You don't have permission to access this resource The technology group Wärtsilä will supply six flexible power plants operating on natural gas, with a total combined output of 380 MW to different locations in Italy The framework agreement contract was placed by Metaenergiaproduzione S.R.L a member of the Italian Metaenergia Group with the order for two plants being booked prior to 2020 and the remaining four in Q4 2020. Execution of the project was started in June 2021 “The new fast-starting plants are needed to provide flexible system balancing as Italy strives to incorporate more renewable energy in line with its 2030 national energy, climate and decarbonisation plan The mechanism for ensuring system stability when the share of fluctuating solar and wind power increases is Italy’s Capacity Market the national transmission system operator (TSO) ensures system stability via long-term power supply contracts. Electricity producers undertake to deliver energy when ‘called to produce’,” said Constantin von Wasserschleben Chairman of the international asset management IKAV Group, a significant owner of the project company The six Wärtsilä power plants are scheduled to be completed by June 2022, just in time for the commencement of the new capacity market to be installed in Gorizia, Piombino, Sulmona, Cassino and Melfi will be delivered and installed by Wärtsilä on an engineering will be supplied by Wärtsilä as an engineering and equipment (EEQ) delivery The plants will be powered by a total of 18 Wärtsilä 50SG and 4 Wärtsilä 31SG gas-fuelled engines and are designed to comply with the most stringent environmental regulations set by the European Union “Metaenergia is committed to protecting the environment through careful energy consumption and the greater use of energy from renewable sources pleased to participate in the capacity market for which we need the flexibility to respond quickly to changing demand. Wärtsilä’s engine technology provides this flexibility, and with very high efficiency,” said Constantin von Wasserschleben Wärtsilä Energy and Executive Vice President, added: “This framework agreement is a prime example of the rapid transition towards a renewable energy future that is taking place throughout the energy sector Fast-starting and stopping capability is essential to provide effective system balancing when increased levels of solar and wind power which are inherently variable in their supply are introduced. Wärtsilä’s thermal balancing solutions enable the shift to renewables with flexible and affordable energy for our customers and help Italy in its journey toward a more sustainable energy system.”  Wärtsilä gas power plants operate on natural gas providing plant efficiency levels of up to 50 percent in simple cycle and up to 54 percent in combined cycle mode Their unmatched flexibility is highlighted by the fact that they can reach full output power within minutes of the start signal which is an essential benefit in systems that wish to integrate higher levels of renewable energy Wärtsilä has delivered 1,411 MW of power plant capacity to Italy of which 709 MW are today covered by Wärtsilä long-term service agreements Wärtsilä has a delivery centre in Trieste Media contact for more information on this release: Image 1: The plant in Gorizia is one of the six power plants which Wärtsilä will deliver to Italian Metaenergiaproduzione S.R.L The total combined output of the plants is 380 MW Image 2: The framework agreement contract between Wärtsilä and Metaenergiaproduzione S.R.L comprises 22 engines of which 18 are Wärtsilä 50SG gas-fuelled engines. © Wärtsilä Corporation Image 3: The framework agreement contract between Wärtsilä and Metaenergiaproduzione S.R.L comprises 22 engines of which 4 are Wärtsilä 31SG gas-fuelled engines. © Wärtsilä Corporation Analysis: resilient war-struck communities and businesses can find surprising solutions to persist against some of the harshest atrocities imaginable War is everywhere: Ukraine, Palestine and the many untold wars in Africa War is also far away and an item for discussion on the news until when it knocks on our doors either in the form of charities supporting oppressed civilians or politicians looking for public approval But what do we know about the reality of living and surviving within a warzone? Not all wars are the same. A destructive war like the current conflict in Gaza where infrastructure is obliterated and civilians are massacred and starved is much harsher than conventional wars fought between soldiers We all share some false assumptions about wars namely that most civilians want to leave their countries to avoid the war conflicts are caused by 'bad guys' and living in a war zone must be a nightmare We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences From RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland in Feb 2023 Cian McCormack speaks to two Ukrainian women whose lives have been totally transformed by the Russian invasion of their country in 2022 these assumptions are not factually correct in most cases even those living in areas severely impacted by a conflict would rather wait for the adversities to pass than start over elsewhere with limited savings and huge barriers to language Abandoning one’s home and country is often a last resort that is only taken once survival has become unlikely and there exist relatively safe ways to do so the boundaries between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ often become blurred after a conflict bursts and the oppressed turn into oppressors living in a war zone does look like a nightmare but many nightmares soon turn into a ‘new normal’ and life resumes Jack is a small business owner living in Ambazonia, Cameroon’s secessionist region and home to one of Africa's bloodiest conflicts with more than half a million refugees since 2016 as he lives in one of the safer areas in the region and commutes daily from his home village to his business premises in the large city of Buea as many of them used to live in rural areas with severe armed clashes and a strong presence of separatist forces a shortage of cooking gas in Cameroon is causing huge problems for thousands of families after Cameroon’s contested national elections and a sharp increase in violence Several of his relatives became internally displaced He rapidly went from looking after a small family of five to hosting 20 refugees and extended family members within his compound the separatist forces established a base in Jack’s village and he faced constant danger during his commute to and from Buea friendly and compassionate middle-aged man Jack felt a moral imperative to remain in Ambazonia and cater for his loved ones even though he could have easily moved to the safer neighbouring Francophone regions the aggravating situation around Buea did not discourage Jack from investing and expanding his business He grew used to the danger and started designing services for those who decided to stay in war-affected areas for one reason or the other He started travelling daily to and from different villages, offering consulting, micro-loans, and advice to other business owners in the war zone. When I interviewed Jack he proudly confessed that he had been kidnapped five times since the start of the conflict and this was the only way he could have survived the war We need your consent to load this YouTube contentWe use YouTube to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences how Cameroon's military is dealing with a separatist struggle to create a breakaway state called Ambazonia There are many entrepreneurs like Jack who have been resourceful and resilient during the Ambazonian civil war reacted to multiple threats and made frequent changes in their private lives and business practices to survive the arrival of displaced family members forced entrepreneurs to disinvest from their businesses to cope with the increased personal expenses a passive mindset and a sense of paralysis has led Ambazonian entrepreneurs to spiral downward in a vicious cycle of economic losses assets and social connections so heavy and disruptive as to prevent any attempt at recovery by the affected civilians What can we learn from Ambazonia? First, not all hope is lost. War-struck communities can be surprisingly resilient and find solutions to persist against some of the harshest atrocities committed by their persecutors. Second, traditional charity, in the form of relief funds and donations, might not be the best means to help war-struck communities We need your consent to load this Spotify contentWe use Spotify to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage PreferencesFrom Entrepreneurship & Regional Development Podcast Dr Luca Castellanza on entrepreneurial behaviour during conflicts and crises healthcare and food are important supports for civilians but they may also work as economic disincentives a more effective and sustainable form of international aid could be a focus on rebuilding what was lost promoting businesses that generate profits and sustain their owners during adversity and enabling war-struck communities to survive crisis Cameroon may be far away and there is not (yet) a civil war in Western Europe, but many of the survival strategies adopted by the Ambazonian population have universal applications. They can be used to cope with other types of adversity, such as pandemics, wildfires, violent demonstrations, and incidents connected to runaway global warming that will become more and more common in the years to come The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ Dr Luca Castellanza is Director of the Bachelor in Entrepreneurship programme at the School of Business at Maynooth University RTÉ.ie is the website of Raidió Teilifís Éireann RTÉ is not responsible for the content of external internet sites International students' photos show their journey to ASU and life as a Sun Devil International students travel thousands of miles to attend Arizona State University There are about 9,800 international undergraduate and graduate students at ASU this year with more than a third from China and about 23 percent from India The Coalition of International Students helps to ease the transition by connecting the young people with each other and by holding events to make them feel that ASU is home the organization will hold a Lunar New Year celebration The coalition recently held a photo contest for students to submit images that best represented the theme "From home to ASU." selected by the coalition staff from dozens of entries Here at ASU we identify ourselves as ASU Sun Devils the city and region is much more important than the university we go to In Tempe we are proud to wear maroon and gold ASU clothes and show that we are Sun Devils.  Marco Fachin: I studied at Carlo Cattaneo University in Castellanza (Italy) and my major here at ASU is business management Naoko Nakamoto: I'm an exchange student from Japan studying education My picture showed how ASU has changed my life. Looking back on my 22 years study abroad at ASU is the most precious, life-changing experience forever in my entire life I'm just thankful for everything, and so proud of myself for being a Sun Devil This photo contains images of stages that I have performed at in India and the U.S It's remarkable that I could play music while in such an absorbing academic course while being on the other side of the planet.  Siti Norhafiza: I am from Malaysia and majoring in geological sciences My phone was showing me wearing Malaysia's traditional outfit and in the background you can see that I am wearing an ASU sweater I was trying to portray that being thousands of miles apart does not change who I really am and I will always carry my pride as a Malaysian and a fellow Sun Devil.  Chantel Woodard is graduating with a master’s degree in forensic science from Arizona State University’s New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences and has been honored with the prestigious… College of Health Solutions Outstanding Graduate Student Emily Dow has grown into a highly accomplished doctoral student completing her PhD in exercise and nutritional sciences in just three… Medical studies graduate Mia Tarditi aims to support others across a variety of contexts from the club she established as a student, Pre-Health on Poly You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience Please note that this article is exclusive to BCI Members only. If you are a member please login into your website account to read the full content or find out more about BCI Membership She is a Business Continuity & Risk Management consultant and Training Center Director at BeDisruptive Consultant She carries out activities aiming at improving awarness and development of resilience culture at various institutions and universities in Italy and abroad (POLIMI-BOCCONI University Member of BCI Italy Chapter and ANRA  (Italian Association of Risk Manager& Insurance Manager) board; Scientific Committee of CLUSIT (Italian Association for Cyber Security) CLUSIT Artificial Intelligence Commmittee ; FERMA (Federation of European Risk Management Associations) Digital Committee Speaker and moderator in various national and international seminars and conferences various online magazines and publications in Italy and abroad "Organizations - to survive in the increasingly complex and erratic context arising from the pandemic and characterized by geopolitical and economic crises cyber-attacks and supply chain disruption must treasure the lessons learned at all levels and  create a more flexible and secure ecosystem resist and recover from adverse and unexpected events that can compromise the organization's operations "antifragile" business model that presupposes the adoption of strategic disciplines such as risk management business continuity and cyber security in an increasingly data-driven world The scenarios in which we find ourselves living require a sudden response and structured resilience it's time to be proactive and anticipate it!" Improve staff knowledge and demonstrate your organization’s commitment to resilience or raise your organizations profile and showcase your products/services to an engaged audience Join as a Corporate Member or Sponsor and take your organization to the next level Find out more about Corporate Membership and Sponsorship opportunities Copyright © 2025 The Business Continuity Institute (BCI) Company No Website design & development by Pixl8 Plastics have been of great help in raising China’s farm output are used on millions of hectares of land throughout the country to conserve water and protect crops from weeds as more and more farmers realized that mulching film stabilizes soil temperature turning the country into the biggest user worldwide by a wide margin China now consumes more than 1.4 million metric tons of mulching film per year according to data collected by the big German chemical maker BASF But the deployment of mulching film on such a grand scale has come at a heavy price Soil quality has declined alarmingly from the impact of film fragments that sink deep into the ground This happens because Chinese farmers usually buy the thinnest film ACS’s Basic Package keeps you connected with C&EN and ACS $80 Regular Members & Society Affiliates ACS’s Standard Package lets you stay up to date with C&EN ACS’s Premium Package gives you full access to C&EN and everything the ACS Community has to offer which tends to break down during attempts to remove it A growing number of soil chemists and other agricultural scientists at institutes throughout China are documenting the scale of the problem and recommending solutions the use of compostable films on Chinese land A recent paper shows that some farmland in Xinjiang contains as much as 500 kg of polyethylene per hectare “This is a very high level of contamination,” notes Alberto Castellanza international sales manager at the Italian biomaterials producer Novamont When the polyethylene content in soil reaches such high levels Because of its intensive use of mulching film Xinjiang has been of interest to private firms and researchers in recent years cold in winter but arid and scorching in summer is home to China’s largest cotton plantations and is its top tomato-growing region Water scarcity in Xinjiang makes mulching films almost indispensable In a 2016 paper in the Journal of Integrative Agriculture Dan Zhang and colleagues reported that mulch film use in Xinjiang had grown fourfold between 1993 and 2013 to 160,000 metric tons per year (DOI: 10.1016/S2095-3119(15)61240-0) Mulching film residues exceeded Chinese national standards in most of the agricultural land they tested in the region Novamont is paying particular attention to Xinjiang the company has been field-testing films in the region made with its Mater-Bi compostable resin Novamont tests demonstrate that polyethylene film cannot successfully be recovered from the ground using machinery BASF has also been demonstrating the use of film made with its Ecovio biodegradable resin on cotton “Farmers are conservative and need to be sure that the material works,” says Lydia Lau market development manager for Ecovio in China Ecovio completely biodegrades in the ground after use But biodegradable film suppliers have so far not been able to sell large quantities in Xinjiang Government officials in Xinjiang are more involved in buying decisions than in other parts of China Novamont’s Castellanza adds that government buy-in is key because subsidies would likely be required to convince farmers to switch to more expensive biodegradable films “It’s extremely important to secure financial support from the government,” he says sales of Ecovio-based films are more encouraging are more enthusiastic buyers of the materials It’s easier to obtain and renew an organic certification when using biodegradable film Chinese farmers focus on the price difference between biodegradable film and the thin polyethylene film they are using This view does not take into account the damage that polyethylene causes to soil over time Chinese firms have also struggled in their attempts to promote new agricultural films a sales executive at the biodegradable materials producer Jiangsu Torise Biomaterials tells C&EN that her company has had more success selling to producers of compostable plastic bags than to farmers in Xinjiang Torise’s materials are based on polylactic acid a corn-derived polymer that the company manufactures in the corn-growing province of Henan are proposing both thicker polyethylene mulch films and the development of low-cost biodegradable films as solutions to the problem of plastic contamination Zhang and colleagues demonstrated that the level of soil contamination in Xinjiang is inversely related to film thickness because thicker film is easier to recover “Increasing film thickness is an effective means to reduce the amount of residual film,” they wrote Zhang tells C&EN that his team didn’t study the quality of soil covered with biodegradable film because the material wasn’t in use anywhere they tested In a 2014 paper in Environmental Research Letters (DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/9/9/091001) Liu and coauthors also noted that thicker film was easier to recover and recommended the development of cheaper biodegradable films In the U.S., where strawberry farmers and some other growers use thicker mulching film, albeit to a lesser extent than in China, soil pollution is not a major problem, according to research published last year by scientists at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture A multistate survey of strawberry farmers conducted by authors Jessica Goldberger and Courtney Lyons showed that a majority of respondents used or had tried polyethylene mulching films and most didn’t think it polluted the soil were dissatisfied with the amount of work required to remove the film from the soil About half of respondents had tried biodegradable film to get around the problem but some found it was costly and tended to degrade at an unpredictable pace despite the many market development challenges Novamont remains optimistic about the use of biodegradable film The company has already considered building a plant in China to meet the country’s demand but China can change direction very fast,” he says And a change of direction is certainly possible given that the use of polyethylene films—at least the thinner ones—is rapidly becoming unsustainable Sign up for C&EN's must-read weekly newsletter This article has been sent to the following recipient: Copyright © 2025 American Chemical Society Scientists have discovered how to make thermosets like gels rubbers and elastomers so they can be degraded and be re-formed without loss of function A team of UK scientists has got a step closer to making several different types of plastic much easier to recycle using a method that could be applied to a whole range of difficult-to-recycle polymers Thermoplastics and thermosets are two types of plastics that both consist of long chains of molecules called polymers but behave differently when heated Thermoplastics can be heated to high temperatures poured into a mould then cooled to make the desired shape They can subsequently be melted and reformed into other shapes when they are recycled however they can break when stretched or stressed the polymer chains in thermoset plastics are crosslinked to form a network which makes them incredibly strong and flexible They are often used in composite materials the crosslinks mean that the materials burn rather than melt when heated making them much harder to break down and recycle researchers at the University of Bath and University of Surrey have developed a way of introducing degradable bonds into thermoset polymers to make them more easily recyclable Publishing in Polymer Chemistry they made a series of polymer gels with breakable bonds incorporated into different parts of the structure and tested whether the properties changed after the gel was degraded and reformed They found that whilst all the gels could be degraded to some extent gels with breakable bonds in the polymer chains (B in the diagram below) retained their properties much better when reformed compared with the polymers that were broken down via the cross-linked bonds (A) The researchers hope this model system can be applied to other types of polymers from the University of Bath’s Department of Chemistry said: “Thermosets are used widely in the commercial sector “Being able to make bonds reversible in these materials will increase their applications as well as making them more recyclable.” The researchers aim to create a general road map of the best locations for these breakable bonds to understand better why some bonds break more easily than others and plan to optimise the system using other commercially used polymers The researchers are also looking at other applications of the work including using crosslinked polymers as vehicles for controlled drug delivery systems The work was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) 2018 – Hybrit Development chose Tenova DRI solution to develop the world’s first fossil-free steel-making technology with virtually no carbon footprint a company of the Techint Group specialized in innovative solutions for the metals and mining industries for its pilot plant for fossil-free steel in Luleå the HYBRIT Initiative for fossil-free steelmaking was established with the aim to replace coking coal traditionally needed for ore-based steel making with hydrogen in order to obtain a fossil-free steel-making process route with virtually no carbon footprint The HYBRIT Initiative set specific target toward the construction and operation of a pilot plant with the aim to test hydrogen as reducing agent in the production of Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) “I am particularly excited and proud of being part of this project” safety and sustainability at the core of its technological innovations and products and Tenova HYL represents the state of the art in DR plants design which has a long tradition of supplying industrial plants for DRI-production will supply selected process key equipment for Direct Reduction Ironmaking By using state-of-the-art production technology as a starting point we will more quickly reach our goal of a fossil-free future” The pilot-plant is designed for the purpose to develop production of DRI using Hydrogen a crucial process step in the future fossil-free steelmaking production route and is expected to begin operations in 2020 Gruyere gold mine joint venture partners Gold Fields and Gold Road Resources reach agreement on a friendly deal to consolidate ownership. The initiative will be delivered through the regional joint venture established by Fleet Space Technologies and Tahreez. The US central bank is widely expected to hold rates steady in this meeting. Romania has major reserves of rare earths, gold and copper, which have attracted interest from Canadian and American firms. Casa CM is the result of the renovation of a small Art Nouveau building in the centre of Busto Arsizio (Varese) Constructed between the end of 1920s and the beginning of the 1930s it was originally the private villa of a family of textile industrialists; later it was used as a care home Today it is owned by a couple with three children: the wife a lawyer the husband an operator in the world of design they did not want to renounce the value of memory but dreamed of a more up-to-date dimension of living The project was entrusted to Oasi architects of Busto Arsizio a practice founded by two architects in their thirties Pietro Ferrario and Francesco Enea Castellanza They have created a domestic setting with a delicate vocabulary that outlines clean A work of conceptual and physical cleansing has made it possible to rediscover the horizontal dimension of the old house and the new vertical space of the ample central corridor,” they explain The two five-metre-wide “aisles”– at the sides of the spacious central corridor – have been freed of the partitions that used to form small passageways part of the floor has been removed – while preserving the original beams as a reminder of the past – to create an opening in the shape of a buttonhole running the full height of the building through which the spaces of the house are visible and in communication with one another On the ground floor the entrance of the house gives onto a longitudinal sequence that leads to the left into the kitchen and dining room and to the right into the living area The three spaces flow into one another; there are no physical or visual barriers The bedrooms and bathrooms are located on the upper floor while the attic houses a storeroom and the basement the services Through a process of “stripping” the architects have introduced a new logic of interaction between the living spaces but using a subtle language that places the reorganization of the building’s layout in the foreground Now the new identity created for this house includes pre-existing elements – the frescoes uncovered on the ceilings the fireplace in the living area – but immerses them in radically revised spatialities and atmospheres and website in this browser for the next time I comment Abitare.it e Style.corriere.it rifiutando tutti i cookie di profilazione ad eccezione di quelli tecnici necessari Naviga il sito di Abitare.it con pubblicità profilata e senza abbonarti By subscribing you will reject all but technical cookies on Iodonna.it By clicking "accept" you will allow to process your personal data by us and third parties and be able to browse Abitare.it website without a subscription analytics and third-party cookies.By continuing to browse The Italian Cultural Institute of Marseille will open on 11th May the photography exhibition ‘Italia intima Un viaggio per immagini tra passato e presente’ (Initimate Italy: A Journey Through Images of the Past and the Present) produced by the Archivio Fotografico Italiano of Castellanza directed by Claudio Argentiero which offers a journey through images of the past and the present Claudio Argentiero has been involved in photography for thirty years He has always been interested in documenting the country and the changes that have taken place over time linked to the decline of manufacturing industry and the transformation of the landscape Since 1988 he has been curating and organizing major exhibitions and photographic events actively collaborating with state and private organisations in Italy and abroad With the help of specialized and competent collaborators he designs archives with the aim of collecting photographs of the past and present to be disseminated and preserved for the sake of collective memory He is the creator and curator of the European Photographic Festival and of annual exhibitions aimed at promoting emerging photographers discovering forgotten archives and educational activities for schools His primary objective has always been to establish cultural relations with other countries with the aim of introducing artists from other cultures deepening their expressive language and disseminating the work of Italian artists worldwide He has exhibited in Italy and abroad and his photographs are part of private More information at: iicmarsiglia.esteri.it. Comunità come utopia concreta' (Olivetti Universe: community as a concrete utopia) – curated by Pippo Ciorra,.. the editorial project 'Le Piazze [in]visibili' (The invisible squares) proposes an evocative journey into.. climate change) intends to communicate to an international audience the.. 'ItaliAE' is an exhibition conceived to convey the beauty and variety of Italy Italy meets Africa through a lens is a tribute to a world so alive The photographic exhibition created with innovative technology by the photojournalist Massimo Sestini presents the places of Dante Alighieri along the..