West Australian
26 January 2011, Page: 19
Biofuels have an important place in the mix of renewable and sustainable energy sources for the 21st century. Although other renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and hydro can be used to produce electricity, biofuels are essential for the production of the liquid fuels necessary for road transport, shipping, heavy mining machinery and aviation. Biofuels are basically the result of photosynthesis which captures the energy from sunlight and converts it to organic molecules rich in energy.
The oils from oil seed plants such as canola and oil palms are already being converted to biodiesel, and sugar and starches from sugar cane, corn and wheat are being fermented to produce ethanol, which is blended with petrol for motor vehicles. The cellulose from plants such as eucalypts, wheat straw and forestry waste also can be processed to make ethanol. The use of biofuels also results in much lower net carbon emissions compared with fossil fuels. There has been some debate on whether biofuels will compete with food crops or will lead to the destruction of rainforests to create palm oil plantations.
However, many new biofuel crops are being developed on marginal land unsuited for normal food crops. For example, mallee in WA can be grown between crops where it not only serves as wind breaks but also produces biomass for biofuel production. Other new eucalyptus varieties are being developed with superior properties for conversion to biofuel, especially bioethanol.
Among the most exciting future fuel crops are algae. Some species of these microscopic plants can contain up to 50% of oil suitable for conversion to biodiesel and aviation fuel. They can be grown using saline water, thus not competing for the very limited supply of fresh water and they require only about 10 to 20% of the land area compared with the best biofuel crops, to produce the same amount of fuel.
WA is uniquely placed to become a future biofuels hub. We have abundant sunshine, a key requirement for high productivity large areas of marginal land and, for algae production, abundant sources of saline water such as saline groundwater and sea water. The challenge to WA and to Australia will be to capitalise on the unique advantages for the production of biofuel crops which have the potential to replace a significant proportion of our liquid fuel imports.
Michael Borowitzka is a professor at Murdoch University's School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology.
Saturday, 29 January 2011
Sandia sizes up wind turbine blade design
www.designnews.com
24 January 2011
Armed with HyperSizer optimization software and FEA, Sandia pursues innovations in large wind turbine blade design, aiming for a balance between low weight and structural integrity.
By many accounts, wind power, a relative veteran among alternative energy sources, is well-positioned for a perfect storm around growth: The political climate is favorable, a downtrodden economy is hungry for economical and efficient fossil fuel alternatives and more than 30 years of research and development has been poured into wind power innovations. Yet one of the remaining barriers to widespread adoption of wind power is honing that right mix of functionality for a wind turbine blade design that is large enough to support higher performance while retaimng a form factor that is economical, reliable and can be produced on a grander scale.
Sandia National Laboratories, and in particular, the Wind Energy Technologies Dept., finds itself at the epicenter of that design challenge. The group partners with universities and industry to conduct applied research in the area of wind turbines and blades to increase the viability of wind technology. Researchers at the lab are working on advancing knowledge around the areas of materials, structural dynamics, active-flow aerodynamic control and sensors along with pursuing innovations in the manufacturing processes and embedded controls associated with wind blade design.
"We're about developing innovation that's five years, maybe 10 years out", says Tom Ashwill, P.E., distinguished member of technical staff at Sandia National Laboratories' Wind Energy Technologies Dept. "The industry is risk-averse to innovation - they can only look two to three years out. We look to take risk off the table for them and try things we don't know will work". The Sandia lab makes the results of its innovation efforts available to industry via reports, partnerships and through regular conferences and workshops.
Large-Scale Blade Design
One of the department's primary areas of focus is innovation related to increasing the size of wind turbine blades. In the early 1980s, wind turbines averaged 100 kW, but the current average capacity is around 2MW - a factor of 15 to 20 times more performance than what existed 25 years ago, Ashwill explains. As demand for performance increases, so does blade size, since blade length has a direct correlation to the increased power generating capacity of a turbine. As far as economics go, the thinking is that fewer, higher-capacity wind turbines are more efficient and cost-effective than creating the infrastructure to support many smaller turbines, Ashwill says.
Current utility-scale turbines are equipped with blades that range from 40m (130 ft) to 90m (300 ft) in diameter. Sandia has a research project underway to advance that capacity to a 100m blade, which in a traditional three-bladed turbine design, would encompass a footprint in the order of two-and-a-half football fields in size. This massive blade design, aimed at turbines that would reside 15 miles offshore, creates significant design challenges around weight, structural integrity and manufacturability.
"As they get larger, the weight of these blades becomes an issue", says Craig Collier, president of Collier Research Corp., the maker of software used to optimize composite materials and structural sizing that came out of work done at NASA Langley Research Center and now employed as part of Sandia's research. "As they get larger, the question is: Can they withstand their own weight without breaking? It's a big issue for the design of new blades". In addition to structural strength, design engineering issues associated with the larger blades encompass things like fatigue performance, buckling stability, blade stiffness, twist limits and wing-tip deflection.
HyperSizer's legacy in aerospace has helped entities like NASA and companies like Lockheed Martin, Boeing and Bombardier, trim at least 20% off the weight from wing structures. The software works with out-of-the-box FEA solvers in a feedback loop to identify solutions that minimize weight while maximizing structural integrity and manufacturability, Collier says. The software analyzes complex composite structures by evaluating designs in a ply-by-ply and finite element-by-element manner, helping engineers optimize all possible variations on a composite laminate design.
While FEA will give engineers insight into internal unit loads - for instance, how much air load goes into the skin of a blade or into the spar cap - it does not, for example, provide analysis on overstressed materials or if a bonded joint is going to have a failure. That's where HyperSizer comes in, Collier explains. "HyperSizer will not only identify the problem, but will go a step beyond and tell you what to do to fix the problem", he says. "It has built-in intelligence to make those recommendations".
Leveraging HyperSizer's built-in optimization and intelligence capabilities, Sandia plans to refine its baseline design for a 100m blade and optimize parts of the design to reduce weight. The software will be key in exploring how and when to add material variants such as carbon fiber, how to address active or passive load controls, and for experimenting with different air foils as part of the ongoing research effort. Ashwill says he expects industry to release wind turbines based on this blade research about seven to eight years in the future.
"We're just looking to apply innovation to larger blade design as we have in the past for smaller blades", Ashwill says. "HyperSizer will show us how to optimize those designs."
24 January 2011
Armed with HyperSizer optimization software and FEA, Sandia pursues innovations in large wind turbine blade design, aiming for a balance between low weight and structural integrity.By many accounts, wind power, a relative veteran among alternative energy sources, is well-positioned for a perfect storm around growth: The political climate is favorable, a downtrodden economy is hungry for economical and efficient fossil fuel alternatives and more than 30 years of research and development has been poured into wind power innovations. Yet one of the remaining barriers to widespread adoption of wind power is honing that right mix of functionality for a wind turbine blade design that is large enough to support higher performance while retaimng a form factor that is economical, reliable and can be produced on a grander scale.
Sandia National Laboratories, and in particular, the Wind Energy Technologies Dept., finds itself at the epicenter of that design challenge. The group partners with universities and industry to conduct applied research in the area of wind turbines and blades to increase the viability of wind technology. Researchers at the lab are working on advancing knowledge around the areas of materials, structural dynamics, active-flow aerodynamic control and sensors along with pursuing innovations in the manufacturing processes and embedded controls associated with wind blade design.
"We're about developing innovation that's five years, maybe 10 years out", says Tom Ashwill, P.E., distinguished member of technical staff at Sandia National Laboratories' Wind Energy Technologies Dept. "The industry is risk-averse to innovation - they can only look two to three years out. We look to take risk off the table for them and try things we don't know will work". The Sandia lab makes the results of its innovation efforts available to industry via reports, partnerships and through regular conferences and workshops.
Large-Scale Blade Design
One of the department's primary areas of focus is innovation related to increasing the size of wind turbine blades. In the early 1980s, wind turbines averaged 100 kW, but the current average capacity is around 2MW - a factor of 15 to 20 times more performance than what existed 25 years ago, Ashwill explains. As demand for performance increases, so does blade size, since blade length has a direct correlation to the increased power generating capacity of a turbine. As far as economics go, the thinking is that fewer, higher-capacity wind turbines are more efficient and cost-effective than creating the infrastructure to support many smaller turbines, Ashwill says.
Current utility-scale turbines are equipped with blades that range from 40m (130 ft) to 90m (300 ft) in diameter. Sandia has a research project underway to advance that capacity to a 100m blade, which in a traditional three-bladed turbine design, would encompass a footprint in the order of two-and-a-half football fields in size. This massive blade design, aimed at turbines that would reside 15 miles offshore, creates significant design challenges around weight, structural integrity and manufacturability.
"As they get larger, the weight of these blades becomes an issue", says Craig Collier, president of Collier Research Corp., the maker of software used to optimize composite materials and structural sizing that came out of work done at NASA Langley Research Center and now employed as part of Sandia's research. "As they get larger, the question is: Can they withstand their own weight without breaking? It's a big issue for the design of new blades". In addition to structural strength, design engineering issues associated with the larger blades encompass things like fatigue performance, buckling stability, blade stiffness, twist limits and wing-tip deflection.
HyperSizer's legacy in aerospace has helped entities like NASA and companies like Lockheed Martin, Boeing and Bombardier, trim at least 20% off the weight from wing structures. The software works with out-of-the-box FEA solvers in a feedback loop to identify solutions that minimize weight while maximizing structural integrity and manufacturability, Collier says. The software analyzes complex composite structures by evaluating designs in a ply-by-ply and finite element-by-element manner, helping engineers optimize all possible variations on a composite laminate design.
While FEA will give engineers insight into internal unit loads - for instance, how much air load goes into the skin of a blade or into the spar cap - it does not, for example, provide analysis on overstressed materials or if a bonded joint is going to have a failure. That's where HyperSizer comes in, Collier explains. "HyperSizer will not only identify the problem, but will go a step beyond and tell you what to do to fix the problem", he says. "It has built-in intelligence to make those recommendations".
Leveraging HyperSizer's built-in optimization and intelligence capabilities, Sandia plans to refine its baseline design for a 100m blade and optimize parts of the design to reduce weight. The software will be key in exploring how and when to add material variants such as carbon fiber, how to address active or passive load controls, and for experimenting with different air foils as part of the ongoing research effort. Ashwill says he expects industry to release wind turbines based on this blade research about seven to eight years in the future.
"We're just looking to apply innovation to larger blade design as we have in the past for smaller blades", Ashwill says. "HyperSizer will show us how to optimize those designs."
Toyota starts fuel cell vehicle trial
uk.ibtimes.com
24 January 2011
Toyota's fuel-cell hybrid vehicle, the FCHV-adv, will be placed into a trial programme between Narita International Airport and other destinations starting on January 29. The Toyota FCHV-adv will be used in a car service operating from Narita Airport for the Welcome Home Limousine Taxi Service for passengers returning to Japan on flights from Europe or the US.
Its involvement is part of a request from the Research Association of Hydrogen Supply/Utilisation Technology, which is part of the Hydrogen Highway Project being run by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry within its Demonstration Program for Establishing a Hydrogen-based Social System.
As part of the same project, Toyota has also been supplying an FCHV-BUS fuel-cell hybrid bus that is used on a commercial route between Tokyo International Airport and central Tokyo. Toyota is expected to use data obtained from the car service trials and conduct ongoing research and development while co-operating with the government and energy industry to advance fuel-cell vehicles.
24 January 2011
Toyota's fuel-cell hybrid vehicle, the FCHV-adv, will be placed into a trial programme between Narita International Airport and other destinations starting on January 29. The Toyota FCHV-adv will be used in a car service operating from Narita Airport for the Welcome Home Limousine Taxi Service for passengers returning to Japan on flights from Europe or the US.
Its involvement is part of a request from the Research Association of Hydrogen Supply/Utilisation Technology, which is part of the Hydrogen Highway Project being run by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry within its Demonstration Program for Establishing a Hydrogen-based Social System.
As part of the same project, Toyota has also been supplying an FCHV-BUS fuel-cell hybrid bus that is used on a commercial route between Tokyo International Airport and central Tokyo. Toyota is expected to use data obtained from the car service trials and conduct ongoing research and development while co-operating with the government and energy industry to advance fuel-cell vehicles.
Wind turbine technician programs get nod
www.earthtechling.com
24 January 2011
A clean energy economy requires a skilled workforce, and the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) would like to help ensure that such a workforce exists. Towards that end, the organization has awarded its first ever Seal of Approval to three college wind turbine service technician training programs in the West.
The three schools now recognized by the AWEA for their top-notch programs are Columbia Gorge Community College's Renewable Energy Technology 9 Month Certificate Program for Wind Turbine Service Technicians (The Dalles, Oregon), Iowa Lakes Community College's Associates of Applied Science in Wind Energy & Turbine Technology program (Estherville, Iowa), and Texas State Technical College's Associates of Applied Science in Wind Energy & Turbine Technology program (Sweetwater, Texas).
The AWEA Seal of Approval program called for applications last year and took a critical look at whether educational and training institutions with technician programs are teaching the skills that an entry-level service technician needs, as identified by experts among AWEA's 2,500 company members.
AWEA sees its Seal of Approval Program as a quality assurance mechanism that will help strong programs stand out and fortify the industry as a whole with a pool of qualified technicians fully prepared to enter the wind power work force.
24 January 2011
A clean energy economy requires a skilled workforce, and the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) would like to help ensure that such a workforce exists. Towards that end, the organization has awarded its first ever Seal of Approval to three college wind turbine service technician training programs in the West.The three schools now recognized by the AWEA for their top-notch programs are Columbia Gorge Community College's Renewable Energy Technology 9 Month Certificate Program for Wind Turbine Service Technicians (The Dalles, Oregon), Iowa Lakes Community College's Associates of Applied Science in Wind Energy & Turbine Technology program (Estherville, Iowa), and Texas State Technical College's Associates of Applied Science in Wind Energy & Turbine Technology program (Sweetwater, Texas).
The AWEA Seal of Approval program called for applications last year and took a critical look at whether educational and training institutions with technician programs are teaching the skills that an entry-level service technician needs, as identified by experts among AWEA's 2,500 company members.
AWEA sees its Seal of Approval Program as a quality assurance mechanism that will help strong programs stand out and fortify the industry as a whole with a pool of qualified technicians fully prepared to enter the wind power work force.
Friday, 28 January 2011
Green grows the oil rich Gulf
Weekend Australian
22 January 2011, Page: 2
United Arab Emirates is pointing the way to a future of cleaner technology
FROM the rooftop of Abu Dhabi's convention centre hotel, the night sky is floodlit in all directions so there can be no let-up in the frenetic construction that is transforming this desert city into a showcase of human ability to change the world.
There's a glass tower that leans precariously, plans for a replica Louvre, Ferrari World and a Palace Hotel that really is a marble palace complete with a gold vending machine in the lobby. None of it seems out of place in a city carpeted with eight-lane highways on which every second car is a V12 Mercedes-Benz, four-door Porsche or fortified Range Rover. It's difficult to fathom then that Abu Dhabi considers itself ground zero for negotiations to cement a low carbon emissions future for the world.
This week Abu Dhabi hosted its third annual World Future Energy Summit to honour the environmental vision of the founding father of the United Arab Emirates, Sheik Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan. It was a post-Cancun summit for the moneyed, attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Kimoon and his climate change attache Rajendra Pachauri.
US President Barack Obama sent his regards, as did his Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former British prime minister Tony Blair. European and Asian heads of state and royalty turned up to offer their support, including the presidents of Iceland and Pakistan, prime ministers of Portugal and Georgia, and Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden.
As technology companies in the alternative energy business showed their wares, there was everything from electric and compressed air motorcycles and battery operated cars to waste water filtration plants, new generation solar panels, giant offshore wind turbines and smaller nuclear power plants.
There was a big push for solar air-conditioning units that convert hot water to cold air. But the buzzword on everyone's lips was smart grid. This is the means through which electricity producers and sellers hope to be able to turn the dynamics of the electricity business on its head. Instead of electricity generators having to meet the fickle demands of users and build a system that can cope with peak demand, power users will be forced to meet the more erratic electricity supply characteristics of a grid made up of less predictable energy sources such as wind and solar.
Smart grids contain communication systems to allow electricity suppliers to load-shed (turn off) individual appliances such as air conditioners during peak demand or charge more to customers who want to keep the kettle boiling in times of scarce supply. Electricity demand management including even the public shaming of people who use more electricity than their neighbours underlies the model city that Abu Dhabi's state-owned energy company, Masdar, is building to pioneer alternative energy.
Abu Dhabi may be awash with oil and gas but it is willing to sponsor the creation of a post-oil world in the name of energy security and climate change. The Masdar Institute, a university and research facility linked to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is up and running and has entered industry-backed research projects with some of the world's big technology companies.
Agreements to date include research into breakthrough technologies in carbon capture, sequestration and the development of biofuel for the aviation industry from local salt-tolerant non-food vegetation. In contrast to motor vehicles, no one is expecting the development of a battery powered passenger aircraft soon.
Not constrained by elections or public opinion, the UAE has ordered four nuclear power plants, which it expects to be commissioned by 2020. Abu Dhabi's international nuclear co-operation ambassador Hamad al-Kaabi says nuclear has been chosen because it provides independence, energy security and an answer to global warming and environmental concerns.
Kaabi says the UAE's energy demand is growing at 9% a year and the country is a net importer of natural gas. Oil is expensive and a polluting form of power generation, he says. Coal is more polluting and renewable energies such as wind and solar can only meet 6% to 7% of peak demand, he says. But this has not stopped Abu Dhabi pioneering commercial scale solar power from both photovoltaic and concentrated solar sources. Kaabi says nuclear and renewable enterprises are "urgently needed as partners".
The Masdar Institute site has a 10MW solar array that in maintenance terms is the equivalent of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. A team of cleaners wipes the desert sand from the solar panels to keep them working. It takes two weeks to clean them all, and as soon as they are finished it is time to start again. The Masdar city site also has a concentrated solar plant that has so far demonstrated that because of dust particles, Abu Dhabi sunlight is less than ideal for concentrating solar heat.
Undaunted, Abu Dhabi has committed to developing the Shams One 100MW concentrated solar plant in the western region, which is claimed to be the world's largest of its type. To cover all bases, the winner of this year's Zayed Future Energy Prize was given to wind turbine maker Vestas, even though Abu Dhabi has little wind to harness.
Masdar chief executive Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber says research is urgent for all forms of energy including clean fossil fuels, peaceful nuclear power and renewables such as wind and solar. And rather than pick a winner, Jaber says it is better for the different energy forms to slug it out. "To ensure the emergence of the most commercially viable, scalable and efficient technology, we must create competition", he says. "Competition drives innovation".
Masdar City itself has been a case study in technological innovation that has not always borne fruit. Development of the city is now being co-ordinated by Australian businessman Alan Frost, who has worked previously for Babcock and Brown and Lend Lease. Frost insists the project isn't just a real estate development but is linked to Abu Dhabi's 2030 vision to develop a post-oil economy.
"The idea of this is to create a clean tech cluster, the regional Silicon Valley of renewable energy", he says. Frost says Silicon Valley started as Stanford University business park in the 1940s and 50s and built its success in several decades. "I don't think anyone is thinking Masdar City is going to be instant", he says. "The key is the government support and the fact the government really does want to diversify away from being a carbon-based economy and has set a target for 7% renewable energy by 2020".
When it was launched three years ago, the plan was to build the city in five to seven years, but that timetable has now been pushed out by nine years. In addition, a revolutionary concept to build the entire city on a podium 7.5m off the ground has been scrapped. So too has the concept of having a network of several thousand driverless electric cars, or PRTs, to shuttle people around the city.
Only the institute and Masdar headquarters building will now be constructed on a podium to give the site some elevation. A handful of PRTs will be restricted to an 800m shuttle route that replaces a 250m walk. The ambitious plan to elevate the entire city was considered wasteful in the wake of the global financial crisis.
The delay in construction was also seen as a sensible way of avoiding being locked into to one generation of technology. "When we looked at building everything in five years, it was obviously the wrong approach", Frost says. "If it is all about innovation and learning and incorporating what you have learned in one phase to the next, then building it all to one specification on one day doesn't make a lot of sense".
Buildings have been designed to shade each other during the day and the walls of the institute are a combination of louvres and plastic compartments filled with ergon gas to cut down on radiated heat in order to lower the temperature of the entire site. A cooling tower in the centre of the square between the resource centre, laboratories and residential apartments has a display system that shows how much electricity is being used relative to what is being produced from rooftop solar panels.
The individual energy use of students will be monitored and they will be encouraged to compete to lower demand. The city will be pedestrian friendly rather than car-free, and without the driverless cars city planners are looking how best to integrate the public transport systems with a light rail and a network of electric taxis.
Despite the flat terrain, no one seems daring enough to suggest the bicycle. "Four years ago the thinking was Masdar was an island and could do everything on its own. What we have come to realise is everything we put in the ground has to join up with what is outside", Frost says. "We have learned we can't be an island". It is the same thinking that is driving Abu Dhabi's push to help pioneer new low-carbon technologies that can be exported to developing countries.
22 January 2011, Page: 2
United Arab Emirates is pointing the way to a future of cleaner technologyFROM the rooftop of Abu Dhabi's convention centre hotel, the night sky is floodlit in all directions so there can be no let-up in the frenetic construction that is transforming this desert city into a showcase of human ability to change the world.
There's a glass tower that leans precariously, plans for a replica Louvre, Ferrari World and a Palace Hotel that really is a marble palace complete with a gold vending machine in the lobby. None of it seems out of place in a city carpeted with eight-lane highways on which every second car is a V12 Mercedes-Benz, four-door Porsche or fortified Range Rover. It's difficult to fathom then that Abu Dhabi considers itself ground zero for negotiations to cement a low carbon emissions future for the world.
This week Abu Dhabi hosted its third annual World Future Energy Summit to honour the environmental vision of the founding father of the United Arab Emirates, Sheik Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan. It was a post-Cancun summit for the moneyed, attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Kimoon and his climate change attache Rajendra Pachauri.
US President Barack Obama sent his regards, as did his Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former British prime minister Tony Blair. European and Asian heads of state and royalty turned up to offer their support, including the presidents of Iceland and Pakistan, prime ministers of Portugal and Georgia, and Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden.
As technology companies in the alternative energy business showed their wares, there was everything from electric and compressed air motorcycles and battery operated cars to waste water filtration plants, new generation solar panels, giant offshore wind turbines and smaller nuclear power plants.
There was a big push for solar air-conditioning units that convert hot water to cold air. But the buzzword on everyone's lips was smart grid. This is the means through which electricity producers and sellers hope to be able to turn the dynamics of the electricity business on its head. Instead of electricity generators having to meet the fickle demands of users and build a system that can cope with peak demand, power users will be forced to meet the more erratic electricity supply characteristics of a grid made up of less predictable energy sources such as wind and solar.
Smart grids contain communication systems to allow electricity suppliers to load-shed (turn off) individual appliances such as air conditioners during peak demand or charge more to customers who want to keep the kettle boiling in times of scarce supply. Electricity demand management including even the public shaming of people who use more electricity than their neighbours underlies the model city that Abu Dhabi's state-owned energy company, Masdar, is building to pioneer alternative energy.
Abu Dhabi may be awash with oil and gas but it is willing to sponsor the creation of a post-oil world in the name of energy security and climate change. The Masdar Institute, a university and research facility linked to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is up and running and has entered industry-backed research projects with some of the world's big technology companies.
Agreements to date include research into breakthrough technologies in carbon capture, sequestration and the development of biofuel for the aviation industry from local salt-tolerant non-food vegetation. In contrast to motor vehicles, no one is expecting the development of a battery powered passenger aircraft soon.
Not constrained by elections or public opinion, the UAE has ordered four nuclear power plants, which it expects to be commissioned by 2020. Abu Dhabi's international nuclear co-operation ambassador Hamad al-Kaabi says nuclear has been chosen because it provides independence, energy security and an answer to global warming and environmental concerns.
Kaabi says the UAE's energy demand is growing at 9% a year and the country is a net importer of natural gas. Oil is expensive and a polluting form of power generation, he says. Coal is more polluting and renewable energies such as wind and solar can only meet 6% to 7% of peak demand, he says. But this has not stopped Abu Dhabi pioneering commercial scale solar power from both photovoltaic and concentrated solar sources. Kaabi says nuclear and renewable enterprises are "urgently needed as partners".
The Masdar Institute site has a 10MW solar array that in maintenance terms is the equivalent of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. A team of cleaners wipes the desert sand from the solar panels to keep them working. It takes two weeks to clean them all, and as soon as they are finished it is time to start again. The Masdar city site also has a concentrated solar plant that has so far demonstrated that because of dust particles, Abu Dhabi sunlight is less than ideal for concentrating solar heat.
Undaunted, Abu Dhabi has committed to developing the Shams One 100MW concentrated solar plant in the western region, which is claimed to be the world's largest of its type. To cover all bases, the winner of this year's Zayed Future Energy Prize was given to wind turbine maker Vestas, even though Abu Dhabi has little wind to harness.
Masdar chief executive Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber says research is urgent for all forms of energy including clean fossil fuels, peaceful nuclear power and renewables such as wind and solar. And rather than pick a winner, Jaber says it is better for the different energy forms to slug it out. "To ensure the emergence of the most commercially viable, scalable and efficient technology, we must create competition", he says. "Competition drives innovation".
Masdar City itself has been a case study in technological innovation that has not always borne fruit. Development of the city is now being co-ordinated by Australian businessman Alan Frost, who has worked previously for Babcock and Brown and Lend Lease. Frost insists the project isn't just a real estate development but is linked to Abu Dhabi's 2030 vision to develop a post-oil economy.
"The idea of this is to create a clean tech cluster, the regional Silicon Valley of renewable energy", he says. Frost says Silicon Valley started as Stanford University business park in the 1940s and 50s and built its success in several decades. "I don't think anyone is thinking Masdar City is going to be instant", he says. "The key is the government support and the fact the government really does want to diversify away from being a carbon-based economy and has set a target for 7% renewable energy by 2020".
When it was launched three years ago, the plan was to build the city in five to seven years, but that timetable has now been pushed out by nine years. In addition, a revolutionary concept to build the entire city on a podium 7.5m off the ground has been scrapped. So too has the concept of having a network of several thousand driverless electric cars, or PRTs, to shuttle people around the city.
Only the institute and Masdar headquarters building will now be constructed on a podium to give the site some elevation. A handful of PRTs will be restricted to an 800m shuttle route that replaces a 250m walk. The ambitious plan to elevate the entire city was considered wasteful in the wake of the global financial crisis.
The delay in construction was also seen as a sensible way of avoiding being locked into to one generation of technology. "When we looked at building everything in five years, it was obviously the wrong approach", Frost says. "If it is all about innovation and learning and incorporating what you have learned in one phase to the next, then building it all to one specification on one day doesn't make a lot of sense".
Buildings have been designed to shade each other during the day and the walls of the institute are a combination of louvres and plastic compartments filled with ergon gas to cut down on radiated heat in order to lower the temperature of the entire site. A cooling tower in the centre of the square between the resource centre, laboratories and residential apartments has a display system that shows how much electricity is being used relative to what is being produced from rooftop solar panels.
The individual energy use of students will be monitored and they will be encouraged to compete to lower demand. The city will be pedestrian friendly rather than car-free, and without the driverless cars city planners are looking how best to integrate the public transport systems with a light rail and a network of electric taxis.
Despite the flat terrain, no one seems daring enough to suggest the bicycle. "Four years ago the thinking was Masdar was an island and could do everything on its own. What we have come to realise is everything we put in the ground has to join up with what is outside", Frost says. "We have learned we can't be an island". It is the same thinking that is driving Abu Dhabi's push to help pioneer new low-carbon technologies that can be exported to developing countries.
Approval brings sunny outlook to pioneer solar farm
Canberra Times
22 January 2011, Page: 3
The NSW Government has given planning approval for the construction of a $150 million solar farm 6km north-east of Bungendore. The approval, announced yesterday, paves the way for Capital Solar Farm - a joint venture between Infigen Energy and Suntech Power Holdings - to potentially become the first operational solar farm in NSW.
However, construction of the solar farm remains contingent on Infigen Energy and Suntech Power receiving project funding from the Commonwealth and NSW governments. Infigen Energy already operates the 67-turbine Capital Wind Farm, also north-east of Bungendore, and is awaiting planning approval for a $180 million wind farm expansion into an adjacent site, potentially erecting a further 55 turbines.
The Capital Solar Farm project would involve the construction of up to 32 blocks of solar panels. Member for Monaro Steve Whan said yesterday the project was expected to create dozens of jobs. The NSW Department of Planning imposed 56 conditions on the project, including that Infigen Energy provide funding to help Palerang Council upgrade community infrastructure.
Palerang Council Mayor Walter Raynolds welcomed yesterday's developments. Mr Raynolds said the project would provide a "huge boost" during the construction phase. Bungendore Chamber of Commerce and Industry acting president Andrew Riley said he could not see a downside to the solar farm project. "If it's as successful in stimulating local business as when the wind farm was being constructed - and there's no reason to expect it wouldn't be - that's great news", he said.
Infigen Energy said in a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange that the consortium had one of four shortlisted proposals being assessed for Commonwealth funding under its Solar Flagships Program. It said the development of the Bungendore solar farm and two others contained in its proposal were subject to the consortium's funding bid being successful.
22 January 2011, Page: 3
The NSW Government has given planning approval for the construction of a $150 million solar farm 6km north-east of Bungendore. The approval, announced yesterday, paves the way for Capital Solar Farm - a joint venture between Infigen Energy and Suntech Power Holdings - to potentially become the first operational solar farm in NSW.
However, construction of the solar farm remains contingent on Infigen Energy and Suntech Power receiving project funding from the Commonwealth and NSW governments. Infigen Energy already operates the 67-turbine Capital Wind Farm, also north-east of Bungendore, and is awaiting planning approval for a $180 million wind farm expansion into an adjacent site, potentially erecting a further 55 turbines.
The Capital Solar Farm project would involve the construction of up to 32 blocks of solar panels. Member for Monaro Steve Whan said yesterday the project was expected to create dozens of jobs. The NSW Department of Planning imposed 56 conditions on the project, including that Infigen Energy provide funding to help Palerang Council upgrade community infrastructure.
Palerang Council Mayor Walter Raynolds welcomed yesterday's developments. Mr Raynolds said the project would provide a "huge boost" during the construction phase. Bungendore Chamber of Commerce and Industry acting president Andrew Riley said he could not see a downside to the solar farm project. "If it's as successful in stimulating local business as when the wind farm was being constructed - and there's no reason to expect it wouldn't be - that's great news", he said.
Infigen Energy said in a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange that the consortium had one of four shortlisted proposals being assessed for Commonwealth funding under its Solar Flagships Program. It said the development of the Bungendore solar farm and two others contained in its proposal were subject to the consortium's funding bid being successful.
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
China's rare earth exports slide, but still exceed quota
Australian
21 January 2011, Page: 22
CHINESE statistics showed a 03% slide in the country's rare earth metal exports last year, but also showed that overseas sales were a third higher than stipulated in the government's own quota allocation. China's export of rare earth ore, metals and compounds slipped to 39,813 tonnes last year, according to figures published by the quasi-official China Customs Statistics Information Centre in Hong Kong.
The figures underscored Beijing's tight grip on the specialised metals but also showed how the trade was sustained at levels well above a Commerce Ministry quota that was designed to slash exports by 40% last year to 27,449 tonnes. Pockets of global industry closely monitor China's policy on rare earths because more than 95% of world supply emerges from the nation's mines and processing centres.
The 17 chemically similar elements have unique properties that have paved the way for miniaturised electronics such as the iPhone and specialised magnets used in wind turbines, as well as advances in petroleum refining and glassmaking. Reflecting how fears of tightening supply sent global rare earth prices soaring last year, China's exports of the elements tripled in value, the data shows.
Just the same, even at the higher levels, the overseas market was worth only SUS939.72 million last year, about what China made exporting leather gloves. China's quotas, which have been tightened several years in a row but especially last year, have discomfited governments fearful that Beijing could use industry dominance as a trade weapon.
A US Department of Energy study recently warned of short term supply disruptions for elements such as dysprosium and neodymium needed to make wind turbines and electric cars. The Washington trade group Alliance for American Manufacturing is among those pressing US President Barack Obama to seek supply assurances from Chinese President Hu Jintao in their meetings this week.
But the fears have also sparked a rush of investment into rare earth miners such as Colorado based Molycorp that are seeking to challenge China's dominance. Toyota, a user of rare earths for its Prius vehicles, caused a stir last week when it revealed plans to develop an efficient engine that did not need the elements.
Beijing says its quotas, which are slated to reduce exports 35% for the first half of this year, are part of a strategy to restructure the heavily polluting rare earth industry, to conserve its reserves of about a third of the world total and combat widespread smuggling in the elements.
Traders in China say they have faced long delays in getting product through the country's ports. "China has taken significant steps in recent months to ensure its customs officers are well aware of what the quotas are", said Dudley Kingsnorth, a Perth-based analyst from Industrial Minerals Company. Mr Kingsnorth said he expected China to be tougher in enforcing quotas this year.
He said various factors could explain a mismatch between 2010 exports and the quota levels, including delays in booking sales in customs registries and how the tonnage of rare earth elements was measured by trade officials. Figures from Japan, the largest importer of rare earths, have also suggested China exported more rare earth last year than stipulated by its quotas.
According to the Finance Ministry in Tokyo, Japan imports in some cases soared. Japan's imports of lanthanum oxide, an important ingredient for making hybrid car batteries, more than tripled in the first 11 months of 2010 from the same period the previous year.
21 January 2011, Page: 22
CHINESE statistics showed a 03% slide in the country's rare earth metal exports last year, but also showed that overseas sales were a third higher than stipulated in the government's own quota allocation. China's export of rare earth ore, metals and compounds slipped to 39,813 tonnes last year, according to figures published by the quasi-official China Customs Statistics Information Centre in Hong Kong.
The figures underscored Beijing's tight grip on the specialised metals but also showed how the trade was sustained at levels well above a Commerce Ministry quota that was designed to slash exports by 40% last year to 27,449 tonnes. Pockets of global industry closely monitor China's policy on rare earths because more than 95% of world supply emerges from the nation's mines and processing centres.
The 17 chemically similar elements have unique properties that have paved the way for miniaturised electronics such as the iPhone and specialised magnets used in wind turbines, as well as advances in petroleum refining and glassmaking. Reflecting how fears of tightening supply sent global rare earth prices soaring last year, China's exports of the elements tripled in value, the data shows.
Just the same, even at the higher levels, the overseas market was worth only SUS939.72 million last year, about what China made exporting leather gloves. China's quotas, which have been tightened several years in a row but especially last year, have discomfited governments fearful that Beijing could use industry dominance as a trade weapon.
A US Department of Energy study recently warned of short term supply disruptions for elements such as dysprosium and neodymium needed to make wind turbines and electric cars. The Washington trade group Alliance for American Manufacturing is among those pressing US President Barack Obama to seek supply assurances from Chinese President Hu Jintao in their meetings this week.
But the fears have also sparked a rush of investment into rare earth miners such as Colorado based Molycorp that are seeking to challenge China's dominance. Toyota, a user of rare earths for its Prius vehicles, caused a stir last week when it revealed plans to develop an efficient engine that did not need the elements.
Beijing says its quotas, which are slated to reduce exports 35% for the first half of this year, are part of a strategy to restructure the heavily polluting rare earth industry, to conserve its reserves of about a third of the world total and combat widespread smuggling in the elements.
Traders in China say they have faced long delays in getting product through the country's ports. "China has taken significant steps in recent months to ensure its customs officers are well aware of what the quotas are", said Dudley Kingsnorth, a Perth-based analyst from Industrial Minerals Company. Mr Kingsnorth said he expected China to be tougher in enforcing quotas this year.
He said various factors could explain a mismatch between 2010 exports and the quota levels, including delays in booking sales in customs registries and how the tonnage of rare earth elements was measured by trade officials. Figures from Japan, the largest importer of rare earths, have also suggested China exported more rare earth last year than stipulated by its quotas.
According to the Finance Ministry in Tokyo, Japan imports in some cases soared. Japan's imports of lanthanum oxide, an important ingredient for making hybrid car batteries, more than tripled in the first 11 months of 2010 from the same period the previous year.
India uranium pressure - Australia urged to drop export ban
Age
20 January 2011, Page: 1
INDIA hopes to persuade Australia to lift a ban on uranium sales to the energy-hungry south Asian giant, arguing a switch to nuclear power is needed to lower carbon emissions and tackle climate change.
India's External Affairs Minister, S. M. Krishna in Melbourne for talks with Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd today said that despite India's test of an atomic weapon, the country could be trusted as a responsible nuclear power. "Climate change demands we aim at clean energy", he told The Age last night. "It has been accepted by experts that nuclear power is the cleanest power, and India is committed to pursue its nuclear power expansion".
In a wide-ranging and exclusive interview, Mr Krishna also:
Mr Krishna yesterday held talks with Resources Minister Martin Ferguson on uranium sales and said he accepted Australia's ban on uranium was not directed at India. Australia has one of the world's largest yellowcake deposits the fuel for nuclear reactors but refuses to export to countries that are not signatories to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. But Labor overturned a Howard-era promise in 2007 for an exception to allow exports to India, a decision that reportedly sparked widespread official anger in India.
But Mr Krishna yesterday insisted the issue had not disturbed bilateral ties. "I think it is necessary that we engage Australia in a continuing dialogue about this question. Here is a situation where you are endowed with enormous deposits of uranium and there is a whole world which is starving for energy especially the developing countries, and more specifically India", he said.
He said India hoped to reach a 10% economic growth rate in the coming year and the resulting explosion of energy needs would be met by moving away from coal-fired power stations. "India, with the best of intentions, we want energy, nuclear power", he said, noting the country had already struck nuclear technology agreements with the US, France, Canada and Argentina.
Mr Krishna said the sharp drop in the number of Indian students in Australia was undoubtedly partly a result of racial violence directed at Indians, which at its height last year become a thorn in ties between the two nations. But he said tighter Australian restrictions on visa entry, a crackdown on dubious education colleges and the stronger Australian dollar were also factors leading to the decline.
While the Australian figures report an 80% drop in the number of Indian students in Australia compared with this time last year, Mr Krishna said it was probably closer to half that number. "I think false promises were made to Indian students by education providers in Australia, and as a result of that the Indian student community got disenchanted", he said. "When such situations are created, it gets reflected back home and the media and the parents of the boys of girls who have come to Australia get worked up".
Mr Krishna was in Afghanistan 10 days ago and said India was under constant threat in the country, with its embassy regularly attacked. Pakistan continued to support the Taliban as its ally and a solution to the conflict could only be found once Pakistan abandoned its patronage of the insurgents. Mr Krishna also dismissed media speculation in India that he may soon be moved from the foreign affairs portfolio in a cabinet reshuffle. "I'll be around, don't worry about it" he said, pointing to travel plans to New York.
20 January 2011, Page: 1
INDIA hopes to persuade Australia to lift a ban on uranium sales to the energy-hungry south Asian giant, arguing a switch to nuclear power is needed to lower carbon emissions and tackle climate change.
India's External Affairs Minister, S. M. Krishna in Melbourne for talks with Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd today said that despite India's test of an atomic weapon, the country could be trusted as a responsible nuclear power. "Climate change demands we aim at clean energy", he told The Age last night. "It has been accepted by experts that nuclear power is the cleanest power, and India is committed to pursue its nuclear power expansion".
In a wide-ranging and exclusive interview, Mr Krishna also:
- Backed the Victorian government and police response to violence against Indian students in the past year, despite a sharp drop in the number of Indians now studying in Australia.
- Hit out at Pakistan, accusing it of supporting the Taliban in Afghanistan and providing a haven for extremists.
- Declared India's growing economic, education and tourism ties with Australia were the "springboard" for a more mature and strategic partnership in the future.
- Said it was still too early to say if India would back Australia's bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council in 2013-14 or whether India's leader, Manmohan Singh, would accept an invitation from Prime Minister Julia Gillard to visit Australia later this year.
Mr Krishna yesterday held talks with Resources Minister Martin Ferguson on uranium sales and said he accepted Australia's ban on uranium was not directed at India. Australia has one of the world's largest yellowcake deposits the fuel for nuclear reactors but refuses to export to countries that are not signatories to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. But Labor overturned a Howard-era promise in 2007 for an exception to allow exports to India, a decision that reportedly sparked widespread official anger in India.
But Mr Krishna yesterday insisted the issue had not disturbed bilateral ties. "I think it is necessary that we engage Australia in a continuing dialogue about this question. Here is a situation where you are endowed with enormous deposits of uranium and there is a whole world which is starving for energy especially the developing countries, and more specifically India", he said.
He said India hoped to reach a 10% economic growth rate in the coming year and the resulting explosion of energy needs would be met by moving away from coal-fired power stations. "India, with the best of intentions, we want energy, nuclear power", he said, noting the country had already struck nuclear technology agreements with the US, France, Canada and Argentina.
Mr Krishna said the sharp drop in the number of Indian students in Australia was undoubtedly partly a result of racial violence directed at Indians, which at its height last year become a thorn in ties between the two nations. But he said tighter Australian restrictions on visa entry, a crackdown on dubious education colleges and the stronger Australian dollar were also factors leading to the decline.
While the Australian figures report an 80% drop in the number of Indian students in Australia compared with this time last year, Mr Krishna said it was probably closer to half that number. "I think false promises were made to Indian students by education providers in Australia, and as a result of that the Indian student community got disenchanted", he said. "When such situations are created, it gets reflected back home and the media and the parents of the boys of girls who have come to Australia get worked up".
Mr Krishna was in Afghanistan 10 days ago and said India was under constant threat in the country, with its embassy regularly attacked. Pakistan continued to support the Taliban as its ally and a solution to the conflict could only be found once Pakistan abandoned its patronage of the insurgents. Mr Krishna also dismissed media speculation in India that he may soon be moved from the foreign affairs portfolio in a cabinet reshuffle. "I'll be around, don't worry about it" he said, pointing to travel plans to New York.
Lack of carbon price handicaps projects
Summaries - Australian Financial Review
18 January 2011, Page: 35
Spanish group Acciona Energy, which recently led a consortium to construct the Brisbane Northern Link Tunnel, has dropped out of the running for the Federal Government's $1.5 billion Solar Flagships program, intended to encourage investment in renewal energy. Acciona Energy's Brett Thomas said part of the reason for dropping out was a lack of certainty over carbon pricing.
The departure of Acciona Energy leaves seven other groups in the running to build solar projects, including AGL Energy, a consortium made up of Infigen Energy and Suntech Power, and consortium of Transfield Services and the Transfield Services Infrastructure Fund among others. Acciona Energy, which acquired renewable energy assets from Spain's Endesa in 2009, has previously looked at Australian acquisitions including Pacific Hydro - which was acquired by Industry Funds Management, United Utilities Australia and the Western Australia Emu Downs Wind Farm.
18 January 2011, Page: 35
Spanish group Acciona Energy, which recently led a consortium to construct the Brisbane Northern Link Tunnel, has dropped out of the running for the Federal Government's $1.5 billion Solar Flagships program, intended to encourage investment in renewal energy. Acciona Energy's Brett Thomas said part of the reason for dropping out was a lack of certainty over carbon pricing.
The departure of Acciona Energy leaves seven other groups in the running to build solar projects, including AGL Energy, a consortium made up of Infigen Energy and Suntech Power, and consortium of Transfield Services and the Transfield Services Infrastructure Fund among others. Acciona Energy, which acquired renewable energy assets from Spain's Endesa in 2009, has previously looked at Australian acquisitions including Pacific Hydro - which was acquired by Industry Funds Management, United Utilities Australia and the Western Australia Emu Downs Wind Farm.
Tuesday, 25 January 2011
Keeping track of greenhouse emissions
Hobart Mercury
18 January 2011, Page: 28
THIS year, The Climate Group is teaming up with The Mercury to release regular weekly greenhouse gas emissions reports specifically for Tasmania.
Through a weekly graphic in this paper, Tasmanians will be able to keep track of how much greenhouse gas the state is emitting from energy use each and every week. The more competitive among us can also log on to see how were going in comparison with other states by going to www.theclimategroup.org/programs/greenhouse-indicator/
We know that tracking things often helps us get to grips with important issues and challenges. Much like regular monitoring of dam levels has helped many Australians become more aware of how precious water is, and more sparing in how they use it, tracking our greenhouse emissions can help us understand their causes and how we can reduce them.
The weekly greenhouse indicator monitors the emissions produced by our non-renewable sources of energy. Here in Tasmania, that means gas used for heating (domestic, commercial and industrial), electricity generation and cooking, as well as petroleum products such as petrol and diesel. It captures around two-thirds of the state's emissions from energy with no other country in the world receiving such up-to-date information.
So what does the indicator tell us about Tasmania? Overall, the story is positive. As today's graphic shows. Tasmania emitted 59 thousand tonnes of greenhouse gas from energy use last week. Around 69% of that was due to the use of petroleum-related products - essentially petrol and diesel. The remaining 31% came from natural gas use.
Compared with other states, both in Australia and around the world, these emissions are low. Per person, this is less than a third of Victoria's emissions. Tasmania is also the only state in Australia to have its weekly emissions from energy regularly come in lower than they were in 1990. The major reason for this is the large proportion of Tasmania's electricity that is generated by renewable sources - this week around 85%.
It is worth being aware that emissions from energy in Tasmania have risen in recent years. While this week's greenhouse indicator is similar to 1990 levels, it is 26% above 2000 levels. So Tasmania can and should look for opportunities to further reduce emissions through measures such as energy efficiency in homes and work places, which will reduce energy use as well as bills.
In many ways, the Tasmanian indicator is a snapshot of what is possible in other states around Australia. It demonstrates that role that renewables can play in providing our energy, and the impact that can have on emissions levels.
Rupert Posner, director, The Climate Group Australia
18 January 2011, Page: 28
THIS year, The Climate Group is teaming up with The Mercury to release regular weekly greenhouse gas emissions reports specifically for Tasmania.Through a weekly graphic in this paper, Tasmanians will be able to keep track of how much greenhouse gas the state is emitting from energy use each and every week. The more competitive among us can also log on to see how were going in comparison with other states by going to www.theclimategroup.org/programs/greenhouse-indicator/
We know that tracking things often helps us get to grips with important issues and challenges. Much like regular monitoring of dam levels has helped many Australians become more aware of how precious water is, and more sparing in how they use it, tracking our greenhouse emissions can help us understand their causes and how we can reduce them.
The weekly greenhouse indicator monitors the emissions produced by our non-renewable sources of energy. Here in Tasmania, that means gas used for heating (domestic, commercial and industrial), electricity generation and cooking, as well as petroleum products such as petrol and diesel. It captures around two-thirds of the state's emissions from energy with no other country in the world receiving such up-to-date information.
So what does the indicator tell us about Tasmania? Overall, the story is positive. As today's graphic shows. Tasmania emitted 59 thousand tonnes of greenhouse gas from energy use last week. Around 69% of that was due to the use of petroleum-related products - essentially petrol and diesel. The remaining 31% came from natural gas use.
Compared with other states, both in Australia and around the world, these emissions are low. Per person, this is less than a third of Victoria's emissions. Tasmania is also the only state in Australia to have its weekly emissions from energy regularly come in lower than they were in 1990. The major reason for this is the large proportion of Tasmania's electricity that is generated by renewable sources - this week around 85%.
It is worth being aware that emissions from energy in Tasmania have risen in recent years. While this week's greenhouse indicator is similar to 1990 levels, it is 26% above 2000 levels. So Tasmania can and should look for opportunities to further reduce emissions through measures such as energy efficiency in homes and work places, which will reduce energy use as well as bills.
In many ways, the Tasmanian indicator is a snapshot of what is possible in other states around Australia. It demonstrates that role that renewables can play in providing our energy, and the impact that can have on emissions levels.
Rupert Posner, director, The Climate Group Australia
Joint venture in algae biofuels
Adelaide Advertiser
18 January 2011, Page: 31
PRODUCTION of clean and "green" fuels from algae is the focus of a new joint venture between the University of Adelaide, SA-based company SQC and Murdoch University. SQC, a technology development firm, has partnered with the universities to enable them to produce commercial quantities of biofuels from algae. University of Adelaide senior lecturer at the school of chemical engineering David Lewis and Murdoch University professor of marine phycology Michael Borowitzka are world leaders in the development of biofuels from micro-algae.
The work of Dr Lewis and Professor Borowitzka led to the establishment of a $3 3 million algae pilot plant in Karratha, Western Australia. "Our research team has proven that it is possible to grow large quantities of algae for commercial biofuel purposes", said Professor Borowitzka. "The establishment of Muradel is the next major step in Australia becoming a world leader in biofuel production".
Dr Lewis said SQC had contributed $1 million to the algal biofuels venture, despite the fact it was a "high-risk investment". "They were willing to invest because we developed credible data that could be substantiated and supported", he said. "They studied the business (and) felt confident to link with us". Murdoch University specialised in commercial production of algae and algal products, while the UoA contributed engineering expertise in algal processing. SQC's mission was to develop commercial processing of micro-algae biomass into renewable hydrocarbon products.
18 January 2011, Page: 31
PRODUCTION of clean and "green" fuels from algae is the focus of a new joint venture between the University of Adelaide, SA-based company SQC and Murdoch University. SQC, a technology development firm, has partnered with the universities to enable them to produce commercial quantities of biofuels from algae. University of Adelaide senior lecturer at the school of chemical engineering David Lewis and Murdoch University professor of marine phycology Michael Borowitzka are world leaders in the development of biofuels from micro-algae.
The work of Dr Lewis and Professor Borowitzka led to the establishment of a $3 3 million algae pilot plant in Karratha, Western Australia. "Our research team has proven that it is possible to grow large quantities of algae for commercial biofuel purposes", said Professor Borowitzka. "The establishment of Muradel is the next major step in Australia becoming a world leader in biofuel production".
Dr Lewis said SQC had contributed $1 million to the algal biofuels venture, despite the fact it was a "high-risk investment". "They were willing to invest because we developed credible data that could be substantiated and supported", he said. "They studied the business (and) felt confident to link with us". Murdoch University specialised in commercial production of algae and algal products, while the UoA contributed engineering expertise in algal processing. SQC's mission was to develop commercial processing of micro-algae biomass into renewable hydrocarbon products.
Saturday, 22 January 2011
Second power plant on way for Tallawarra
Sydney Morning Herald
15 January 2011, Page: 5
THE chances of a power shortfall in NSW are set recede further with Hong Kong-backed TRUEnergy receiving the green light to build a second power station at Tallawarra, Wollongong, of up to 450MWs. The state government gave planning approval yesterday for the second-stage expansion of the station to proceed. TRUEnergy, the local unit of China Light and Power, is yet to make a final decision on the parameters of the plant.
It is studying either a 400MW combined-cycle gas-fired power station costing $330 million, or two or three 150MW units totalling 300MW-450MW of an open-cycle gas-fired station costing a more modest $200 million.
A combined-cycle unit is cheaper to operate and is typically used for extensive periods as either a baseload or intermediate load power station. An open-cycle unit is cheaper to build but more expensive to operate and is used as a "peaking" power station, to take advantage of surges in wholesale electricity prices.
Given the location, it is more likely that a combined-cycle station will be developed. TRUEnergy already operates the 400MW combined-cycle Tallawarra A unit on the site, which previously hosted a coal-fired power station.
"A final investment decision on the timing for a new power station development and the type of development will depend on a number of factors, including a study into the future electricity demand of our customers and the energy market in NSW, and policy settings such as any carbon price signal", TRUEnergy's director operations and construction, Michael Hutchinson, said.
Last month, TRUEnergy agreed to pay an estimated $1.5 billion for the largest electricity retailer in NSW, EnergyAustralia, and $500 million for the right to output from two power stations near Lithgow operated by Delta Energy, the Wallerawang power station and Mount Piper power station, as well as buying sites for power stations at Mount Piper and Marulan, south-west of Sydney.
TRUEnergy is planning to raise funds locally by listing on the stock exchange, although the timing and the amount to be raised are unclear. It needs to pay $2 billion to the NSW government on March 1 for the acquisitions, and is committed to investing up to another $330 million for the Tallawarra expansion. The increased role of wind power in the national electricity market is boosting demand for peaker units, which supply power when wind units are becalmed.
Tallawarra sources its gas via the eastern gas pipeline, owned and operated by Singapore Power's local unit, Jemena. The pipeline capacity was raised last year to 98 petajoules annually, and planning for a rise to 121 petajoules is under way. Last year, the Australian Energy Market Operator forecast NSW faced shortages by 2016/17 without additional generation capacity. It would take about three years to build the Tallawarra B station.
15 January 2011, Page: 5
THE chances of a power shortfall in NSW are set recede further with Hong Kong-backed TRUEnergy receiving the green light to build a second power station at Tallawarra, Wollongong, of up to 450MWs. The state government gave planning approval yesterday for the second-stage expansion of the station to proceed. TRUEnergy, the local unit of China Light and Power, is yet to make a final decision on the parameters of the plant.It is studying either a 400MW combined-cycle gas-fired power station costing $330 million, or two or three 150MW units totalling 300MW-450MW of an open-cycle gas-fired station costing a more modest $200 million.
A combined-cycle unit is cheaper to operate and is typically used for extensive periods as either a baseload or intermediate load power station. An open-cycle unit is cheaper to build but more expensive to operate and is used as a "peaking" power station, to take advantage of surges in wholesale electricity prices.
Given the location, it is more likely that a combined-cycle station will be developed. TRUEnergy already operates the 400MW combined-cycle Tallawarra A unit on the site, which previously hosted a coal-fired power station.
"A final investment decision on the timing for a new power station development and the type of development will depend on a number of factors, including a study into the future electricity demand of our customers and the energy market in NSW, and policy settings such as any carbon price signal", TRUEnergy's director operations and construction, Michael Hutchinson, said.
Last month, TRUEnergy agreed to pay an estimated $1.5 billion for the largest electricity retailer in NSW, EnergyAustralia, and $500 million for the right to output from two power stations near Lithgow operated by Delta Energy, the Wallerawang power station and Mount Piper power station, as well as buying sites for power stations at Mount Piper and Marulan, south-west of Sydney.
TRUEnergy is planning to raise funds locally by listing on the stock exchange, although the timing and the amount to be raised are unclear. It needs to pay $2 billion to the NSW government on March 1 for the acquisitions, and is committed to investing up to another $330 million for the Tallawarra expansion. The increased role of wind power in the national electricity market is boosting demand for peaker units, which supply power when wind units are becalmed.
Tallawarra sources its gas via the eastern gas pipeline, owned and operated by Singapore Power's local unit, Jemena. The pipeline capacity was raised last year to 98 petajoules annually, and planning for a rise to 121 petajoules is under way. Last year, the Australian Energy Market Operator forecast NSW faced shortages by 2016/17 without additional generation capacity. It would take about three years to build the Tallawarra B station.
Wind farm, heart attack link (beat-up)
Herald Sun
17 January 2011, Page: 21
PEOPLE who live close to wind farms at Cape Bridgewater and Cape Nelson may need to begin monitoring their blood pressure, according to South Australian doctor Sarah Laurie. Dr Laurie said there was a link between early morning high blood pressure, heart attacks and the turbines at wind farms.
She said anyone who lived within 5km of a wind farm should consider buying their own blood pressure monitoring equipment and see a doctor if they had a reading above 140/80. General manager of local wind farm operator Pacific Hydro, Lane Crockett, said facts gathered suggested wind farms were safe and there was no need for alarm.
More scare tactics from Dr Sarah Lourie who seems to confuse causation with correlation. Let's see if the good doctor has any real evidence to support her claim or if she is just pandering to the anti-windfarm paranoia of a noisy minority?
17 January 2011, Page: 21
PEOPLE who live close to wind farms at Cape Bridgewater and Cape Nelson may need to begin monitoring their blood pressure, according to South Australian doctor Sarah Laurie. Dr Laurie said there was a link between early morning high blood pressure, heart attacks and the turbines at wind farms.
She said anyone who lived within 5km of a wind farm should consider buying their own blood pressure monitoring equipment and see a doctor if they had a reading above 140/80. General manager of local wind farm operator Pacific Hydro, Lane Crockett, said facts gathered suggested wind farms were safe and there was no need for alarm.
More scare tactics from Dr Sarah Lourie who seems to confuse causation with correlation. Let's see if the good doctor has any real evidence to support her claim or if she is just pandering to the anti-windfarm paranoia of a noisy minority?
Friday, 21 January 2011
Santos green-lights $16b CSG project
Courier Mail
14 January 2011, Page: 28
ABOUT $31 billion of investment is to be unleashed in Queensland after Santos and its partners yesterday announced the go-ahead for a $US16 billion ($A16.2 billion) coal seam gas development, the second of the controversial projects to be approved.
Adelaide-based oil and gas explorer Santos, which owns 30% of the Gladstone LNG (GLNG) project, and offshore partners Petronas, Total and Kogas, said the decision to proceed meant orders would immediately be placed for pipes, compressors and LNG plant components. Up to 1500 jobs are expected to be created between now and June.
Last October, UK-based BG Group became the first to give final investment clearance to a major project to convert coal seam gas from the Surat and Bowen Basins into LNG for Asian and domestic energy markets at processing plants at Gladstone. Its Queensland Curtis LNG project, to be operated by BG Group unit QGC, involves $US15 billion spent on two LNG processing lines or trains and wells, field facilities and pipelines.
BG Group expects first LNG exports from 2014. Santos's schedule sees first shipments from its two-train project in 2015. Santos chief executive David Knox said he didn't expect any impacts on the project from Queensland's flood disaster. "We're confident we will achieve first gas in 2015. We've got sufficient flexibility in our schedule. We will gradually ramp up this year in terms of staff numbers. Our peak employment isn't until 2013", Mr Knox said.
State and federal environmental approvals granted last year had cleared the way for the GLNG and QCLNG partners to take their final investment decisions. The environmental approvals came despite calls from agricultural industries, water management groups and environmentalists for a comprehensive scientific analysis of water impacts from CSG mining to be conducted.
The National Water Commission last month issued a major report on CSG mining risks in areas such as the Surat Basin, which is part of the Murray-Darling Basin and lies above the Great Artesian Basin. National Water Commissioner Chloe Munro said the CSG industry "risks significant, long-term and adverse impacts on surface and groundwater systems". She stressed that the potential impacts of CSG projects over a significant time period "are not well understood".
CSG mining involves bringing saline underground water to the surface in order to release trapped gas, and there are fears that water networks will be depleted or contaminated. The NWC raised major concerns with water practices proposed by CSG miners and issued recommendations for state and federal governments, including that CSG miners obtain licences for any water extracted.
The NWC said the CSG industry could extract 7500 gigalitres of water from groundwater systems over 25 years, or about,300GL a year. Currently, Australia's total extraction from the Great Artesian Basin is about 540GL a year Mr Knox said that he was not aware of the NWC recommendations.
New England MP Tony Windsor has said he will use his balance of power position in Federal Parliament this year to force CSG miners to conduct assessments of long-term, regional impacts of their controversial practices, either before exploration licences are granted or if necessary before mining proceeds. Santos shares closed up 2.2%, or 29¢, at $13.45.
14 January 2011, Page: 28
Adelaide-based oil and gas explorer Santos, which owns 30% of the Gladstone LNG (GLNG) project, and offshore partners Petronas, Total and Kogas, said the decision to proceed meant orders would immediately be placed for pipes, compressors and LNG plant components. Up to 1500 jobs are expected to be created between now and June.
Last October, UK-based BG Group became the first to give final investment clearance to a major project to convert coal seam gas from the Surat and Bowen Basins into LNG for Asian and domestic energy markets at processing plants at Gladstone. Its Queensland Curtis LNG project, to be operated by BG Group unit QGC, involves $US15 billion spent on two LNG processing lines or trains and wells, field facilities and pipelines.
BG Group expects first LNG exports from 2014. Santos's schedule sees first shipments from its two-train project in 2015. Santos chief executive David Knox said he didn't expect any impacts on the project from Queensland's flood disaster. "We're confident we will achieve first gas in 2015. We've got sufficient flexibility in our schedule. We will gradually ramp up this year in terms of staff numbers. Our peak employment isn't until 2013", Mr Knox said.
State and federal environmental approvals granted last year had cleared the way for the GLNG and QCLNG partners to take their final investment decisions. The environmental approvals came despite calls from agricultural industries, water management groups and environmentalists for a comprehensive scientific analysis of water impacts from CSG mining to be conducted.
The National Water Commission last month issued a major report on CSG mining risks in areas such as the Surat Basin, which is part of the Murray-Darling Basin and lies above the Great Artesian Basin. National Water Commissioner Chloe Munro said the CSG industry "risks significant, long-term and adverse impacts on surface and groundwater systems". She stressed that the potential impacts of CSG projects over a significant time period "are not well understood".
CSG mining involves bringing saline underground water to the surface in order to release trapped gas, and there are fears that water networks will be depleted or contaminated. The NWC raised major concerns with water practices proposed by CSG miners and issued recommendations for state and federal governments, including that CSG miners obtain licences for any water extracted.
The NWC said the CSG industry could extract 7500 gigalitres of water from groundwater systems over 25 years, or about,300GL a year. Currently, Australia's total extraction from the Great Artesian Basin is about 540GL a year Mr Knox said that he was not aware of the NWC recommendations.
New England MP Tony Windsor has said he will use his balance of power position in Federal Parliament this year to force CSG miners to conduct assessments of long-term, regional impacts of their controversial practices, either before exploration licences are granted or if necessary before mining proceeds. Santos shares closed up 2.2%, or 29¢, at $13.45.
It's time to talk of climate change
Age
14 January 2011, Page: 11
What kind of world are we going to leave for the next generation?
IN APRIL 2009 the Los Angeles Times ran the headline: "What will global warming look like? Scientists point to Australia". The article said events unfolding in Australia record-breaking droughts, killer bushfires and devastating floods gave a snapshot of our future in a globally warmed world. Nearly two years on, it seems very little has changed.
The floods that have led to most of Queensland being declared a disaster zone are a disturbing reminder that living in one of the richest countries in the world does not shield us from the devastation of natural disasters. The footage of death and destruction we are seeing on our TV screens is gut-wrenching. Most dinner table conversations in Australia this week will undoubtedly focus on these floods and their horrific consequences.
But while we are talking about the immense loss and what we can do to help, there is another conversation that we should be having: the conversation about climate change. When we talk about climate change, we mostly talk about complicated economic policy, markets and reports. But we need to start talking about what climate change actually looks like and we don't need to look much further than Queensland.
We know that any one single extreme weather event cannot be attributed just to climate change. But we can look at the climate models and predictions, which all say that in a climate-changed world extreme weather events will become more frequent and intense. The La Nina phenomenon, the major cause of the increased rain in south-east Queensland, gets stronger as sea surface temperatures increase. Warmer air also holds more water than colder air, and this water eventually has to come down somewhere. Hence increased rain and floods.
Scientists such as Professor Vicky Pope, head of climate change advice at Britain's Met Office, and Dr Kevin Trenberth from the US National Centre for Atmospheric Research have pointed to the evidence showing a warmer world is a wetter world, due to increased water vapour and energy in the atmosphere leading to more frequent and intense storms.
In The Age this week, Professor David Karoly from University of Melbourne's school of earth sciences was quoted as saying that the wild weather extremes were in keeping with scientists' forecasts of more flooding and more droughts as a result of high temperatures and more evaporation. This is not confined to Australia. Insurance agency Munich Re showed climate change was linked to 21,000 deaths in the first nine months of 2010 double the number of deaths caused by extreme weather in 2009.
Last year was the warmest since measuring began, and the previous decade was also the warmest decade on record. There is also evidence to suggest that climate change is responsible for the extreme cold winters across Europe and the US in the past two years. When I talk about the frustratingly slow pace of climate action in this country, people often tell me that it is going to take a disaster to snap us out of our inertia.
Many people believe that once we really feel the effects of climate change personally, the population will spring to action. Sure, we've seen terrible floods in Pakistan and we know about the plight of low-lying Pacific Islands, but it's going to need to hit us at home before we wake up. If this is true, then these floods should be a deafening wake-up call. As a young person who will inherit the world being created now, I want us to start talking about what needs to happen to prevent this kind of tragedy from occurring again and again. I don't want to live in the kind of world we are previewing right now.
We need fundamental change, and it starts with a price on pollution that rids our economy of polluting energy and creates clean energy instead. It starts with increased funding for healthy, renewable energy. It starts with a serious commitment from all political parties to do what is right and significantly reduce Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. I hope some good can come out of this tragedy, and that we use it to have the conversation about what we are going to do this year to make these solutions a reality.
Ellen Sandell is national director of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition and joint Banskia young environmentalist of the year in 2009.
14 January 2011, Page: 11
What kind of world are we going to leave for the next generation?
IN APRIL 2009 the Los Angeles Times ran the headline: "What will global warming look like? Scientists point to Australia". The article said events unfolding in Australia record-breaking droughts, killer bushfires and devastating floods gave a snapshot of our future in a globally warmed world. Nearly two years on, it seems very little has changed.
The floods that have led to most of Queensland being declared a disaster zone are a disturbing reminder that living in one of the richest countries in the world does not shield us from the devastation of natural disasters. The footage of death and destruction we are seeing on our TV screens is gut-wrenching. Most dinner table conversations in Australia this week will undoubtedly focus on these floods and their horrific consequences.
But while we are talking about the immense loss and what we can do to help, there is another conversation that we should be having: the conversation about climate change. When we talk about climate change, we mostly talk about complicated economic policy, markets and reports. But we need to start talking about what climate change actually looks like and we don't need to look much further than Queensland.
We know that any one single extreme weather event cannot be attributed just to climate change. But we can look at the climate models and predictions, which all say that in a climate-changed world extreme weather events will become more frequent and intense. The La Nina phenomenon, the major cause of the increased rain in south-east Queensland, gets stronger as sea surface temperatures increase. Warmer air also holds more water than colder air, and this water eventually has to come down somewhere. Hence increased rain and floods.
Scientists such as Professor Vicky Pope, head of climate change advice at Britain's Met Office, and Dr Kevin Trenberth from the US National Centre for Atmospheric Research have pointed to the evidence showing a warmer world is a wetter world, due to increased water vapour and energy in the atmosphere leading to more frequent and intense storms.
In The Age this week, Professor David Karoly from University of Melbourne's school of earth sciences was quoted as saying that the wild weather extremes were in keeping with scientists' forecasts of more flooding and more droughts as a result of high temperatures and more evaporation. This is not confined to Australia. Insurance agency Munich Re showed climate change was linked to 21,000 deaths in the first nine months of 2010 double the number of deaths caused by extreme weather in 2009.
Last year was the warmest since measuring began, and the previous decade was also the warmest decade on record. There is also evidence to suggest that climate change is responsible for the extreme cold winters across Europe and the US in the past two years. When I talk about the frustratingly slow pace of climate action in this country, people often tell me that it is going to take a disaster to snap us out of our inertia.
Many people believe that once we really feel the effects of climate change personally, the population will spring to action. Sure, we've seen terrible floods in Pakistan and we know about the plight of low-lying Pacific Islands, but it's going to need to hit us at home before we wake up. If this is true, then these floods should be a deafening wake-up call. As a young person who will inherit the world being created now, I want us to start talking about what needs to happen to prevent this kind of tragedy from occurring again and again. I don't want to live in the kind of world we are previewing right now.
We need fundamental change, and it starts with a price on pollution that rids our economy of polluting energy and creates clean energy instead. It starts with increased funding for healthy, renewable energy. It starts with a serious commitment from all political parties to do what is right and significantly reduce Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. I hope some good can come out of this tragedy, and that we use it to have the conversation about what we are going to do this year to make these solutions a reality.
Ellen Sandell is national director of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition and joint Banskia young environmentalist of the year in 2009.
Survey blows off wind farm syndrome
www.adelaidenow.com.au
27 December 2010
AN Adelaide-based acoustic firm has seemingly debunked the theory that wind farms can make you sick. wind farm giant Pacific Hydro says a survey of infrasound levels at three of its farms, in Adelaide's CBD Energy and various sites in SA and Victoria, proves "wind turbine syndrome" is a myth.
Anti-wind farm campaigners say the syndrome is caused by infrasound and produces symptoms including dizziness, headaches and nausea. The study, conducted by acoustic experts Sonus, found the highest readings of infrasound in the CBD Energy, followed by Cape Bridgewater beach.
Infrasound measurements at Pacific Hydro's Clement's Gap and Cape Bridgewater wind farms were significantly lower. Pacific Hydro's general manager Australia Lane Crockett admitted the study wasn't exhaustive, but said it backed up a Federal Government review that also concluded wind farms didn't make people sick.
He said infrasound emissions at wind farms were "too low to be of concern and could not cause health effects". "There's infrasound all around us and the infrasound produced at wind farms is not even as high as ... you will find standing on the street in the middle of a city or if you're by the beach," he said.
"If infrasound makes you sick then people living by the sea and people who live in cities should be sick." Earlier this month The Advertiser reported on Eyre Peninsula residents who are revolting against an expected 5000 new wind turbines in their region, arguing they are making people sick.
27 December 2010
AN Adelaide-based acoustic firm has seemingly debunked the theory that wind farms can make you sick. wind farm giant Pacific Hydro says a survey of infrasound levels at three of its farms, in Adelaide's CBD Energy and various sites in SA and Victoria, proves "wind turbine syndrome" is a myth.Anti-wind farm campaigners say the syndrome is caused by infrasound and produces symptoms including dizziness, headaches and nausea. The study, conducted by acoustic experts Sonus, found the highest readings of infrasound in the CBD Energy, followed by Cape Bridgewater beach.
Infrasound measurements at Pacific Hydro's Clement's Gap and Cape Bridgewater wind farms were significantly lower. Pacific Hydro's general manager Australia Lane Crockett admitted the study wasn't exhaustive, but said it backed up a Federal Government review that also concluded wind farms didn't make people sick.
He said infrasound emissions at wind farms were "too low to be of concern and could not cause health effects". "There's infrasound all around us and the infrasound produced at wind farms is not even as high as ... you will find standing on the street in the middle of a city or if you're by the beach," he said.
"If infrasound makes you sick then people living by the sea and people who live in cities should be sick." Earlier this month The Advertiser reported on Eyre Peninsula residents who are revolting against an expected 5000 new wind turbines in their region, arguing they are making people sick.
Thursday, 20 January 2011
California solar plant big enough to power 71,000 homes
solar.calfinder.com
10 January 2011
It's being billed as the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in the Northern San Joaquin Valley, and at 1,000 acres it certainly won't have a small footprint. But the power it generates is essential to Southern California Edison (SCE) meeting the state's renewable energy mandate of 33% of electricity supplies (from renewables) by 2020
For California public utilities, of which SCE is one of the biggest, this means buying power from solar and wind developers, and the Santa Nella project, near the San Luis Reservoir, will add 110MWs (MW) to SCE's renewable energy portfolio.
The Santa Nella project, reportedly enough to power about 71,000 homes, will be built by San Jose-based SunPower Corp., which is also planning another 25-MW plant on North McHenry Avenue to help power the Modesto Irrigation District.
The Santa Nella project, whose power SCE will buy on a power purchase agreement, or PPA, is only one of seven solar purchases the utility announced this week. The others, which bring the grand total to 831MW, are in Kern and Los Angeles counties, but a newspaper report using the word "also" confuses the issue considerably, since San Joaquin is close to San Francisco, while Kern and Los Angeles counties are,....well, near Los Angeles.
In spite of being geographically challenged, however, it's clear that SCE, which serves almost 5 million customers, is leading the pack in solar power purchases - a leadership which reflects positively on the utility, which as few as five years ago was perceived by some renewable energy activists as balking at the concept of renewable energy.
That impression has now been cleared up, and as SCE VP Marc Ulrich notes, the past few years have shown impressive stats for solar PV, which is overcoming previous deficiencies to deliver clean, renewable energy that would meet market parity for both price and availability if solar power did not generate premium prices as a way of encouraging greater uptake.
The Santa Nella project is slated for former ranch land about 50 miles due east of Santa Cruz. The land is currently owned by River East Holdings, and SunPower hopes to complete the project in 2014. The only other significant solar array in the area is one by the Dept, of Veterans Affairs slated for the San Joaquin Valley National Cemetery, a 136-kW solar PV array whose funds were awarded last year.
10 January 2011
It's being billed as the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in the Northern San Joaquin Valley, and at 1,000 acres it certainly won't have a small footprint. But the power it generates is essential to Southern California Edison (SCE) meeting the state's renewable energy mandate of 33% of electricity supplies (from renewables) by 2020
For California public utilities, of which SCE is one of the biggest, this means buying power from solar and wind developers, and the Santa Nella project, near the San Luis Reservoir, will add 110MWs (MW) to SCE's renewable energy portfolio.
The Santa Nella project, reportedly enough to power about 71,000 homes, will be built by San Jose-based SunPower Corp., which is also planning another 25-MW plant on North McHenry Avenue to help power the Modesto Irrigation District.
The Santa Nella project, whose power SCE will buy on a power purchase agreement, or PPA, is only one of seven solar purchases the utility announced this week. The others, which bring the grand total to 831MW, are in Kern and Los Angeles counties, but a newspaper report using the word "also" confuses the issue considerably, since San Joaquin is close to San Francisco, while Kern and Los Angeles counties are,....well, near Los Angeles.
In spite of being geographically challenged, however, it's clear that SCE, which serves almost 5 million customers, is leading the pack in solar power purchases - a leadership which reflects positively on the utility, which as few as five years ago was perceived by some renewable energy activists as balking at the concept of renewable energy.
That impression has now been cleared up, and as SCE VP Marc Ulrich notes, the past few years have shown impressive stats for solar PV, which is overcoming previous deficiencies to deliver clean, renewable energy that would meet market parity for both price and availability if solar power did not generate premium prices as a way of encouraging greater uptake.
The Santa Nella project is slated for former ranch land about 50 miles due east of Santa Cruz. The land is currently owned by River East Holdings, and SunPower hopes to complete the project in 2014. The only other significant solar array in the area is one by the Dept, of Veterans Affairs slated for the San Joaquin Valley National Cemetery, a 136-kW solar PV array whose funds were awarded last year.
Storing solar and wind power is a base-load conundrum
solarhbj.com
13 January 2011
Here in Colorado we have an abundance of both sun and wind, so it's no surprise that our state Renewable Portfolio Standard was recently raised to 30% by the year 2020, from the 10% that was enacted in 2004 by constitutional amendment.
So with the excellent solar and wind resources here, why not increase our RPS MetOcean to 50%, 80% or even 100%? The problem is "base load". That's the minimum amount of power that must be available from the utility at all times, and it changes with daily and hourly predictions based on historical data and current trends. Unfortunately, the sun isn't always shining and the wind isn't always blowing, so 24/7/365 energy sources are always required.
Hydroelectric generation is a renewable base-load option in some areas, but Colorado doesn't have much of a hydro resource. Coal- and nuclear-fired power plants are the most common base-load generation sources throughout the United States, because they are cheap to operate and consume inexpensive fuel.
When energy needs spike (such as during a hot summer day when everyone turns on their air conditioners, or on a cold winter night when electric heaters are running full blast) utilities turn to "peaking" generation systems that can be spun up and generating within minutes.
You can't just flip the "on" switch to get a coal or nuclear generator working -- they take hours or even days to fire up from cold to producing energy. Hydroelectric plant operators can quickly increase the water flow and the number of generators operating, but only if there's enough water available at the time. In most areas, natural gas turbines are used to handle peaking loads, but the fuel is too expensive to use for providing constant base-load capacity.
Energy Storage
The answer to using solar or wind for utility base load seems obvious. Just store any excess energy produced and release it when the renewables are not generating, just like in an off-grid home. All you need is a really big battery! Therein lies the rub.
Until recently, America's biggest battery was located in Fairbanks, Alaska. Called "BESS" (Battery Electric Storage System), it was built and installed by the ABB Group for the Golden Valley Electrical Association in 2003 at a cost of $35 million. This half-acre, 1,435-ton battery bank provides 27MWs of base-load backup power for GVEA's 90,000 customers in the event that grid power from Anchorage is interrupted. Unfortunately, BESS can only do that for 15 minutes -- just long enough to get Fairbanks' diesel backup generators spun up and on line.
The town of Presidio, Texas, also had a problem -- frequent blackouts due to the now-undersized 1940s-vintage transmission lines still feeding the town. Extra energy could be purchased from Mexico, but with hours-long blackouts common, changes were made. In April 2010, Electric Transmission Texas put "BOB" (Big Ol' Battery) into commission. BOB weighs over 320 tons, costs about $25 million, and can provide 4MWs of base-load power to Presidio for about eight hours.
Those battery numbers are all pretty depressing when viewed in a cost-vs.-storage capacity perspective. Right now, the only other real storage option on a utility scale is hydroelectric -- excess generation powers giant pumps that move massive amounts of water up a steep hill to a large reservoir, to be released through hydro turbines to generate electricity again when peaking generation is needed. The problem with this method is that the efficiency is dismal, with close to 70% of the incoming energy wasted.
Battery technology is rapidly improving, thanks in part to greater public interest in plug-in electric vehicles. BOB in Texas employs new technology, sodium-sulphur cells, instead of the more traditional nickel-cadmium cells used in BESS. But the cost per kW of electrochemical energy storage remains tremendously high, especially when compared to current methods that store the most amount of energy for the least cost -- a lump of coal, uranium pellets, or a barrel of oil. Are there other options? The future
Certain recent industrial-scale solar power projects employ some energy storage. These solar thermal plants use mirrors to heat molten salts, which are used to flash water into steam and power conventional steam turbine generators. The salts hold heat for quite some time, and the turbines continue to run after the sun sets. While this represents great progress, it's still tricky. The storage part of the system is far more complex and expensive than the generation side, and heat cannot be stored long enough to provide a source of base-load capacity.
Of course hydrogen production, storage and generation have been touted for many years, and these might well be our future for energy storage. The "hydrogen economy" hype of the past few years has died down, though, mostly because hydrogen is notoriously difficult and inefficient to produce, store and use. It can escape through the tiniest gaps, it turns regular steel unsafely brittle and is explosive when mixed in the right proportion with air.
These problems will all be solved -- eventually -- but at great cost and over a long time frame. Compressed air energy storage on a large scale has been discussed too, but suffers similar technology cost and efficiency problems.
Flywheel energy storage has recently received media attention, and with good reason. Spin a heavy wheel up to tens of thousands of RPM in a near vacuum to reduce air friction and float it on magnetic levitation bearings, and you have a formidable energy storage system. But flywheel storage remains a very high-tech and expensive possibility on a utility scale for base-load storage. It's currently used only in specialized applications.
A better mousetrap?
As I sit here 11 miles off the grid and gaze at my (literally) ton of home backup batteries, the thought crosses my mind that I'm looking at 1915-era technology -- and that it's still the most efficient, cost-effective choice for me. And when I float in Pinewood Reservoir with my fly rod each summer, it occurs to me that this massive, inefficient pump, water storage and hydro turbine system is about the most efficient and cost-effective way for the utility to store its energy, too.
It's a good bet that future utility-scale, renewable energy storage systems will use some variation of the methods we have already imagined. Scientists understand the basic laws of physics pretty well these days. The winner won't be the company that invents the most high-tech and efficient energy storage mousetrap -- it will be the company that builds the one that stores the most energy at the lowest cost.
13 January 2011
Here in Colorado we have an abundance of both sun and wind, so it's no surprise that our state Renewable Portfolio Standard was recently raised to 30% by the year 2020, from the 10% that was enacted in 2004 by constitutional amendment.So with the excellent solar and wind resources here, why not increase our RPS MetOcean to 50%, 80% or even 100%? The problem is "base load". That's the minimum amount of power that must be available from the utility at all times, and it changes with daily and hourly predictions based on historical data and current trends. Unfortunately, the sun isn't always shining and the wind isn't always blowing, so 24/7/365 energy sources are always required.
Hydroelectric generation is a renewable base-load option in some areas, but Colorado doesn't have much of a hydro resource. Coal- and nuclear-fired power plants are the most common base-load generation sources throughout the United States, because they are cheap to operate and consume inexpensive fuel.
When energy needs spike (such as during a hot summer day when everyone turns on their air conditioners, or on a cold winter night when electric heaters are running full blast) utilities turn to "peaking" generation systems that can be spun up and generating within minutes.
You can't just flip the "on" switch to get a coal or nuclear generator working -- they take hours or even days to fire up from cold to producing energy. Hydroelectric plant operators can quickly increase the water flow and the number of generators operating, but only if there's enough water available at the time. In most areas, natural gas turbines are used to handle peaking loads, but the fuel is too expensive to use for providing constant base-load capacity.
Energy Storage
The answer to using solar or wind for utility base load seems obvious. Just store any excess energy produced and release it when the renewables are not generating, just like in an off-grid home. All you need is a really big battery! Therein lies the rub.
Until recently, America's biggest battery was located in Fairbanks, Alaska. Called "BESS" (Battery Electric Storage System), it was built and installed by the ABB Group for the Golden Valley Electrical Association in 2003 at a cost of $35 million. This half-acre, 1,435-ton battery bank provides 27MWs of base-load backup power for GVEA's 90,000 customers in the event that grid power from Anchorage is interrupted. Unfortunately, BESS can only do that for 15 minutes -- just long enough to get Fairbanks' diesel backup generators spun up and on line.
The town of Presidio, Texas, also had a problem -- frequent blackouts due to the now-undersized 1940s-vintage transmission lines still feeding the town. Extra energy could be purchased from Mexico, but with hours-long blackouts common, changes were made. In April 2010, Electric Transmission Texas put "BOB" (Big Ol' Battery) into commission. BOB weighs over 320 tons, costs about $25 million, and can provide 4MWs of base-load power to Presidio for about eight hours.
Those battery numbers are all pretty depressing when viewed in a cost-vs.-storage capacity perspective. Right now, the only other real storage option on a utility scale is hydroelectric -- excess generation powers giant pumps that move massive amounts of water up a steep hill to a large reservoir, to be released through hydro turbines to generate electricity again when peaking generation is needed. The problem with this method is that the efficiency is dismal, with close to 70% of the incoming energy wasted.
Battery technology is rapidly improving, thanks in part to greater public interest in plug-in electric vehicles. BOB in Texas employs new technology, sodium-sulphur cells, instead of the more traditional nickel-cadmium cells used in BESS. But the cost per kW of electrochemical energy storage remains tremendously high, especially when compared to current methods that store the most amount of energy for the least cost -- a lump of coal, uranium pellets, or a barrel of oil. Are there other options? The future
Certain recent industrial-scale solar power projects employ some energy storage. These solar thermal plants use mirrors to heat molten salts, which are used to flash water into steam and power conventional steam turbine generators. The salts hold heat for quite some time, and the turbines continue to run after the sun sets. While this represents great progress, it's still tricky. The storage part of the system is far more complex and expensive than the generation side, and heat cannot be stored long enough to provide a source of base-load capacity.
Of course hydrogen production, storage and generation have been touted for many years, and these might well be our future for energy storage. The "hydrogen economy" hype of the past few years has died down, though, mostly because hydrogen is notoriously difficult and inefficient to produce, store and use. It can escape through the tiniest gaps, it turns regular steel unsafely brittle and is explosive when mixed in the right proportion with air.
These problems will all be solved -- eventually -- but at great cost and over a long time frame. Compressed air energy storage on a large scale has been discussed too, but suffers similar technology cost and efficiency problems.
Flywheel energy storage has recently received media attention, and with good reason. Spin a heavy wheel up to tens of thousands of RPM in a near vacuum to reduce air friction and float it on magnetic levitation bearings, and you have a formidable energy storage system. But flywheel storage remains a very high-tech and expensive possibility on a utility scale for base-load storage. It's currently used only in specialized applications.
A better mousetrap?
As I sit here 11 miles off the grid and gaze at my (literally) ton of home backup batteries, the thought crosses my mind that I'm looking at 1915-era technology -- and that it's still the most efficient, cost-effective choice for me. And when I float in Pinewood Reservoir with my fly rod each summer, it occurs to me that this massive, inefficient pump, water storage and hydro turbine system is about the most efficient and cost-effective way for the utility to store its energy, too.
It's a good bet that future utility-scale, renewable energy storage systems will use some variation of the methods we have already imagined. Scientists understand the basic laws of physics pretty well these days. The winner won't be the company that invents the most high-tech and efficient energy storage mousetrap -- it will be the company that builds the one that stores the most energy at the lowest cost.
China first in wind power capacity
www.upi.com
Jan. 13, 2011
China has surpassed the United States as the country with the largest wind power installation in the world, China's state-run news agency Xinhua reports. China installed 16GWs of wind power capacity in 2010, a 62% increase from the previous year, said the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association, Xinhua reports.
That brings the country's total installed capacity to 41.8GWs, giving China -- the world's top emitter of greenhouse gases -- the potential to replace 31.3 million tons of coal, slashing emissions of more than 90 million tons of CO₂, Xinhua reports.
The United States, by contrast, installed about 5GWs of new wind-power capacity in 2010, bringing its total installed capacity to 40.2GWs, says the Global Wind Energy Council. Yet China's grid-connected capacity lags behind installed capacity by more than 30%, CREIA says, which is considerably higher than the 10% gap in advanced countries and affects wind power efficiency.
To translate the country's wind power installations into massive utilization, Greenpeace said the government must introduce effective incentive policies and completely overhaul the national grid. "This shortfall in generation tells us that China still has a long way to go to reach its full potential in wind and other renewable energy", said Yang Ailun of Greenpeace East Asia in a news release.
"Despite a renewable energy policy requiring grid companies to purchase all available electricity generated by wind farms, wind power access to the grid is impeded by an unstable, outdated grid infrastructure", he said. Other problems, Yang said, include a lack of incentives and penalties for grid companies and slow progress in additional wind power technologies.
An Ernst & Young report released in November indicated China, which has surpassed the United States as the world's biggest consumer of energy, is the leader in the global renewable energy market. In the second quarter of 2010, the report said, China invested around $10 billion in wind power, about half of the global total of $20.5 billion.
If the Chinese Cabinet approves a proposed $758 billion energy industrial development plan, $227 billion of investment would flow into China's wind power sector, Xinhua reports. Half of the wind turbines expected to come online this year around the world will have been manufactured in China. Analysts say Chinese President Hu Jintao's scheduled visit to Washington to meet with US President Barack Obama next week is likely to push the issue of China's wind power subsidies into the spotlight.
Jan. 13, 2011
China has surpassed the United States as the country with the largest wind power installation in the world, China's state-run news agency Xinhua reports. China installed 16GWs of wind power capacity in 2010, a 62% increase from the previous year, said the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association, Xinhua reports.
That brings the country's total installed capacity to 41.8GWs, giving China -- the world's top emitter of greenhouse gases -- the potential to replace 31.3 million tons of coal, slashing emissions of more than 90 million tons of CO₂, Xinhua reports.
The United States, by contrast, installed about 5GWs of new wind-power capacity in 2010, bringing its total installed capacity to 40.2GWs, says the Global Wind Energy Council. Yet China's grid-connected capacity lags behind installed capacity by more than 30%, CREIA says, which is considerably higher than the 10% gap in advanced countries and affects wind power efficiency.
To translate the country's wind power installations into massive utilization, Greenpeace said the government must introduce effective incentive policies and completely overhaul the national grid. "This shortfall in generation tells us that China still has a long way to go to reach its full potential in wind and other renewable energy", said Yang Ailun of Greenpeace East Asia in a news release.
"Despite a renewable energy policy requiring grid companies to purchase all available electricity generated by wind farms, wind power access to the grid is impeded by an unstable, outdated grid infrastructure", he said. Other problems, Yang said, include a lack of incentives and penalties for grid companies and slow progress in additional wind power technologies.
An Ernst & Young report released in November indicated China, which has surpassed the United States as the world's biggest consumer of energy, is the leader in the global renewable energy market. In the second quarter of 2010, the report said, China invested around $10 billion in wind power, about half of the global total of $20.5 billion.
If the Chinese Cabinet approves a proposed $758 billion energy industrial development plan, $227 billion of investment would flow into China's wind power sector, Xinhua reports. Half of the wind turbines expected to come online this year around the world will have been manufactured in China. Analysts say Chinese President Hu Jintao's scheduled visit to Washington to meet with US President Barack Obama next week is likely to push the issue of China's wind power subsidies into the spotlight.
Tuesday, 18 January 2011
Multiquip introduces first hydrogen fuel cell powered light tower
www.forconstructionpros.com
1 December 2011
Las Vegas - Multiquip introduces the first light tower powered by a hydrogen fuel-cell, part of a planned series of hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered products. The light tower is environmentally friendly, fuel efficient and virtually pollution free, allowing it to be operated indoors. It can be operated for up to 50 hours at a noise level of 43 dBs at 23 feet. The light tower uses plasma light technology, which is filament-free, producing a clean, natural light. The plasma light bulb produces 22,000 lumens with extremely high efficiency, consuming only 255 watts with a life expectancy of up to 50,000 hours.
"The implications of the product's technology beyond lighting are tremendous", said Torsten Erbel, vice president product management, engineering and customer support for Multiquip. "It's reliable due to the lack of moving parts; durable; does not contaminate due to fuel spills; there is very low maintenance; and it is user friendly, using an automotive-style fuel nozzle".
Using a process discovered more than 150 years ago, fuel-cells began supplying electric power for spacecraft in the 1960s and were pursued for commercial use in the 1970s. fuel-cells are an alternative to the internal combustion engine with an energy efficiency of more than 50%. Internal combustion engines, on average, convert only 20% of fuel BTU to the desired work.
Prototypes of the light tower have been and will be used by the California Department of Transportation, film and entertainment companies at high profile media events and by NASA during the upcoming shuttle launch. The Multiquip hydrogen-powered light tower will be on display at World of Concrete in Las Vegas, January 18-21, 2011, in booth # C4813. Product will be available in Q2 2011. Pricing for the units will be provided by quote only, due to the availability of energy and tax credits, which vary from state-to-state, as well as multiple configuration options.
Founded in 1973, Multiquip is one of the largest, most diversified manufacturers and suppliers of products and solutions for the construction, telecom, government, non-commercial, entertainment, and oil and gas exploration markets. Multiquip's product portfolio encompasses light to medium construction equipment, power generators and lighting. Servicing customers worldwide, Multiquip distributes its products in more than 70 countries through thousands of authorized distribution partners.
For more information, visit http://www.multiquip.com/.
1 December 2011
Las Vegas - Multiquip introduces the first light tower powered by a hydrogen fuel-cell, part of a planned series of hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered products. The light tower is environmentally friendly, fuel efficient and virtually pollution free, allowing it to be operated indoors. It can be operated for up to 50 hours at a noise level of 43 dBs at 23 feet. The light tower uses plasma light technology, which is filament-free, producing a clean, natural light. The plasma light bulb produces 22,000 lumens with extremely high efficiency, consuming only 255 watts with a life expectancy of up to 50,000 hours.
"The implications of the product's technology beyond lighting are tremendous", said Torsten Erbel, vice president product management, engineering and customer support for Multiquip. "It's reliable due to the lack of moving parts; durable; does not contaminate due to fuel spills; there is very low maintenance; and it is user friendly, using an automotive-style fuel nozzle".
Using a process discovered more than 150 years ago, fuel-cells began supplying electric power for spacecraft in the 1960s and were pursued for commercial use in the 1970s. fuel-cells are an alternative to the internal combustion engine with an energy efficiency of more than 50%. Internal combustion engines, on average, convert only 20% of fuel BTU to the desired work.
Prototypes of the light tower have been and will be used by the California Department of Transportation, film and entertainment companies at high profile media events and by NASA during the upcoming shuttle launch. The Multiquip hydrogen-powered light tower will be on display at World of Concrete in Las Vegas, January 18-21, 2011, in booth # C4813. Product will be available in Q2 2011. Pricing for the units will be provided by quote only, due to the availability of energy and tax credits, which vary from state-to-state, as well as multiple configuration options.
Founded in 1973, Multiquip is one of the largest, most diversified manufacturers and suppliers of products and solutions for the construction, telecom, government, non-commercial, entertainment, and oil and gas exploration markets. Multiquip's product portfolio encompasses light to medium construction equipment, power generators and lighting. Servicing customers worldwide, Multiquip distributes its products in more than 70 countries through thousands of authorized distribution partners.
For more information, visit http://www.multiquip.com/.
Nuclear energy to take place in Malaysia soon
www.mmail.com.my
13 January 2011
The government is confident that Malaysians will eventually buy into nuclear power, said Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui today. Chin said through proper process of disseminating information and by practising transparency, the rakyat will understand why the country may have to rely on nuclear technology in the future for its energy needs.
"If we (the government) are transparent, and if information on the benefits of nuclear power is disseminated well, I believe the rakyat will understand the need for nuclear power", said Chin at a Press conference this morning. "Only yesterday, I received a delegation from Japan. They offered us their assistance and expertise on nuclear power. "In Japan and South Korea, nuclear technology is used. But their people don't feel worried. I'm convinced if we explain well to the Malaysian public, they will understand", he said.
Last Tuesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced the formation of the Malaysian Nuclear Development Corporation to study the feasibilities of implementing nuclear technology. Chin said although the corporation is under the purview of the Prime Minister's Department, his ministry is involved in assisting the corporation, especially in the aspects of building public confidence. "We will do whatever we can to assist the corporation".
Chin said at this point, the ministry have only "scratched the surface" in building public confidence. "We've only just begun", he said. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk Seri Idris Jala, had said last Tuesday that the formation of the nuclear corporation was important to prepare for an alternative fuel source for the country in the future - especially with the imminent decline in fossil fuels.
Chin this morning officiated the contract signing ceremony of raw water channel project from Pahang to Selangor. The launch kicks-off works on the Lot 1-3B pipe that will be used to channel raw water from Semantan river to Selangor. Meanwhile, Chin told reporters that Selangor Menteri Besar, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, had already promised to approve the Langat 2 water treatment plant project.
"He gave his promise in December and by the end of this month, we expect to receive his approval in black and white", said Chin. "I appreciate and thank the MB for his approval. Once this is signed, the last hurdle for the Langat 2 project will be removed".
The Langat 2 water treatment plant is part of the Pahang-Selangor Interstate Water Transfer Project, which is meant to ease the water shortage problem in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur by transporting 1,890 million litres of raw water from Pahang daily. Chin said if the Langat 2 project is not completed by 2014, Selangor will suffer water shortage. The transfer of raw water from Sungai Semantan in Pahang is scheduled for early 2014. The project is expected to supply raw water daily via a 44.6-km tunnel through the Main Range to Selangor.
13 January 2011
The government is confident that Malaysians will eventually buy into nuclear power, said Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui today. Chin said through proper process of disseminating information and by practising transparency, the rakyat will understand why the country may have to rely on nuclear technology in the future for its energy needs.
"If we (the government) are transparent, and if information on the benefits of nuclear power is disseminated well, I believe the rakyat will understand the need for nuclear power", said Chin at a Press conference this morning. "Only yesterday, I received a delegation from Japan. They offered us their assistance and expertise on nuclear power. "In Japan and South Korea, nuclear technology is used. But their people don't feel worried. I'm convinced if we explain well to the Malaysian public, they will understand", he said.
Last Tuesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced the formation of the Malaysian Nuclear Development Corporation to study the feasibilities of implementing nuclear technology. Chin said although the corporation is under the purview of the Prime Minister's Department, his ministry is involved in assisting the corporation, especially in the aspects of building public confidence. "We will do whatever we can to assist the corporation".
Chin said at this point, the ministry have only "scratched the surface" in building public confidence. "We've only just begun", he said. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk Seri Idris Jala, had said last Tuesday that the formation of the nuclear corporation was important to prepare for an alternative fuel source for the country in the future - especially with the imminent decline in fossil fuels.
Chin this morning officiated the contract signing ceremony of raw water channel project from Pahang to Selangor. The launch kicks-off works on the Lot 1-3B pipe that will be used to channel raw water from Semantan river to Selangor. Meanwhile, Chin told reporters that Selangor Menteri Besar, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, had already promised to approve the Langat 2 water treatment plant project.
"He gave his promise in December and by the end of this month, we expect to receive his approval in black and white", said Chin. "I appreciate and thank the MB for his approval. Once this is signed, the last hurdle for the Langat 2 project will be removed".
The Langat 2 water treatment plant is part of the Pahang-Selangor Interstate Water Transfer Project, which is meant to ease the water shortage problem in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur by transporting 1,890 million litres of raw water from Pahang daily. Chin said if the Langat 2 project is not completed by 2014, Selangor will suffer water shortage. The transfer of raw water from Sungai Semantan in Pahang is scheduled for early 2014. The project is expected to supply raw water daily via a 44.6-km tunnel through the Main Range to Selangor.
Sunday, 16 January 2011
Gamesa wins contract to build Syria’s first wind energy plant
www.evwind.es
14 January 2011
The wind farm will be located southwest of the central city of Homs. Vestas, the world's largest maker of wind turbines, will develop a wind power project with generation capacity of 50 to 100MW. Gamesa, one of the world's leading companies in the design, manufacture and maintenance of wind turbines and a top wind farm developer.
Syria awarded Gamesa a contract to build the country's first wind power plant and Germany's Sunset Energietechnik GmbH another for a solar power plant The National Energy Research Center selected Gamesa out of five bidders to build a 60-million euro wind farm for power generation that will have a capacity of 50MWs. The wind farm will be located southwest of the central city of Homs.
Vestas, the world's largest maker of wind turbines, will develop a wind power project with generation capacity of 50 to 100MW south of Damascus. The country's demand for power stood at 44.5 billion kWs in 2009, up 5.9% from the previous year, according to figures from the state-run Public Establishment for Electrical Generation and Transfer. Power supply reached 43.3 billion kWs last year, an increase of 5.6% from 2008.
14 January 2011
The wind farm will be located southwest of the central city of Homs. Vestas, the world's largest maker of wind turbines, will develop a wind power project with generation capacity of 50 to 100MW. Gamesa, one of the world's leading companies in the design, manufacture and maintenance of wind turbines and a top wind farm developer.
Syria awarded Gamesa a contract to build the country's first wind power plant and Germany's Sunset Energietechnik GmbH another for a solar power plant The National Energy Research Center selected Gamesa out of five bidders to build a 60-million euro wind farm for power generation that will have a capacity of 50MWs. The wind farm will be located southwest of the central city of Homs.
Vestas, the world's largest maker of wind turbines, will develop a wind power project with generation capacity of 50 to 100MW south of Damascus. The country's demand for power stood at 44.5 billion kWs in 2009, up 5.9% from the previous year, according to figures from the state-run Public Establishment for Electrical Generation and Transfer. Power supply reached 43.3 billion kWs last year, an increase of 5.6% from 2008.
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