Decision Support System for Sustainability Assessment of Power Generation Technologies - Efficient Decision Support Systems: Practice and Challenges from Current to Future - page 531

4.3 Decision support system for measurement of the effect by the environmental
factors on the value of energy companies—ESIAPVN-DS
This section presents a case of the integrated multiple criteria analysis of alternatives using
the Decision Support System for Measurement of the Effect by the Environmental Factors on
the Value of Energy Companies. The system was developed using the algorithm developed
by the authors and following the methodology suggested by the scientists E.K. Zavadskas
and A. Kaklauskas (Zavadskas et al., 1994; Kaklauskas, 1999; Zavadskas & Kaklauskas,
2008). The system may be used to measure the utility degree, the priority and, if required,
the market value of energy production technologies with different technological and
economic parameters. The system has an innovative feature: recommendations and other
information to facilitate decision-making are provided after the analysis of each criterion
describing the environment. Environmental research in the energy sector and data
assessment with multiple criteria analysis methods helped to build a universal set of criteria
defining the environment in question.
The experimental Decision Support System for Measurement of the Effect by the
Environmental Factors on the Value of Energy Companies (ESIAPVN-DS) in designed for
measurement of the utility, priority and value in energy companies which use different
energy production technologies. The system is suitable both for analysis of separate energy
production technologies and of technological facilities (companies). The ESIAPVN-DS
system speeds up handling of tasks, provides rather accurate and unbiased results, and
enables the access to comprehensive data about the object in question. A huge advantage in
the system is the interim result, which shows the impact of each criterion on the utility
degree and value. In this research, this decision support system is used for the first time to
perform multiple criteria analysis of energy objects with different operating parameters,
features and levels of external effect. The decision support system consists of the following
models:
 measuring model for the initial criteria weights;
 model for multiple criteria analysis and priority setting of objects;
 measuring model for the utility degree of objects;
 measuring model for the market value;
 recommender model.
Users, with the help of the model base management system, may choose any model they
need. The system is designed in a way that the output of certain models is used as the input
in other models, while the output of these latter models is used as the input yet in other
models. The ESIAPVN-DS system may process huge amounts of data to solve the main task.
The system is, however, user-friendly.
When the ESIAPVN-DS system is used for measuring of the market value and the utility
degree, the procedure includes the following stages:
Stage 1 . Preparation of the data about the objects in question (projects, scenarios,
technologies, technological facilities). It involves analysis of the materials describing the
specific environment of the objects in question, the factors that affect the activities. The
objects in question are described in quantitative and conceptual forms;
Stage 2 . The system of quantitative and qualitative criteria built on the basis of the analysis
of the factors that affect the environment of the object in question is used to determine the
criteria values. A group of experts determines the initial values of the criteria, while the
weights are already known from the expert assessment method. When the ESIAPVN-DS
system and the built set of criteria are used, there is no need to determine the weights anew;