Renewable Energy Future for the Developing World - Essay Example

?PEST Analysis - UK Food Retail Political From a wider macro perspective, the UK is a reasonably attractive market for large retailers because it is a stable democracy which, despite economic austerity, remains one of the wealthiest nations in the world. According to the latest research from the OECD (2012), the UK is in fact the eighth richest nation, and when this is coupled with a stable political climate (certainly compared to nations such as Syria or dictatorships), it is relatively easy to conduct business in the UK. Furthermore, as a capitalist democracy, there is a strong desire for business growth and it is quite rare that politicians in the UK interfere with the business activities of organizations unless there are significant transgressions. Therefore, politically, the UK seems to be one of the most suitable places for doing business. The greatest concern of the major multiples, especially Tesco in regards to political activity, relates to the rulings of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission which can prevent supermarkets from establishing themselves in certain locations because of anti-competition legislation. Similarly, legislation relating to anti-competition activities, such as price fixing and cartel-like activity, can prompt investigation from the Government body known as the Office of Fair Trading (OFT 2011). However, such investigations on a national scale are relatively rare and the large supermarkets are seldom investigated for such activity. There is also a need to consider legislation and regulation, the UK food and retail sector is covered by numerous laws, codes of practice and regulations. One such regulator, Food Standards Agency, has a statutory right to protect the public the consumer in relation to food and drink such as correct labelling, food sell by dates, hygiene etc. There is also European legislation, General food law and Codex (Food Standards Agency 2012). Economic The economic and political factors affecting the UK food retail market are in fact quite closely inter-related as they inform and influence one another. For example, the UK government has established new regulations and makes political decisions based on the state of the UK economy and, indeed, in response to social impact (Boakes 2008). The UK economy has been in and out of recession since 2008, interest rates have been reduced to historic lows to try and stimulate growth and minimize the rise in unemployment, which has risen sharply since 2009 (BBC 2012a). Although the UK food and retail market itself has remained relatively stable because people need food, there have been marked shifts in consumer spending habits as consumers cut back and “trade down” from premium brands to supermarkets’ own branded labels, or even switch to cheaper rivals (Hall 2011). This is set against the context of rising raw material prices thanks to bad weather, the costs of which have been pushed onto the consumer. For example, according to the RPI (Poulter 2011), the average cost of a basket of “staple goods” has risen an average of 28% in real terms. It is also important to note this is closely linked to social issues such as changing consumer habits and a decline in Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). In addition to these trends in the retail sector, considering performance of the sector over the past 40 years (See Figure 1), it is expected that there will be the lowest ever growth recorded for 2012 in UK’s retail sector history. The growth rate for 2012 is expected to remain 1.2 %, which is although higher than that of 2011’s growth rate (0.9 %) (SAS 2011). Figure 1: UK Retail Sector’s Growth Rates for Past 40 years (SAS 2011) Social For the UK food retail industry, it is fair to suggest that the recession and subsequent level of decreasing economic growth has caused consumers to become far more price conscious. They are demanding greater value for money and supermarkets are responding with aggressive price cuts and price wars in order to attract and retain customers (Wood 2011). As yet it is too early to determine whether increasing consumer awareness of price increases will have a demonstrable effect on customer loyalty given that many customers are switching to cheaper brands or cheaper supermarkets, but it is certainly something of which the main supermarkets should be aware if they are going to respond effectively to customer demand. Some supermarkets have addressed this by offering promotional “price matches”, but the cost of shopping continues to rise as noted by Poulter (2011). Other factors the main supermarkets have to consider include CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) and their green credentials such as generating wind power, using less carrier bags and awareness of food miles (Finch 2007). Technological The technological aspect of the PEST analysis addresses the advances in technology which have been sufficient to cause change in the macro environment, or look set to do so as a result of shifting customer behaviour (Grant 2010). In this regard, there are two broad themes to consider. Firstly, how the supermarkets have been able to use technology to improve their service offering and level of operational efficiency (and therefore profit). Secondly, how consumers are using technology and how it is changing the way in which they interact with supermarkets and also their perceptions and expectations around service offering and delivery. The major multiples have a very heavy reliance on technology, with Tesco and Sainsbury’s leading the way as evidenced by their level of delivery service and the widespread use of technology to improve their service offering. For example, loyalty cards allow supermarkets to tailor service offerings because they are used to help collect valuable demographic data. At an operational level, technology is used to ensure that order levels are carefully balanced to meet demand without leaving the supermarkets with excess fresh produce which must be sold at discount to recoup some value. Technology is also evident in services such as self-service, on line shopping, home delivery and “click and collect” whereby consumers can use apps on smart phones to compare prices. It is fully anticipated that the use of technology will continue to increase (Trench 2010, King 2010). Over the years, technology has changed the way of shopping and it is expected that future shopping trends will be largely influenced by technological shifts (SAS 2011). According to the report published by SAS in collaboration with Verdict Research, although a small proportion of consumers in the UK, i.e. 6 percent, use technology (such as smart phones) to make purchases, there is an influential role of technology in equipping consumers with information which they thrive to seek from elsewhere. The consumers do not necessarily go online for shopping only; in fact, they are able to collect information and make their choices by comparing the substitutes available in the market and have access to information which is one click away. Figure 2: Pattern of Technology Usage by Retail Sector Consumers (SAS 2011) By way of introducing technology based retail shopping ideas, retailers can reduce their operational (or strictly speaking, their delivery costs) through providing deliveries from the factory to the desired destinations. This implies that there is a huge area of interest building up for online purchasing in the retail segment (SAS 2011). PEST Analysis - UK Oil & Gas Political The political aspect of the UK oil and gas sector shares many similarities with the food retail sector insofar as the UK is a stable democracy; overall, the UK government does not generally interfere directly with individual organisations. The oil and gas sector is also heavily regulated from a health and safety perspective as prospective for oil and natural gas is a high risk sector. One of the main political issues here relates to the potential independence of Scotland as this would mean that ownership of the companies might change and this may also affect taxes and some other regulations. In the 2011 budget, the chancellor announced a ? 2 billion windfall tax on the oil and gas industry to fund a fuel duty cut, this caught the industry by surprise and adds to the uncertainty in the sector about future increases in tax (BBC 2011). Moreover, as the UK is gradually moving towards becoming a net importer of oil, it is necessary to consider factors such as overseas political instability such as tension in oil producing countries in the Middle East and the threat by Iran to block the Strait of Hormuz to shipping which carries up to twenty percent of the world’s oil. This uncertainty and potential lack of supply causes global oil prices to rise (BBC 2012b). Economic Economically, oil and gas is a significant source of revenue for the government because of its profitability and, therefore, its corresponding tax receipts. Furthermore, if Scotland gained independence, this may adversely impact the economic viability of operating out of Scotland, as they would take control of the reserves (BBC 2012c). From a consumer perspective, oil and gas is wholly essential for the day to day existence of the vast majority of the population. Only the most remote locations have no mains access to gas and almost everyone relies on oil in one form or another. Thus, the viability of the industry in the long term looks set to remain. Other issues are closely related to political aspects such as sterling dollar exchange rate. Crude oil is traded in dollars and when sterling is weakened against the dollar, the price of a barrel of oil increases which in turn leads to greater transportation costs of goods; this inevitably leads to inflationary pressure (Mason 2010). Social The oil and gas industry shares the characteristic of being essential to daily existence with the food retail sector. In this respect, many consumers have very limited choice over their provider and they have limited recourse to complain as regards to prices because there is nowhere else to go. Indeed, the fact that Centrica recently announced record profits in spite of recessionary activity (Centrica 2012) illustrates how profitable the industry is. According to Riley (2012), an increase in oil and gas prices virtually acts like a tax by making goods and services more expensive to the consumers who are finding it difficult to make ends meet in the current financial climate. Investigating how and where profits are derived will illustrate potential areas of best practice and financial control which could be adopted by other organisations wishing to replicate their success. Technological Finally, from a technological perspective, the oil and gas industry also relies very heavily on technology. This is especially the case because of the health and safety aspects of the industry and the increasing challenge of finding reliable and sustainable sources of natural energy as consumer demand continues to increase. The most recent technological developments in this sector include robotics (Economist 2006) and deep-water drilling such as currently undertaken by BP. These technologies attract both high reward and high risk and are extremely costly to develop. However, as the earth’s known reserves continue to fall, the oil and gas sector needs to find fresh reserves or alternatives using technological methods. Porter’s Five Forces: UK Retail Sector Following is the analysis of UK’s retail sector on the basis of five forces framework developed by Porter (1980): Buyers’ Bargaining Power According to Porter (1980), buyers’ bargaining power is strengthened when differentiation among products (substitutes) diminishes. However, corporate entities devise certain policies and measures to ensure retention of their existing customer base. In this regard, loyalty cards issued by Tesco PLC to its customers, is one example of such measures (EBSCO 2004). Recent years have witnessed an emerging trend of superstores shopping by consumers in the UK; thus, implying that customers are in search of products under one single roof. With regard to this change in consumers’ attitude, retailers are now focusing more on bringing everything they sell under one roof, which range from food products to other items. Keeping this change in trend, it is possible to state that it is buyers who have driven the changed in shopping trends and thus possess bargaining power to certain extent. Suppliers’ Bargaining Power The suppliers’ bargaining power represents the influence they have on the food and retail sector. In UK’s retail sector, Tesco and other market leaders have an influential role on suppliers and thus they are in a better position to bargain with them as compared to other small market players (Ritz 2005). On the other hand, the bargaining power of suppliers in retail industry of the UK is influenced largely by the fact that leading retailers in the UK are able to procure their products from suppliers outside the UK. Threat of Substitutes The threat of substitutes for retailers is that customers can easily switch from one retailer to another. Since the retailers are actually retailing products manufactured by others, therefore, it is the quality of services which matters most. Consumers often distinguish one retailer from another on the basis of service quality and as a result they tend to switch from one to another retailer. These arguments are based on the survey conducted by Kantar World Panel (See Figure 3), in which increased customer satisfaction has been shown as associated with increased market share. On these bases, it can be stated that the threat of substitutes in retail sector is always high (Paternoster 2012). Threat of New Entrants Although the retail sector in the UK is largely dominated by few players, there is, however, a threat faced by giants such as Tesco, Morrison’s, ASDA and Sainsbury, who according to the survey conducted by Kantar World Panel (Paternoster 2012), are placed way below than the smaller retailers in customers’ satisfaction ratings. Figure 3: Customer Satisfaction Index Source: (Paternoster 2012) These improvements shown in Customer Satisfaction Indices (CSI) for smaller retailers are or will be seen as potential threats by the large retailers. Because, this improvement in customers’ satisfaction levels is not one-dimensional, in fact it has also enabled the smaller retailers to improve their respective shares at the same time. These changes, although may not by deemed as threats of new entrants, but they can become a major attraction for new entrants. At the same time, it can be argued that there are strong barriers for new entrants due to economies of scale enjoyed by the large market players and the operational efficiency they have reached over the years. This operational efficiency alone, in fact, serves as a significant barrier for small shop or store runners who have been retailing few grocery items. Thus, stepping into the mainstream retail business requires huge capital investments and an expansion of product lines on offer to the consumers, which appears to be out of scope for the new entrants (Ritz 2005). Rivalry among Competitors There is a strong competitive rivalry in UK’s retail market, and it has significantly influenced profitability of the retail companies. Since retail companies compete largely on the quality of service they offer to their customers, it is, therefore, seen that those market players who have low market shares compete the bigger ones on quality (Paternoster 2012). Porter’s Five Forces: UK Oil and Gas Sector Following is the analysis of UK’s oil and gas sector on the basis of five forces framework developed by Porter (1980): Buyers’ Bargaining Power For oil and gas sector, both industries and households are the consumers. Buyers’ bargaining power is low in case of oil and gas sector, which is evidenced by the fact that the relationship between demand and price of oil is unusual, since demand has been observed as increasing with the increase in price levels also (Dahl, et al. 2012). Suppliers’ Bargaining Power Suppliers’ power in oil and gas sector is always on the higher side, since they own oil reserves and thus have a significant control over prices. In addition, the countries where the oil companies have constructed their oil reserves also exercise some control over the supply of oil to other parts of the world (Ernst & Young 2012). Threat of Substitutes The introduction of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, biogas, wind energy, solar energy and hydropower has certainly threatened the oil and gas industry; however, the influence of these substitutes is still not significant because of their high costs, less ease of use and other factors. However, obtaining energy through coal poses a significant threat which, however, is also conditional on technological advancements which would allow use of coal as sources of energy (Ernst & Young 2012). Threat of New Entrants The threat for new entrants, in case of oil and gas sector, is always minimal because of the significant amount of capital requirements needed to establish an exploratory and distribution infrastructure. Moreover, the fixed costs associated with establishing a new oil and gas exploration and distribution business are so high that there is no threat felt by the existing companies in relation to new entrants (Arch 2005). Rivalry among Competitors Since oil and gas industry can be regarded as commodity based industry, the competition among market players takes place on the basis of their efficiency in operations. The one who can produce products with relatively higher efficiency and reduced costs has competitive edge over others. In this way, competition is always high, like it is in case of other commodity based industries (Ernst & Young 2012, Mainwaring 2012). Financial Analysis The analysis presented below takes into consideration the financial statement analysis of each of the company selected in this study. It is pertinent to mention here that the researcher has limited the financial analysis of the selected companies to a period of two years, i.e. from 2009 to 2010. The fact that the financial year 2011 has not been considered in this analysis is for the purpose of bringing uniformity in the analysis. Financial Analysis of Tesco PLC Following is the financial analysis of Tesco PLC, which takes into consideration the published financial information of the company’s operations during the financial year 2010 and 2009: Tesco PLC Ratios 2010 2009 Current Ratio 0.73 0.77 Cash Ratio 0.56 0.61 Return on Capital Employed 0.05 0.05 Return on Equity 0.16 0.17 Cash Flow to Debt Ratio 0.15 0.12 Capitalization Ratio 0.51 0.54 Operating Cycle 380.42 379.27 Sales Revenue per Employee 109.44 103.65 Price Earnings to Growth Ratio 179.57 1,718.41 Dividend Yield 0.03 0.04 The financial position of Tesco PLC from 2009 to 2010 has been analysed briefly in the table above. The ratios calculated above show that there is a slight fall in the liquidity position of the company, due to a comparatively greater decline in the current assets of the company as compared to its current assets in 2010. On the other hand, profitability of the company also did not show any improvement in 2010 as compared to 2009; in fact, there has been a slight decrease in return on equity due to significant increase in the equity as compared to the increase in net income. The performance related ratios of the company showed improvement in 2010 as the company managed to improve its revenue generated per employee. Overall financial outlook of Tesco PLC appears to be stable in light of this analysis, however, concerns related to decline in liquidity and profitability indicators are visible in 2010 (Yahoo Finance 2012, Tesco PLC 2010). Financial Analysis of J Sainsbury PLC Following is the financial analysis of J Sainsbury PLC, which takes into consideration the published financial information of the company’s operations during the financial year 2010 and 2009: J Sainsbury PLC Ratios 2010 2009 Current Ratio 0.64 0.54 Cash Ratio 0.39 0.30 Return on Capital Employed 0.05 0.03 Return on Equity 0.12 0.07 Cash Flow to Debt Ratio 0.17 0.16 Capitalization Ratio 0.38 0.38 Operating Cycle 365.04 364.94 Sales Revenue per Employee 195.92 185.58 Price Earnings to Growth Ratio 11.10 (140.95) Dividend Yield 0.04 0.04 In contrast to the decline in certain areas for Tesco PLC, Sainsbury has shown considerable improvement in liquidity and profitability, largely due to increase in its current assets level in 2010 and net income for the year respectively. The sales revenue per each employee of the company has gone up, which indicates the operational efficiency of the retail company and also the company has managed to drag its price earnings to growth ratio into positive side of the scale in 2010 as compared to negative figures in 2009 (Yahoo Finance 2012, J Sainsbury PLC 2010). Financial Analysis of Morrison’s PLC Following is the financial analysis of Morrison’s PLC, which takes into consideration the published financial information of the company’s operations during the financial year 2010 and 2009: Morrison’s PLC Ratios 2010 2009 Current Ratio 0.51 0.53 Cash Ratio 0.24 0.28 Return on Capital Employed 0.07 0.06 Return on Equity 0.12 0.10 Cash Flow to Debt Ratio 0.19 0.21 Capitalization Ratio 0.25 0.27 Operating Cycle 372.35 364.03 Sales Revenue per Employee 117.63 110.90 Price Earnings to Growth Ratio 42.28 (89.40) Dividend Yield 0.03 0.02 The financial analysis of Morrison’s also reflects more or less similar trends as noted in the case of Tesco, apart from the fact that the profitability of the company improved slightly in 2010. The return on capital and equity for the company has improved by small percentage in 2010. However, due to decline in its liquidity levels, not only current and cash ratio is affected but also the cash flow to debt ratio and capitalization ratio have also been affected. Moreover, like other competitors in the market, the operating cycle of the company has also increased in terms of days it takes for the company to convert its inventory into cash receipts. Apart from this, there is a considerable increase in the sales revenue per employee of the company (Yahoo Finance 2012, Morrison's PLC 2010). Financial Analysis of British Petroleum Following is the financial analysis of British Petroleum PLC, which takes into consideration the published financial information of the company’s operations during the financial year 2010 and 2009: British Petroleum Ratios 2010 2009 Current Ratio 1.12 1.14 Cash Ratio 0.81 0.76 Return on Capital Employed (0.01) 0.07 Return on Equity (0.03) 0.16 Cash Flow to Debt Ratio 0.08 0.10 Capitalization Ratio 0.50 0.42 Operating Cycle 348.93 425.58 Sales Revenue per Employee 3,562.43 2,868.97 Price Earnings to Growth Ratio 1.82 (3.06) Dividend Yield 0.00 0.00 Owing to the disastrous event of oil spill at the Gulf of Mexico (Stephen 2010), the company suffered significant decline in its profitability and financial indicators for the company were badly affected by the same. In 2009, before the oil spill incident, the company earned significant profits and was able to report positive returns on capital and equity; however, after the incident took place in 2010, the profitability went down as shown by the negative figures for return on capital and equity. Apart from this, the company managed to maintain its liquidity position. In addition to this, the company also managed to report significantly higher revenue figure per employee during the year 2010 as compared to previous year (British Petroleum 2010). Financial Analysis of BG Following is the financial analysis of Tesco PLC, which takes into consideration the published financial information of the company’s operations during the financial year 2010 and 2009: BG Ratios 2010 2009 Current Ratio 1.12 1.01 Cash Ratio 1.05 0.92 Return on Capital Employed 0.07 0.08 Return on Equity 0.13 0.15 Cash Flow to Debt Ratio 0.27 0.29 Capitalization Ratio 0.36 0.32 Operating Cycle 450.90 451.38 Sales Revenue per Employee 2,591.09 2,330.72 Price Earnings to Growth Ratio 53.58 (31.23) Dividend Yield 0.02 0.02 BG has been able to continue its stable performance in the year 2010 also. The liquidity position of the company improved further from 2009 to 2010. Apart from this, the operating cycle changed slightly but favourably for the company in 2010. It is a note worthy fact that although with comparatively smaller portfolio, BG has been able to maintain its financial performance in line with the industry leaders, such as British Petroleum and Royal Dutch Shell (Royal Dutch Shell 2010). Financial Analysis of Royal Dutch Shell Following is the financial analysis of Royal Dutch Shell PLC, which takes into consideration the published financial information of the company’s operations during the financial year 2010 and 2009: Royal Dutch Shell Ratios 2010 2009 Current Ratio 1.12 1.14 Cash Ratio 0.83 0.81 Return on Capital Employed 0.06 0.04 Return on Equity 0.14 0.09 Cash Flow to Debt Ratio 0.16 0.14 Capitalization Ratio 0.33 0.33 Operating Cycle 413.57 428.56 Sales Revenue per Employee 4,089.51 3,090.98 Price Earnings to Growth Ratio 0.33 (0.55) Dividend Yield 0.03 0.03 Based on the financial analysis presented above, Royal Dutch Shell has been the leader in UK’s oil and gas sector. The efficiency of its operations is evident from the decrease in operating cycle figure in 2010 and the increased return on equity. Moreover, the company has managed to significantly raise its sales revenue per employee. It is also worth mentioning here that the company, among the three companies selected in this report, has the largest number of employees (BG 2010). BCG Matrix – Retail Companies Based on the financial analysis, following is the BCG matrix for retail companies selected in this study: BCG Matrix – Oil and Gas Companies Based on the financial analysis, following is the BCG matrix for oil and gas companies selected in this study: Reference List Arch, D.H.D., 2005. Renewable Energy Future for the Developing World. White Paper. ISES: International Solar Energy Society. BG, 2010. Annual Report. Financial Statements. BG. British Petroleum, 2010. Annual Report. Financial Statements. British Petroleum. Dahl, R.E., Oglend, A., Osmundsen, P. and Sikveland, M., 2012. Are oil and natural gas going separate ways in the United Kingdom? Cointegration tests with Structural shifts. The Journal of Energy Markets, 5(2), pp.33-58. EBSCO, 2004. Tesco implements the business engine network to gain full control of its IT project portfolio. Journal of Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Management, 12(1), pp.66-73. Ernst & Young, 2012. Oil & Gas: meeting future energy demand. [Online] Available at: [Accessed 27 September 2012]. J Sainsbury PLC, 2010. Annual Report. Financial Statements. J Sainsbury PLC. Mainwaring, J., 2012. UK Oil and Gas Sector Optimistic About Prospects. [Online] Available at: [Accessed 28 September 2012]. Morrison's PLC, 2010. Annual Report. Financial Statements. Morrison's PLC. Paternoster, L., 2012. Customer service drives Christmas retail performance. [Online] Available at: [Accessed 28 September 2012]. Porter, M.E., 1980. Competitive Strategy. New York: Free Press. Ritz, 2005. Store wars. Business Review, 11, pp.22-23. Royal Dutch Shell, 2010. Annual Report. Financial Statements. Royal Dutch Shell. SAS, 2011. UK Retail 2012 & Beyond. London: SAS UK & Ireland, Verdict Research. Stephen, W., 2010. BP's oil slickers; Bosses who earn millions claimed they could handle rig explosions. Daily Mirror, 3 May. p.14. Tesco PLC, 2010. Annual Report. Financial Statements. Tesco PLC. Yahoo Finance, 2012. Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets PLC (MRW.L). [Online] Available at: [Accessed 29 September 2012]. Yahoo Finance, 2012. Sainsbury (J) PLC (SBRY.L). [Online] Available at: [Accessed 29 September 2012]. Yahoo Finance, 2012. Tesco PLC (TSCO.L). [Online] Available at: [Accessed 29 September 2012]. Read More