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Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited ( NYSE:AXS – Free Report ) by 61.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 52,236 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,892 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $4,158,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 55.6% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 462 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 80.4% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 507 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 32.6% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 424.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter worth $99,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock. AXIS Capital Stock Performance Shares of AXIS Capital stock opened at $93.04 on Friday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a one year low of $53.49 and a one year high of $94.39. The company has a market cap of $7.78 billion, a PE ratio of 13.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $76.45. AXIS Capital Announces Dividend The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.41%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several brokerages recently issued reports on AXS. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.14. Check Out Our Latest Report on AXS About AXIS Capital ( Free Report ) AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AXS? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for AXIS Capital Holdings Limited ( NYSE:AXS – Free Report ). 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The NFC’s No. 1 seed will come down to the final week when the Detroit Lions host the Minnesota Vikings. The winner takes the NFC North and gets a first-round playoff bye and home-field advantage until the Super Bowl. The loser becomes the No. 5 seed and must play on the road in the wild-card round. The Vikings (14-2) held on for a 27-25 victory over the Green Bay Packers to set up the high-stakes showdown in Week 18. The Lions (13-2) visit the San Francisco 49ers (6-9) on Monday night in a rematch of the NFC title game. Win, lose or tie, they have to beat the Vikings again. Detroit beat Minnesota 31-29 in Week 7. The Philadelphia Eagles clinched the NFC East and locked up the No. 2 seed with a 41-7 rout of the Dallas Cowboys. However, coach Nick Sirianni has a tough decision to make this week. Saquon Barkley is 101 yards away from breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season record for yards rushing in a season. Sirianni has to decide whether to rest Barkley and most of his starters to prepare for the playoffs or let his star try for the 40-year-old record. The Los Angeles Rams (10-6) were on the verge of clinching the NFC West. They would lock it up Sunday night if the Commanders beat the Falcons. The outcome of the Atlanta-Washington game has a major impact on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7). If the Falcons win, they’d remain first in the NFC South and would win the division with a victory against Carolina next week. If the Falcons lose, the Buccaneers would take over first place and would secure the division with a victory over New Orleans next week. The Commanders would secure a wild-card spot with a win against Atlanta. If they lose, Seattle stays mathematically alive for a wild card and the Buccaneers could also find a path to the playoffs as a wild-card team. Three teams in the AFC have already secured their seeds. The two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs (15-1) won the AFC West weeks ago and clinched the No. 1 seed. The AFC East champion Buffalo Bills (13-3) are the No. 2 seed. The AFC South champion Houston Texans (9-7) are the No. 4 seed. The Baltimore Ravens (11-5) would win the AFC North and get the No. 3 seed with a win or tie against Cleveland next weekend or a loss or tie by Pittsburgh, which hosts Cincinnati. If they don’t win the division, the Steelers have already clinched a wild-card berth. The Los Angeles Chargers (10-6) also secured a wild-card spot. They’ll be no lower than the sixth seed. The final AFC playoff spot comes down to the Broncos (9-7), Dolphins (8-8) or Bengals (8-8). Denver clinches with a win or tie against the Chiefs. The Dolphins need the Broncos to lose and they must beat the Jets on the road to get in. The Bengals must win and the Broncos and Dolphins have to lose for them to get in. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.Daily Post Nigeria Overhaul educational system to align with industry needs- Zulum to Nigerian govt Home News Politics Metro Entertainment Sport News Overhaul educational system to align with industry needs- Zulum to Nigerian govt Published on November 23, 2024 By Shehu Usman Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum has called for a comprehensive review of Nigeria’s education system to address the disconnect between educational institutions and the needs of industries. The Governor made the call during a courtesy visit by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Mr Akintunde Sawyerr. Special Adviser to Borno State Governor on Media, Dauda Iliya, in a statement, indicated that Zulum expressed concern that many graduates produced by higher institutions lack the necessary skills to drive innovation and technological advancement. He urged NELFUND to critically assess the issue and implement solutions that enable graduates to become self-employed rather than depend on limited job opportunities. “We have two major problems in our educational system: the mismatch between educational institutions and industries, as they do not communicate effectively, and the mismatch between the labour market and graduates, many of whom are unprepared to work in the industries,” Zulum stated. The Governor further tasked NELFUND to support entrepreneurship, technical education, and vocational training programs. The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Education Loan Fund (Nelfund), Mr Akintunde Sawyerr, highlighted the fund’s mission which is to tackle the growing issue of students dropping out due to financial constraints. He noted that the loan is interest-free, with repayment set at 10% of the recipient’s income upon securing employment. Related Topics: FG Zulum Don't Miss Consultants to handle revenue generation in Calabar – Mayor You may like Nigerian govt announces Galaxy Backbone’s Govmail for civil servants Ex-lawmaker queries Nigerian Govt’s borrowings Nigerian Govt reinstates Ikechebelu, Modebelu as UNIZIK Acting VC, Registrar FG, Northern states told to adopt policies meant to prosper North ‘They refuse to speak out’ – Gov Zulum slams leaders over polygamy in IDP camps Nigerian govt has sacked workers with Benin Republic university degrees – Shehu Sani Advertise About Us Contact Us Privacy-Policy Terms Copyright © Daily Post Media Ltd
Aid only 'delaying deaths' as Sudan counts down to famine: agency chiefPaisley singer Paolo Nutini donates over £100k to home town charityBritish Columbia business owner Joe Chaput will spend $5,500 a month on security guards during the holiday season and plans on upgrading his store’s video camera system for around $5,000 more. He’s not selling luxury brands or expensive jewels. Chaput sells cheese, and at Christmas, cheese is a hot commodity. He is the co-owner of specialty cheese store les amis du Fromage, with two locations in Vancouver. While cheeselifting is rare in their Kitsilano store, the outlet in East Vancouver is hit in waves, with nothing happening for a month, then three of four people trying to steal their inventory within a week. “Sometimes, you miss it. Sometimes, you catch it. The way shoplifters behave ... they tend to gravitate toward expensive things,” said Chaput. Expensive cheese is on shoplifters’ Christmas list, he said. “They tend to do the classic examples of staying away from customer service and trying to go to a different part of the store so they can be left alone to steal.” Chaput isn’t alone. Police say food-related crimes on are the rise in Canada and as prices climb for items such as cheese and butter, they become lucrative on the black market for organized crime groups, not to mention theft for local resale. Sylvain Charlebois, the director of Dalhousie University’s Agri-food Analytics Lab, said a black market tends to emerge as soon as food prices surge. “Organized crime will steal anything (if) they know they can sell it and so, they probably would have known who their clients are before even stealing anything at all, and that’s how a black market is organized,” said Charlebois. He said he believes there are two categories of people shoplifting — those who do so out of desperation because they can’t afford the food, or organized criminals, profiting from sales on the black market. Mounties in North Vancouver made cheesy headlines when they ran into a man with a cart of stolen cheese in the middle of the night in September. The cheese, valued at $12,800, was from a nearby Whole Foods Store. While the cheese was recovered, it had to be disposed of because it hadn’t been refrigerated. Const. Mansoor Sahak, with the North Vancouver RCMP, said officers believe cheese is targeted because it’s “profitable to resell.” “If they are drug addicts, they will commit further crimes with that or feed their drug habits. It’s a vicious cycle,” said Sahak. Sahak said meat is also a top target for grocery thieves, with store losses sometimes in the thousands. “So, we’re not surprised that this happened,” said Sahak. Police in Ontario have been chasing down slippery shoplifters going after butter. Scott Tracey, a spokesman with Guelph Police Service, said there have been eight or nine butter thefts over the last year, including one theft last December worth $1,000. In October, two men walked into a local grocer and filled their carts with cases of butter valued at $936, and four days later a Guelph grocer lost four cases valued at $958. Tracey said he has looked at online marketplaces and found listings by people selling 20 or 30 pounds of butter at a time. “Clearly, somebody didn’t accidentally buy 30 extra pounds of butter. So, they must have come from somewhere,” said Tracey, “I think at this point it appears to be the black market is where it’s headed.” He said the thefts seem to be organized, with two or three people working together in each case. Police in Brantford, Ont., are also investigating the theft of about $1,200 worth of butter from a store on Nov. 4. Charlebois said retailers could invest in prevention technologies like electronic tags, but putting them on butter or cheese is rare. He said up until recently grocery store theft has been a “taboo subject for many years.” Stores didn’t wanted to talk about thefts because they didn’t want to alarm people but now they feel they need to build awareness about what is “becoming a huge problem,” said Charlebois. Chaput, the cheese store owner, said he had been running the East Vancouver store for 15 years while managing the store in Kitsilano for 30 years, and he loves his customers. “It’s really one of the best parts of our businesses, seeing familiar faces and making new customers. It’s why we come to work, really. Partly it’s the cheese, and partly it’s the people,” said Chaput. He said his strategy to combat would-be thieves is to give them extra customer service to make it harder for them to steal. He admits, however, that the shoplifting causes him stress. “It’s challenging. You’re busy trying to run your business day to day and take care of customers and take care of employees. Having to deal with criminals, just kind of scratches away. It can be a bit exhausting,” said Chaput.
'Jimmy Carter's death means there's only five US presidents left alive - but none like him'10-man Barcelona concedes two late goals in draw at Celta Vigo
Accenture plc ( NYSE:ACN – Get Free Report ) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-two ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $368.23. Several brokerages have recently commented on ACN. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Accenture from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Piper Sandler Companies restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $329.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a research note on Friday, September 20th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Accenture from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $321.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Accenture from $377.00 to $389.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Accenture from $380.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. View Our Latest Stock Report on ACN Insiders Place Their Bets Institutional Inflows and Outflows Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in Accenture during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Accenture during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in Accenture in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Accenture during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Accenture by 607.1% in the third quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 99 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock. Accenture Stock Down 0.7 % Shares of NYSE ACN opened at $358.66 on Wednesday. Accenture has a 52-week low of $278.69 and a 52-week high of $387.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $224.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $356.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $328.98. Accenture ( NYSE:ACN – Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The information technology services provider reported $2.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $16.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.83% and a net margin of 11.20%. Accenture’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Accenture will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current year. Accenture Increases Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a dividend of $1.48 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This is a boost from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.79%. Accenture announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, September 26th that permits the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology services provider to buy up to 1.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued. Accenture Company Profile ( Get Free Report Accenture plc, a professional services company, provides strategy and consulting, industry X, song, and technology and operation services worldwide. The company offers application services, including agile transformation, DevOps, application modernization, enterprise architecture, software and quality engineering, data management; intelligent automation comprising robotic process automation, natural language processing, and virtual agents; and application management services, as well as software engineering services; strategy and consulting services; data and analytics strategy, data discovery and augmentation, data management and beyond, data democratization, and industrialized solutions comprising turnkey analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions; metaverse; and sustainability services. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Accenture Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Accenture and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .
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With nearly all of the votes counted, left-leaning Mr Milanovic won 49% while his main challenger Dragan Primorac, a candidate of the ruling conservative HDZ party, trailed far behind with 19%. Pre-election polls had predicted that the two would face off in the second round on January 12, as none of the eight presidential election contenders were projected to get more than 50% of the vote. Mr Milanovic thanked his supporters but warned that “this was just a first run”. “Let’s not be triumphant, let’s be realistic, firmly on the ground,” he said. “We must fight all over again. It’s not over till it’s over.” Mr Milanovic, the most popular politician in Croatia, has served as prime minister in the past. Populist in style, the 58-year-old has been a fierce critic of current Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and continuous sparring between the two has been a recent hallmark of Croatia’s political scene. Mr Plenkovic has sought to portray the vote as one about Croatia’s future in the EU and Nato. He has labelled Mr Milanovic “pro-Russian” and a threat to Croatia’s international standing. “The difference between him (Mr Primorac) and Milanovic is quite simple: Milanovic is leading us East, Primorac is leading us West,” he said. Though the presidency is largely ceremonial in Croatia, an elected president holds political authority and acts as the supreme commander of the military. Mr Milanovic has criticised the Nato and European Union support for Ukraine and has often insisted that Croatia should not take sides. He has said Croatia should stay away from global disputes, thought it is a member of both Nato and the EU. Mr Milanovic has also blocked Croatia’s participation in a Nato-led training mission for Ukraine, declaring that “no Croatian soldier will take part in somebody else’s war”. His main rival in the election, Mr Primorac, has stated that “Croatia’s place is in the West, not the East”. However, his bid for the presidency has been marred by a high-level corruption case that landed Croatia’s health minister in jail last month and which featured prominently in pre-election debates. Trailing a distant third in the pre-election polls is Marija Selak Raspudic, a conservative independent candidate. She has focused her election campaign on the economic troubles of ordinary citizens, corruption and issues such as population decline in the country of some 3.8 million. Sunday’s presidential election is Croatia’s third vote this year, following a snap parliamentary election in April and the European Parliament balloting in June.Chuck Woolery, smooth-talking game show host of ‘Love Connection' and ‘Scrabble,' dies at 83
Stock futures are little changed as Wall Street gears up for potential Fed rate cut this week: Live updates
Jimmy Carter, the 39th US president, has died at 100India’s firmer attempts at mineral diplomacyHail Flutie: BC celebrates 40th anniversary of Miracle in Miami
iShares TIPS Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:TIP) Shares Sold by Prospera Financial Services Inc
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Electricity is the lifeblood of modern economies, and regions without rivers, dams, or hydroelectric power have successfully implemented innovative models to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply. These models rely on solar power, wind energy, nuclear power, and natural gas-based plants. For a region like Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), predominantly dependent on hydroelectricity, adopting such strategies could be a game-changer, diversifying its energy mix while addressing local energy needs sustainably. This article explores how states and countries without rivers generate electricity, assesses the feasibility of such models for Kashmir, and evaluates the costs and benefits of implementing alternative energy infrastructures. Electricity Generation Without Rivers: Global Lessons Countries and regions with limited or no river-based resources have harnessed various technologies to produce electricity. Prominent examples include: Nations like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia are leveraging their arid landscapes to build large-scale solar farms. The UAE’s Noor Abu Dhabi project, for example, is one of the largest single-site solar plants globally, producing 1.18 GW of power. Countries like Denmark and the Netherlands have achieved significant success through wind energy. Denmark generates nearly 47% of its electricity from wind, utilizing both onshore and offshore turbines. France, despite its limited natural resources, generates over 70% of its electricity from nuclear power. Nuclear energy offers a high-capacity, reliable solution for energy needs. Qatar and Bahrain, lacking major rivers, use natural gas to power electricity plants. These systems are efficient, quick to establish, and cost-effective in the short term. Iceland is a global leader in geothermal energy, using heat from beneath the Earth’s surface to power homes and businesses. This model is applicable in regions with geothermal potential. Energy Challenges in Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir’s electricity generation is predominantly hydroelectric, accounting for over 80% of its total energy production. While this has traditionally been sufficient, challenges like seasonal water flow variations, climate change, and high transmission losses have highlighted the need for diversification. Moreover, winters in Kashmir lead to acute power shortages due to reduced river flow and increased demand for heating. Alternative Energy Models for J&K While Kashmir receives less solar insolation compared to desert regions, solar energy is still a viable option. With advancements in photovoltaic (PV) technology, even regions with moderate sunlight can generate substantial power. Rooftop solar installations, floating solar farms on existing reservoirs, and community solar grids could be considered. Though wind potential in Kashmir is moderate, certain areas, especially Ladakh and parts of Jammu, could support wind farms. Hybrid systems combining wind and solar can ensure stable energy generation. Nuclear energy, in the form of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), offers a low-carbon, scalable solution. SMRs can be strategically located to serve localized demands without requiring extensive infrastructure. Biomass plants using agricultural and urban waste can provide a dual solution: waste management and energy production. Kashmir’s abundant horticulture and forest residues could be channeled into such systems. Energy storage is critical for regions relying on intermittent renewables like solar and wind. Developing a robust battery storage network would help Kashmir store excess energy for peak demand periods, especially in winters. Estimated Costs for Infrastructure Development The cost of setting up a comprehensive energy infrastructure for Jammu and Kashmir’s population (approx. 13 million) varies based on the chosen technology. Below is a rough estimate: Cost per MW: ₹4.15 crore to ₹8.3 crore. Capacity Needed: 1,000 MW. Total Cost: ₹4,150 crore to ₹8,300 crore. Cost per MW: ₹10 crore to ₹12.45 crore. Capacity Needed: 300 MW. Total Cost: ₹3,000 crore to ₹3,735 crore. Cost per Unit: ₹830 crore per 300 MW. Total Capacity Needed: 600 MW. Total Cost: ₹16,600 crore. Cost per MW-hour: ₹1.66 crore to ₹2.5 crore. Storage Needed: 500 MW-hour. Total Cost: ₹415 crore to ₹830 crore. Cost per MW: ₹24.9 crore to ₹33.2 crore. Capacity Needed: 100 MW. Total Cost: ₹2,490 crore to ₹3,320 crore. Estimated Per-Unit Costs To calculate per-unit cost for consumers, we include the following assumptions: Average life span of projects: 25 years. Operation and Maintenance (O&M) costs: 2-3% of project cost annually. Depreciation and interest rates: Considered for long-term recovery. Load factor or efficiency of each technology: Solar (20%), Wind (30%), SMRs (90%), Biomass (50%). Cost Breakdown Per Technology Annual Generation: ~1.75 billion units for 1,000 MW capacity (20% efficiency). Levelized Cost per Unit: ₹4.50–₹6.00 per kWh. Annual Generation: ~0.79 billion units for 300 MW capacity (30% efficiency). Levelized Cost per Unit: ₹5.50–₹6.50 per kWh. Annual Generation: ~4.73 billion units for 600 MW capacity (90% efficiency). Levelized Cost per Unit: ₹6.50–₹7.50 per kWh. Annual Generation: ~0.44 billion units for 100 MW capacity (50% efficiency). Levelized Cost per Unit: ₹7.00–₹8.00 per kWh. Adds ~₹1.00–₹1.50 per kWh to the base cost of solar and wind energy. Blended Per-Unit Cost for Consumers Considering a balanced energy mix (40% solar, 20% wind, 30% nuclear, 10% biomass) and battery storage for peak demands, the blended per-unit cost for consumers is estimated at: ₹5.50–₹7.00 per kWh, depending on the mix and financing models. Implementation Strategy A phased approach is essential for transitioning to a diversified energy system: Pilot projects for solar rooftop installations. Feasibility studies for wind farms and SMRs. Establish small biomass plants to address localized demands. Large-scale deployment of solar and wind farms. Installation of battery storage systems. Initiation of SMR construction. Operationalize SMRs. Expand renewable capacities to meet future demand. Establish robust transmission and distribution systems to reduce losses. Benefits of Diversified Energy Models Reducing reliance on hydroelectricity ensures a stable energy supply during winters and dry seasons. Renewable energy sources produce minimal greenhouse gas emissions, aligning with global climate goals. Investing in energy infrastructure generates employment and fosters local industries. Decentralized energy systems empower communities, reducing dependence on centralized grids. Challenges and Mitigation Renewable energy projects and SMRs require significant capital. Public-private partnerships (PPPs) and international funding can bridge this gap. Solar and wind projects require substantial land. Using barren or underutilized land can mitigate this challenge. Kashmir needs a skilled workforce for maintaining advanced systems. Establishing technical training centers can address this need. Transparent policies and streamlined processes are crucial for smooth implementation. Conclusion Diversifying Jammu and Kashmir’s energy mix is not just feasible but essential. Adopting a combination of solar, wind, nuclear, and biomass-based systems ensures a reliable, sustainable, and resilient electricity supply. Although the initial investment may seem steep, the long-term benefits far outweigh the costs, promising energy security, economic growth, and environmental sustainability. By learning from global pioneers in alternative energy, Kashmir can chart a path toward a greener, self-sufficient future. It is not merely about generating electricity—it is about empowering a region to thrive, irrespective of geographical limitations. An author, a communications strategist, Dr Sanjay Parva was a debut contestant from 28-Beerwah 2024 Assembly Constituency
Croatia's president faces conservative rival in election run-offJaland Lowe flirted with a triple-double as Pitt improved to 6-0 with a 74-63 win over LSU on Friday afternoon at the Greenbrier Tip-Off in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va. Lowe finished with a game-high 22 points to go along with eight rebounds and six assists for the Panthers, who have won their first six games of a season for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign. It would have been the second straight triple-double for Lowe, who had 11 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against VMI Monday. Ishmael Leggett chipped in 21 points and Cameron Corhen supplied 14, helping Pitt outshoot the Tigers (4-1) 44.4 percent to 37.3 percent overall. Vyctorius Miller and Jalen Reed recorded 14 points apiece for LSU, with Reed also snatching seven boards. Cam Carter contributed 11 points. Pitt took control in the first four-plus minutes of the second half, opening the period on a 13-0 run to build a 40-28 lead. The Tigers were held scoreless following the break until Carter converted a layup with 13:13 to go. It was still a 12-point game after Zack Austin hit a pair of free throws with 12:50 remaining, but LSU then rallied. Corey Chest, Reed and Jordan Sears each had a bucket down low for the Tigers during an 8-1 spurt that made it 43-38. However, Lowe stemmed the tide, answering with back-to-back 3-pointers to put the Panthers up 49-38 with 9:31 left. Miller did everything he could to keep LSU in contention, scoring eight points in a span of 1 minute, 23 seconds, with his four-point play getting the Tigers within 56-52 with 6:03 to play. But Pitt never let LSU get the upper hand, and it led by at least six for the final 5:05 of the contest. The Tigers had a 28-27 edge at intermission after ending the first half on an 8-2 run. LSU overcame a quick start by the Panthers, who raced out to a 12-6 advantage and led by as many as eight in the first 20 minutes of action. --Field Level Media