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Martifer Solar completes a utility scale solar PV plant cluster |
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Thursday, 23 May 2013 |
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Martifer Solar, a subsidiary of Martifer SGPS, developed a cluster of utility scale photovoltaic plants totaling 28.1 MWp in the United Kingdom. This is one of the largest clusters of utility scale solar PV plants ever built simultaneously in the country to date. As a testament to the superb engineering skills and experience of Martifer Solar, the construction of this cluster was completed in 15 weeks. These utility scale solar PV plants were constructed in Cornwall, Hampshire, Devon and Wiltshire, regions which boast the highest solar radiation levels in the country.
Martifer Solar has entered into an agreement with the UK’s largest solar energy generator, Lightsource Renewable Energy, who has purchased all five projects, already commissioned. The entire cluster of 28.1 MWp will be added to the Lightsource asset management portfolio in the UK whilst Martifer Solar will be retained under an operations and maintenance contract to ensure all five plants perform at optimal generation levels.
“With these projects, Martifer Solar assumes, in a very expressive way, a commitment to the solar and renewables industry in the UK. Following a first stage in which we completed the projects’ development/licensing, we are very proud with the conclusion of another challenging period, for the construction and commissioning of the plants. Again, our Company distinguishes itself in 2013, where we have even more ambitious goals, which will place ourselves as one of the main companies in the sector,” says João Cunha, Country Manager of Martifer Solar in the UK.
Nick Boyle, CEO of Lightsource Renewable Energy says, “We are delighted to be working with Martifer Solar on this pioneering project. The entire cluster was completed on time, fitting in line nicely with the ROC (Renewable Obligation Certificate) changes from April onwards.”
The investor’s CEO adds that, “It has been made very clear in recent times that solar is a key component in the UK’s drive towards its renewable energy targets. We hope solar subsidies will continue at sensible levels to assist in making solar competitive with other energy sources and our goal of reaching grid parity within a predicted six years. This would also help to build a stable and profitable industry that would no longer need to rely on government incentives by 2017. Renewable energy sources and schemes, such as this undertaken by Martifer Solar, need to become an integral part of our domestic power output if we are to achieve the Government’s target of 15% of the UK’s electricity being generated from renewable sources by 2020.”
With an installed capacity between 4.4 and 6.63 MWp, these plants, totaling more than 114,000 modules installed in ground mounted fixed structures, were installed in a total area of 75 hectares. The combined total of ‘green’ energy that will be produced by the entire cluster is estimated to be within the range of 27.74 GWh/year. This is sufficient ‘green’ energy to power over 18,000 inhabitants and save over 12,500 ton of CO2 annually.
“This project in the UK is the ultimate demonstration of Martifer Solar’s capability of adaptation to international markets. This is a key feature of our DNA, positioning Martifer Solar on the forefront of solar industry with 5-year consecutive positive results. What strengthens our credibility and solidness in a sector that faces constant changes,” says Henrique Rodrigues, CEO of Martifer Solar.
Martifer Solar has been present in the UK since February 2011. Recently, solar energy was elected as a strategic energy in the UK Renewables Roadmap, which target is to produce, until 2020, 15% of the energy mix from renewable sources. In that path, Mr. Gregory Barker, the UK’s Energy and Climate Change Minister said, at the Solar Roadshow in February 2013, that the country was approaching the threshold of 2GW for nationwide solar energy generation.
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Leading European utility adopts Ventyx-powered smart grid control center in Sweden |
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Thursday, 23 May 2013 |
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Ventyx, an ABB company, today announced that world-leading energy service provider E.ON has selected a comprehensive set of Ventyx software solutions to underpin its new smart grid control center in Sweden. E.ON is one of the world’s largest investor-owned power and gas companies, serving more than 26 million customers in over 30 countries.
Representing the next step in a strategic research and development initiative between E.ON and ABB to define next-generation smart grid solutions, the new control center will provide a best-practices model for global utilities to ensure greater operational efficiency in the face of increasingly complex power networks worldwide.
“Ultimately, smart grid is about optimizing power delivery to ensure customer satisfaction,” said Peter Sigenstam, vice president and head of E.ON Innovation Centre Distribution. “To support this goal, the next generation of smart grid control centers will need to handle unprecedented operational demands. We are pleased to partner with Ventyx, whose proven software solutions are essential to the success of our smart grid initiative.”
Building upon its existing deployment of Ventyx’s SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) system, following IT solutions from the Ventyx portfolio will be implemented, developed and tested: business analytics, network optimization, load forecasting, demand response and distributed resource management. Combining information (IT) and operational technologies (OT) in E.ON’s smart grid control center will deliver a higher degree of grid automation, sensing and visibility; achieve greater control of distributed generation; and further support regulatory compliance.
“The control center model being implemented at E.ON’s smart grid control center represents a significant advance in smart grid innovation. We believe it will serve as a guide for utilities around the world as they move to stay on top of increasing variations in generation and consumption,” said Kennet Wilhelmsson, senior vice president, Ventyx. “We’re pleased to expand our existing partnership with E.ON, and further advance this exciting smart grid initiative. Ventyx is the only software vendor that can deliver the breadth and depth of IT and OT solutions required to solve some of our customers’ biggest challenges.”
E.ON is developing its new smart grid control center for a variety of advanced use cases, including:
• Greater awareness of the state of the network through improved forecasting using real-time and near-real time operational data, weather data and neural network algorithms;
• Optimized reactive power flow and voltages helped by more accurate forecasts of load, and distributed resources, combined with network switching analytics
• More accurate monitoring and control of power flows between the transmission and distribution systems through load control/demand response; and
• Greater prediction of congestion caused by production from renewable generation, mainly wind farms, based on weather forecasts.
The new smart grid control center will be installed in Malmo, Sweden, and is anticipated to be operational in early 2014 for test and development purposes.
Ventyx, an ABB company, is a world-leading supplier of Industrial Enterprise Software for essential industries such as energy, mining and public infrastructure. Ventyx solutions bridge the gap between information technologies (IT) and operational technologies (OT), enabling clients to make faster, better-informed decisions in both daily operations and long-term planning strategies. Some of the world’s largest organizations rely on Ventyx solutions to minimize risk, enhance operational and financial performance, and execute the right strategies for the future. For more details, see www.ventyx.com.
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Iberdrola Engineering Awarded Contract To Build CCGT Plant |
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Thursday, 23 May 2013 |
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IBERDROLA ENGINEERING has been awarded the contract to complete turnkey construction of a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plant in Berlin-Lichterfelde, Germany after winning an international tender launched by Swedish energy company Vattenfall.
The new plant will have total electrical capacity of 300 megawatts (MW) and a thermal capacity of nearly 230 MW, supplying the South western districts of Berlin with electricity and district heating. Construction work is expected to begin in February 2014, while start-up is scheduled for December 2016.
IBERDROLA Group subsidiary will be responsible for the project’s entire development, including its design, engineering, procurement, construction, assembly and commissioning. The plant will be built in the Southwest of Berlin on the Lichterfelde site and replace a thermal facility that is operating there since 1974.
The bid submitted by IBERDROLA ENGINEERING was selected by Vattenfall which will own and operate the plant, after a tendering process that involved other companies.
The construction of a new combined cycle gas turbine plant is an important part of a climate protection agreement, signed by the Senate of Berlin and Vattenfall. In the agreement Vattenfall commits itself to halve its CO2 emissions in Berlin until 2020 (according to 1990).
The award of this contract underlines IBERDROLA ENGINEERING’s leading position in power generation projects in Germany, one the world’s most demanding markets. In recent years, IBERDROLA ENGINEERING has built combined cycle gas turbine power plants in different countries such as Spain, Algeria, Qatar and Mexico.
Present in over 30 countries, IBERDROLA ENGINEERING is a world leading energy engineering company that builds “turnkey” projects in the generation, nuclear, networks and renewables sectors, both for other IBERDROLA GROUP companies as well as for third parties.
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Fuel Cell Systems to develop ammonia-fed fuel cell following approval of £1.5m EU grant |
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Thursday, 23 May 2013 |
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Fuel Cell Systems (FCS), a subsidiary of UPS Systems PLC, is now part of a consortium led by AFC Energy to develop ammonia-fed, alkaline fuel cell systems.
The ‘Alkammonia’ project will be funded by the EU Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH-JU) after approval of a £1.53m (€1.96m) grant. The project is expected to commence this month.
As a major player in the project consortium, FCS and other partners will be given three years of financial support to help develop the technology.
The aim of the project will be to test the efficiency of the fuel cells in providing power in remote areas. Fuel cell systems are suitable for remote stationary power applications, which have a high cost of downtime. Applications for the ammonia-fed fuel cells could include providing power for remote telecommunication base stations, which are traditionally powered by diesel generators. The test results will initially be shared with the mobile telecommunications industry.
Low-carbon emissions and cost effectiveness are some of the many benefits of ammonia-fed alkaline fuel cells. As ammonia is one of the most widely produced chemicals in the world, it’s expected that even the most rural and remote areas could be provided with power.
Tom Sperrey, managing director of FCS said: "This is an exciting project that we have been asked to participate in. The use of ammonia in this way is a first for the fuel cell industry. As the UK’s leading integrator and supplier of fuel cell installations and systems, we are continually seeking to develop innovative fuel cell technologies. We particularly wanted to be part of this project because of its sustainability and zero emissions credentials. Fuel cells have the potential to bring clean power globally and we’re committed to focussing our skillset on making that happen.”
The voltage of a fuel cell can vary significantly depending on the load applied to it. FCS is designing and developing power-conditioning equipment to regulate the ammonia-fed fuel cell’s output to 48 volts. FCS will test its power-conditioning design using a conventional proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell and a resistive load bank rated at 6kW.
FCS will ensure that components such as the ammonia fuel system, alkaline fuel cell and the power conditioning system are integrated into a safe, compact and easily operable and maintainable power generation system.
Martin Thomas, senior project engineer for AFC Energy, said:
“We are pleased to be working alongside our colleagues in the rest of the industry as part of this exciting partnership. This is a great opportunity to test our fuel cell technology with a different scale and feedstock, which will help fuel cells gain additional momentum in the power industry.”
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