 2020, from a 2007 baseline.
In 2017, it installed a 75 kilowatt system on its library building at its Ourimbah campus – and it is also expanding that system this year. Elsewhere it has 80kW of PV installed at Port Macquarie, Tamworth and Taree. These systems are estimated to generate approximately 120,000 kWh of clean electricity per annum and avoid 100 tonnes of carbon emissions a year.
And it is not the only tertiary institution making the shift to renewables. In Victoria, the University of Melbourne has been rolling out 1.8MW solar at its Carlton campus; while Monash University last year set off on its path to 100 per cent renewables, via an innovative solar and battery storage-based renewable energy microgrid.
In New South Wales, the Charles Sturt University signed up to have 1.7MW of PV installed across 11 buildings at its Wagga Wagga campus; and in 2016, the University of New England announced plans to source up to half of its electricity from solar, through the installation of a PV farm on land adjacent to its Armidale campus.
Also in 2016, the University of Southern Queensland announced plans to add 1.9MW of rooftop solar and battery storage across its Toowoomba, Springfield and Ipswich campuses.
And not everyone is building their own renewable capacity. The University of New South Wales, though an unusual “tripartite” agreement, will buy up to 124,000MWh of renewable energy a year, for 15 years, from Maoneng’s 200MW Sunraysia Solar Farm located near Balranald in south western NSW, meeting the University’s annual energy requirement, starting in 2019.
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© One Step Off The Grid 2018
University of Newcastle rolls out 2MW solar system at Callaghan Campus
By Sophie Vorrath on February 27, 2018
The University of Newcastle has made a major down-payment on aspirations to take its Callaghan Campus in New South Wales to 100 per cent renewable by 2020, with the installation of a $4 million, 2MW PV system installed across its across 25 buildings.
The new solar system, which is being installed over the course of 2018, is expected to generate around 2.8 million kWh a year, and cut the University’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2800 tonnes CO2-equivalent compared with conventional grid-sourced electricity.
It follows a 2016 feasibility report, which found that the Hunter Valley-based campus could reach 100 per cent renewables by 2020 by installing up to 12MW of rooftop and ground-mounted solar PV and 5MWh of battery storage.
The feasibility study – conducted by the Tom Farrell Institute (the UON’s environmental research and teaching hub, based at Callaghan) with CLEANaS – determined that this would be both technically feasible and financially beneficial for the UON.
“With a healthy return on investment of approximately 8 per cent, finance for this cost-neutral project has a payback time of around 10 years,” a report on the Tom Farrell Institute website says.
The solar and storage would supply up to 85 per cent of the university’s daytime electricity needs, with the possibility of feeding excess energy into the grid, or storing it for when the sun goes down. Remaining demand will be met through energy efficiency, or buying green power.
Whether these plans are realised remains to be seen, but in the meantime, the UON said it would use the new Callaghan solar system as a “living laboratory for sustainable futures” – offering added value to students and inspiration to come up with new ideas and innovations.
More broadly, the UON has overarching target to deliver a 20 per cent reduction on CO2 emissions per meter square of gross floor area by 2020, from a 2007 baseline.
In 2017, it installed a 75 kilowatt system on its library building at its Ourimbah campus – and it is also expanding that system this year. Elsewhere it has 80kW of PV installed at Port Macquarie, Tamworth and Taree. These systems are estimated to generate approximately 120,000 kWh of clean electricity per annum and avoid 100 tonnes of carbon emissions a year.
And it is not the only tertiary institution making the shift to renewables. In Victoria, the University of Melbourne has been rolling out 1.8MW solar at its Carlton campus; while Monash University last year set off on its path to 100 per cent renewables, via an innovative solar and battery storage-based renewable energy microgrid.
In New South Wales, the Charles Sturt University signed up to have 1.7MW of PV installed across 11 buildings at its Wagga Wagga campus; and in 2016, the University of New England announced plans to source up to half of its electricity from solar, through the installation of a PV farm on land adjacent to its Armidale campus.
Also in 2016, the University of Southern Queensland announced plans to add 1.9MW of rooftop solar and battery storage across its Toowoomba, Springfield and Ipswich campuses.
And not everyone is building their own renewable capacity. The University of New South Wales, though an unusual “tripartite” agreement, will buy up to 124,000MWh of renewable energy a year, for 15 years, from Maoneng’s 200MW Sunraysia Solar Farm located near Balranald in south western NSW, meeting the University’s annual energy requirement, starting in 2019.
Categories Battery/Storage Energy Efficiency Software/Gadgets Solar Tags University of Newcastle Theme Businesses
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From Our Sister Site Renew Economy
Energy market heavies find an expensive way to stand still
SA Best: 90% renewables by 2030 is feasible, but not a target
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© One Step Off The Grid 2018
National Review/Chris Pope: Liberal Think Tank Refutes Case against Trump’s Health-Insurance Deregulation
National Review
Health Care
Liberal Think Tank Refutes Case against Trump’s Health-Insurance Deregulation
By Chris Pope
February 27, 2018 1:39 PM
(Eric Thayer/Reuters)
Per the Urban Institute, the proposal will increase the number of Americans insured by 1.7 million while reducing costs to taxpayers.
On February 20, the Trump administration released a proposed rule that would make it much easier for Americans to escape the inflated costs of Obamacare’s health-insurance exchanges. It would repeal an October 2016 regulation with which the departing Obama administration had sought to restrict the availability of “short term, limited duration” (STLD) insurance — a market exempt from the Affordable Care Act’s regulations, on which health insurance could be purchased for around $124 per month, compared with $393 on the exchanges. Obama’s regulation stipulated that these plans could last only three months, while the previous rule had allowed them to last a year and permitted guaranteed renewal of enrollment beyond then.
Congressional Democrats have denounced the Trump administration’s attempt to restore the STLD market to health as an attempt to sabotage the ACA. They have argued that the availability of affordable plans outside of the ACA’s risk pool could deprive the exchanges of essential revenues from healthy enrollees, and thus increase premiums for those who remain.
But when premiums on the exchanges rise, public subsidies automatically expand to guarantee that insurance will be available to enrollees at a limited cost as a share of their income, regardless of their medical risks. There is no need to force unwilling healthy individuals to pay hugely inflated premiums for this to be the case. Punishing them with an individual-mandate tax was unnecessary and unfair, while seeking to prohibit cost-effective alternatives that actually did meet their needs was similarly senseless.
Yesterday’s study from the Urban Institute demonstrates with unprecedented clarity just how small a trade-off would be associated with the substantial gains from the policy.
The report bears a dispassionate title, and the executive summary picks out several statistics related to the combined effects of the mandate and the STLD deregulation. But as was made clear during last year’s legislative attempts to replace the ACA, estimates of the mandate’s impact are so speculative and likely exaggerated that they serve to obscure less ambiguous and more important statistics.
More interesting, and unmentioned in the introduction to the Urban Institute’s report, are some remarkable findings that can be observed directly in the report’s Table 1. From this table it is clear that:
7.4 million on the exchanges eligible for tax credits would see no change in premiums.
4.2 million would enroll in STLD plans, whose premiums would be far below those for plans currently available. (STLD premiums in the fourth quarter of 2016 were 68.4 percent lower than those on the exchanges.)
4.5 million on the exchanges without tax credits would see premiums rise somewhat (by an average of 18.2 percent, compared with 8.3 percent in states prohibiting STLD plans, according to Table 4 on page 16).
While there are roughly similar numbers of winners and losers, the scale of benefits far exceeds the costs. Furthermore, while the modest premium increases would be felt only by unsubsidized high-income enrollees, the savings would be enjoyed across the income distribution — including by large numbers of low- and moderate-income households.
On balance, the Urban Institute also estimates that Trump’s proposal would reduce the number of uninsured Americans by 1.7 million — a finding the report buries by grouping those enrolled in STLD plans together with the truly uninsured.
In other words, restricting the sale of attractive, affordably priced health insurance isn’t necessary to forestall the collapse of the exchanges, but it has needlessly concentrated enormous costs on millions seeking health insurance and forced many to go entirely without.
The Urban Institute’s study is also enlightening with respect to the net fiscal impact of STLD deregulation. As a cheaper alternative to the exchanges becomes available, low-risk subsidized individuals may disenroll, and hence the government may save money. But as the risk pool on the exchanges becomes sicker, subsidies expand, costing the government money. The net impact of these effects has as yet been unclear.
0
The Urban Institute finds that the number of people on unsubsidized ACA-compliant plans would fall by 1.5 million, while the number on subsidized plans would fall by 600,000. As a result, the reform would slightly reduce federal spending on health care for the nonelderly — by $686 million, or 0.2 percent — and should allay whatever federal budgetary concerns may have impeded the proposal’s more thorough implementation.
These empirical findings (from authors who had expressed opposition to STLD insurance) suggest that the deregulation of STLD plans overall substantially reduces the cost of health insurance, covers more people, and slightly reduces the burden on taxpayers. States should embrace it — and give their residents a real chance to purchase affordable insurance coverage for themselves and their families.
Chris Pope — Chris Pope is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
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By NR Symposium
Alvin S. Felzenberg One hundred years hence, or for as long a “this last best hope on earth” endures, William F. Buckley Jr. will be remembered as the father of postwar American conservatism, the founder of National Review, and — as Ronald Reagan observed — the person who did more than any other to ... Read More
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Editor’s Note: Ten years ago this week, National Review’s founder, William F. Buckley Jr., passed away. To commemorate the anniversary of Buckley’s passing, NRO will be reprinting a number of his pieces over the next few days. For more information about the National Review Institute’s efforts to preserve ... Read More
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Janus v. AFSCME at the Supreme Court: What’s at Stake?
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A curious fiction in American political life is the tendency to treat coerced behavior as equivalent to voluntary action. The most prominent example of this might be the recent repeal of the Obamacare mandate to buy health insurance. When the mandate was in place, people faced financial penalties for not buying ... Read More
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Andrew Cilek might be -- this is just a hunch -- unaware that 2018 is Brooks Brothers' bicentennial. Judging by what he wore when he went out to vote in Minneapolis on Nov. 2, 2010, his preferences in shirts run less to button-down Oxford cloth than to chatty T-shirts. The question the U.S. Supreme Court will ... Read More
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Back in early December, Trump fans started throwing stuff at me for suggesting that we await more information about FBI agent Peter Strzok before demanding that he be drawn and quartered. Yes, it was clear that Strzok engaged in serious misconduct: The married G-man’s reported extramarital affair with his ... Read More
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Health Care
Liberal Think Tank Refutes Case against Trump’s Health-Insurance Deregulation
By Chris Pope
February 27, 2018 1:39 PM
(Eric Thayer/Reuters)
Per the Urban Institute, the proposal will increase the number of Americans insured by 1.7 million while reducing costs to taxpayers.
On February 20, the Trump administration released a proposed rule that would make it much easier for Americans to escape the inflated costs of Obamacare’s health-insurance exchanges. It would repeal an October 2016 regulation with which the departing Obama administration had sought to restrict the availability of “short term, limited duration” (STLD) insurance — a market exempt from the Affordable Care Act’s regulations, on which health insurance could be purchased for around $124 per month, compared with $393 on the exchanges. Obama’s regulation stipulated that these plans could last only three months, while the previous rule had allowed them to last a year and permitted guaranteed renewal of enrollment beyond then.
Congressional Democrats have denounced the Trump administration’s attempt to restore the STLD market to health as an attempt to sabotage the ACA. They have argued that the availability of affordable plans outside of the ACA’s risk pool could deprive the exchanges of essential revenues from healthy enrollees, and thus increase premiums for those who remain.
But when premiums on the exchanges rise, public subsidies automatically expand to guarantee that insurance will be available to enrollees at a limited cost as a share of their income, regardless of their medical risks. There is no need to force unwilling healthy individuals to pay hugely inflated premiums for this to be the case. Punishing them with an individual-mandate tax was unnecessary and unfair, while seeking to prohibit cost-effective alternatives that actually did meet their needs was similarly senseless.
Yesterday’s study from the Urban Institute demonstrates with unprecedented clarity just how small a trade-off would be associated with the substantial gains from the policy.
The report bears a dispassionate title, and the executive summary picks out several statistics related to the combined effects of the mandate and the STLD deregulation. But as was made clear during last year’s legislative attempts to replace the ACA, estimates of the mandate’s impact are so speculative and likely exaggerated that they serve to obscure less ambiguous and more important statistics.
More interesting, and unmentioned in the introduction to the Urban Institute’s report, are some remarkable findings that can be observed directly in the report’s Table 1. From this table it is clear that:
7.4 million on the exchanges eligible for tax credits would see no change in premiums.
4.2 million would enroll in STLD plans, whose premiums would be far below those for plans currently available. (STLD premiums in the fourth quarter of 2016 were 68.4 percent lower than those on the exchanges.)
4.5 million on the exchanges without tax credits would see premiums rise somewhat (by an average of 18.2 percent, compared with 8.3 percent in states prohibiting STLD plans, according to Table 4 on page 16).
While there are roughly similar numbers of winners and losers, the scale of benefits far exceeds the costs. Furthermore, while the modest premium increases would be felt only by unsubsidized high-income enrollees, the savings would be enjoyed across the income distribution — including by large numbers of low- and moderate-income households.
On balance, the Urban Institute also estimates that Trump’s proposal would reduce the number of uninsured Americans by 1.7 million — a finding the report buries by grouping those enrolled in STLD plans together with the truly uninsured.
In other words, restricting the sale of attractive, affordably priced health insurance isn’t necessary to forestall the collapse of the exchanges, but it has needlessly concentrated enormous costs on millions seeking health insurance and forced many to go entirely without.
The Urban Institute’s study is also enlightening with respect to the net fiscal impact of STLD deregulation. As a cheaper alternative to the exchanges becomes available, low-risk subsidized individuals may disenroll, and hence the government may save money. But as the risk pool on the exchanges becomes sicker, subsidies expand, costing the government money. The net impact of these effects has as yet been unclear.
0
The Urban Institute finds that the number of people on unsubsidized ACA-compliant plans would fall by 1.5 million, while the number on subsidized plans would fall by 600,000. As a result, the reform would slightly reduce federal spending on health care for the nonelderly — by $686 million, or 0.2 percent — and should allay whatever federal budgetary concerns may have impeded the proposal’s more thorough implementation.
These empirical findings (from authors who had expressed opposition to STLD insurance) suggest that the deregulation of STLD plans overall substantially reduces the cost of health insurance, covers more people, and slightly reduces the burden on taxpayers. States should embrace it — and give their residents a real chance to purchase affordable insurance coverage for themselves and their families.
Chris Pope — Chris Pope is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
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