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In the framework of the article road paving panels for “Smart Roads” system have been developed and calculated with an analyzed amount of generated and consumed electric energy. Modern road is currently to be taken as a separate part of construction as well as a bright and integral part of entire architectural ensemble of the surrounding area. One of the main requirements for modern roads is that they have to be fully self-maintained and operate as alternative and decentralized energy sources as well. The paper presents a design of the road paving panel for “Smart Roads” system and reveals the principle of its function. The amount of electricity generated per unit of road surface has been calculated. It is shown that for their own needs road paving panel will consume up to 71.25% of the total energy generated.

The article examines the role and importance of bioenergetics as a priority area of the grain market activation, outlines its state and problems, identifies approaches of its development considering current challenges and demands. The need to develop bioenergetics is associated with the rapid growth of the production of grain and grain-legume crops, which generates additional challenges and problems. It is worth noting among these: intensification of competition in global markets; reduction of the world prices and, consequently, the decrease in export revenues; lack of capacity and warehouses for reliable storage and high-quality processing of grain and their obsolescence; low logistical capacity of domestic ports and railway transport; limited distribution channels; increasing unemployment in rural areas due to the application of modern innovative agricultural technologies with high productivity; low capacity of processing plants; deformation of traditional production chains. This research clarifies the role of bioenergetics as a priority area for activation of the grain market, outlines its state and problems, and identifies the approaches to its development considering current challenges and demands. The greatest threats to the implementation of plans concerning the development of biofuel technologies in Ukraine are the following: 1) steady tendency towards a decrease in energy prices on the world market is the risk of the unprofitability of biofuel technologies; 2) unstable tax legislation poses financial investment risks; 3) non-market prices for competing fuels for the population (in particular, electricity and gas) results in the lack of population’s incentive to turn to alternative energy sources; 4) lack of sufficient capacity to store the required volumes of guaranteed sources of raw materials; 5) shortcomings in effective mechanisms to stimulate renewable energy, etc. Elimination and overcoming of the above-mentioned barriers will intensify biomass involvement in country’s energy balance and contribute significantly to strengthening Ukraine’s energy independence. Thus, in the near future, it is necessary to solve all the problems that hinder bioenergy development, which intensifies the progress of the grain market and directly affects the energy independence of our country.

The price of oil is one of the important macroeconomic indicators because of the extreme importance of supplying oil to different countries of the world to meet their energy needs. As Nigeria’s economy depends on oil prices, the country remains vulnerable to fluctuations in world oil prices. During periods of rising oil prices caused by macroeconomic and political conditions in the international market, the state usually has a positive trade balance, there is an increase in foreign exchange reserves and the revaluation of the national currency. The purpose of the article is to evaluate the relationship between an oil price change and Nigeria’s economic growth rate using regression analysis. The source of statistical information is data from the National Bureau of Statistics, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, and the Nigerian Energy Commission. By checking the time series for steady-state using the advanced Dickie-Fuller test, a regression equation is constructed where the dependent variable is represented as the price of oil and the independent variables are key macroeconomic indicators. The econometric model constructed is adequate because the determination coefficient and the adjusted determination coefficient are 0.97 and 0.96 respectively. The Durbin-Watson statistic in the model is 1.98, meaning the model is reliable. Oil price fluctuations have been found to be related to investment, economic growth, and exchange rates, as well as to inflation. The paper argues that the use of the shock of oil prices should be supported, as it promotes economic growth and is not inflationary. Therefore, the authors believe that the government, which is the main beneficiary of cash, should also implement strategies that counterbalance the propensity for the economic downturn. Based on the analysis, a set of priority measures was proposed: enhancing financial liberalization, combating corruption, transparency of government activities, creating an open currency market, and developing non-inflationary monetary and fiscal strategies. Keywords: oil price, macroeconomic variables, energy needs, Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, Dickie-Fuller Extended Test, Petroleum Exporters.

Analysis of the African countries food security demonstrate significant aggravation of the situation in several countries to the south of the Sahara. Conflicts, social inequality, high level of poverty against the background of a rapid population growth, unfavorable climatic conditions as well as ineffective government policy in the field of providing the population with foodstuff were determined as the main causes of population undernourishment. In Africa, due to low incomes of the population, most of the food ration consists of cereals and a small part of meat, fish and dairy products. It was revealed that African countries are the net importers of foodstuff, with cereals accounting for the largest part of imports. It was noted that international experts forecast foodstuff and fodder demand increase in these countries. It was defined the African region can potentially become one of the promising sales markets for Russian producers of grain crops and agricultural products. The results of the study are aimed at overcoming the problem of starvation, economic backwardness and improving the living standards of the African continent population, as well as developing an economic toolkit for the interaction of the Russian Federation with African countries.

The use of a grid-tied photovoltaic system with a storage battery to increase the power of objects of railway transport infrastructure above the limit on consumption from the grid with the possibility of energy saving is considered. The methods of analysis of energy processes in photovoltaic systems with a storage battery are used. They are added via the processing of archival data of power generation of a photovoltaic battery and computer modeling results. A technique of system parameter calculation to increase the power according to the given load schedule of the object at constant and maximum possible degree of power increasing is developed. The values of the average monthly generation of a photovoltaic battery at the location point of the object based on archival data are used. The principle of the control of power, consumed from the grid, according to the given values of the added and total load is developed. Using the basic schedule of added load power in connection with the graph of photovoltaic battery generation allows reducing the installed power of the storage battery. The additional reduction in the installed power of the photovoltaic and storage batteries is possible at the corresponding choice of the degree of power load increasing. The joint formation of current schedules with reference to the added power value and state of charge of the battery according to the short-term forecast of the generation of a photovoltaic battery is proposed. The value of added power at certain intervals of time is set according to the graph of actual generation of the photovoltaic battery, which contributes to the maximum use of its energy. With the average monthly generation of a photovoltaic battery in the spring–autumn period, the discharge of the battery during the hours of the morning load peak is not used. This reduces the number of deep discharge cycles and extends the battery life. The description of energy processes in steady-state conditions for the daily cycle of system functioning is formalized. On this basis, a mathematical model is developed in MATLAB with an estimation of the costs of electricity consumed from the grid. When modeling, archival data are used for days when the generation of a photovoltaic battery over time intervals is close to average monthly values. This makes it possible to evaluate the effectiveness of system management under conditions close to real during the year.

The relevance of the analysis of Sustainable Development Goals is based on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The purpose of the study is to create a model of management/regulation of the quality of education and scientific research systems based on Sustainable Development Goals. The data of the ratings that reflect certain tasks of the Sustainable Development Goals, including those related to educational and scientific activities, are analyzed. The methodology of calculating the index of the success of realization of separate purposes of sustainable development is used. Bibliometric analysis as a research tool is used to create a quality of education management model. The example of the roadmap for achieving SDGs within the relationship chain “quality of education and science + partnership and networks–innovation–socio-economic impact–sustainable development goals” is provided. The suggested methodology for determining the index of success in achieving Sustainable Development Goals includes managing education systems, implementing scientific research, and managing/regulating the economy on micro-(university), meso-(regional), and macro-(national) levels. The tool in this case is a strategy for achieving KPIs, which can be fundamentally implemented in the form of a roadmap, with detailing of its elements using other tools. The “management/regulation” stage of the process of achieving Sustainable Development Goals is concretized by a mind map.

Utilization of landfill gas for electricity generation should be an attractive option for Ukraine in light of the country’s rapidly growing municipal solid waste problem, the influx of intermittent renewable electricity into the national grid, and renewable energy adoption commitments. However, the deployment of landfill gas power plants has been slow vis-à-vis other alternative energy technologies despite the existing government incentives. This article aims to help understanding this trend by investigating the economic feasibility of landfill gas power plants. The research focuses on determining the Levelized Cost of Electricity of these electricity generation facilities and comparing it to the feed-in tariff available to landfill gas electricity producers. The results show making an investment into a landfill gas-fired power plant is an appealing strategy due to a potential high and quick return on investment at 5.1 years. This leads to the ultimate conclusion that economic feasibility is not a cause for the slow adoption of landfill gas as a source of renewable electricity generation in Ukraine. In addition, the article identifies several potential barriers to landfill gas electricity generation deployment to be investigated in future research.