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Ingeteam is boosting its international growth with the opening of a new branch in the United Arab Emirates. With this expansion, the company has consolidated its global position with its presence in 23 countries. The branch, based in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, is initially directed at the solar PV and energy storage business, due to the good positioning of Ingeteam in the sector.

The United Arab Emirates currently boasts the world’s largest solar PV plant with a single connection point, with an installed power of 1,177.36 MW. This plant, named Noor Abu Dhabi, is located in the town of Sweihan and is equipped with Ingeteam PV inverters and Inverter Stations, supplied as a centralized turnkey solution for medium voltage power conversion.

Ingeteam has also supplied its power conversion system (PCS) to this country for a pilot project in Dubai, representing the first energy storage system in the United Arab Emirates to be coupled to a large-scale PV plant. This battery system is part of the largest solar complex in the world: the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park.

Ingeteam’s branch already has a sales department and after-sales service that covers the entire Middle East as well as North Africa. With this opening, Ingeteam is consolidating its dominant position as a supplier of power converters and provider of operation and maintenance services for renewable energy generation plants in the MENA area, where the company has already supplied more than 1,800 MW.

Source: Ingeteam

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i-DE, Iberdrola’s electricity distribution arm, has inaugurated the first electrical energy storage system with lithium-ion batteries for distribution networks in Spain. The project, which is the first in the country, is located in the Murcian municipal district of Caravaca de la Cruz and will improve the quality of the energy supply in the surrounding area, as well as the use of solar energy generated in the area.

The storage system, with a capacity of 3 MWh, can operate in isolation and, in the event of an interruption in supply, will be able provide up to five hours of electricity to the main districts in the surrounding area: Cañada de la Cruz, Inazares, Moralejo, Barranda, El Moral and Los Royos.

Adverse climate and rural environment

The special circumstances in the rural environment around Caravaca de la Cruz have determined the choice of this enclave for this innovative solution.

In recent years, the area has been recording very adverse weather conditions that cause incidents in the distribution network. Also, it is an area consisting of various small and scattered centres of consumption, so a fault can leave several villages without service. To this is added the long distances that have to be covered to reach the source of the problem, which further complicates the resolution of incidents.

The traditional solution would have been to construct 22 km of overhead power lines, crossing environmental protection areas. This is the reason why an innovative solution was chosen, based on energy storage installed at a point where overhead cables intersect, allowing several areas to be served with a single battery.

The project has shown that batteries can improve the continuity of supply in contingency situations, as well as the use of photovoltaic plants connected to the impacted grid, including in isolation using only renewable energy. The batteries, in short, constitute a complement to the conventional local operation.

Smart storage system

There are several large photovoltaic plants in Caravaca de la Cruz that upload electricity to the grid during the hours with the most intense sunlight. A battery with these characteristics is able to adjust the voltage to the appropriate values and be ready to intervene as a second source of power supply in the event of a power failure.

To achieve this, it has a smart storage system that is able to assess the situation and decide what part of the network will remain in operation from the battery, taking into account actual consumption at that time, the generation capacity of photovoltaic plants nearby and the state of charge of the battery, among other aspects.

The system estimates both the consumption and the potential renewable generation power of the solar plants in the area at that time and for the following hours. It can, thus, take advantage of local power generation and, in addition, absorb excess energy, in case of excess production.

The combination of this battery and the electricity produced by the photovoltaic plants in the area will significantly reduce the interruption times in the power supply during an emergency.
Storage and grids, the keys to the energy model of the future

Storage systems are key to addressing the challenges of the energy transition and are destined to become an essential element in the electrical system of the future. This is because they allow the quality of the electricity supply to be improved, ensuring the stability and reliability of the network and integrating and harnessing the energy generated by renewable sources.

Iberdrola is a leader in energy storage, with an installed pumping technology capacity of 4,400 MW, which is currently the most efficient method. It is also undertaking numerous initiatives that combine the use of batteries with renewable energy – wind and photovoltaic – projects, as well as those oriented towards improving the quality of the supply by its grids, as is the case with the installation in Caravaca de La Cruz.

Electricity distribution networks are the circulatory system in the new energy model and an essential platform in the transition toward a decarbonised economy based on competitive, renewable energy. Transforming the grids into smart infrastructure responds to the challenges of an electrified economy, with greater integration of renewables, sustainable mobility, smart cities and consumption models and distributed generation.

In this context, i-DE has allocated 2 billion euros to digitising its electricity networks, with the installation of almost 11 million digital meters, together with the infrastructure that supports them, and the adaptation of around 90,000 transformer centres in Spain, to which it has incorporated remote management, supervision and automation capabilities. It is also currently working on the digitalisation of the low voltage network and is investing in control and operation systems.

I-DE, smart electricity grids

The activities of i-DE the new name for Iberdrola’s electricity distribution arm – include the planning, construction and maintenance of power lines, substations, transformer centres and other infrastructure, as well as operating the system in a way that efficiently distributes energy among the various agents that produce and consume it.

Iberdrola operates a distribution system consisting of 270,000 km of power lines in Spain and is present in 10 Autonomous Regions serving a population of 17 million. In 2018, Iberdrola’s distribution business invested almost €500 m in Spain in projects designed to improve its procedures and customer service channels; complete the roll-out of nearly 11 million smart meters and the supervision and automation of the grid.

Iberdrola’s network business is a significant driver of the Spanish economy, generating more than 10,000 jobs in total (both direct and through its suppliers). In 2018, the company made purchases to the value of €500 m from 2,000 local companies.

Source: Iberdrola

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Foundation of a wind turbine

GES, an integral supplier of engineering, construction and maintenance for renewable energy projects (wind, solar and hydroelectric) will build the Valdejalón wind portfolio consisting of 5 wind farms in Aragón, Spain. Once completed, the wind farms will have a total installed capacity of 231 MW. Construction is expected to be finalized in 2020 second quarter.

The project is divided into two phases: Valdejalón East which includes the wind farms El Cabezo (49 MW) and Portillo II Phase I (45.6 MW) and Phase II (38 MW), and Valdejalón West composed of Virgen de Rodanas I (49.4 MW) and Virgen de Rodanas II (49.4 MW).

The Valdejalón portfolio is fully owned by the Danish fund manager Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners P/S (CIP) through its fund Copenhagen Infrastructure III K/S (CI-III). CIP is a fund management company focused on energy infrastructure including offshore wind, onshore wind, solar PV, biomass and energy-from-waste, transmission and distribution, and other energy assets like reserve capacity and storage. The company operates in Europe, North America and Southeast Asia.

GES is responsible for the engineering, procurement and construction of the project. The company is already working in the detail engineering, and will be in charge of the complete BOP (Balance of Plant), both the civil work, with more than 60 km of roads and 61 foundations and platforms for the 85 m wind turbines to be installed in the park; and the electrical work, including the underground medium voltage network with more than 55 km of trenches and the 132 kV evacuation line of almost another 50 km, which will connect the two new substations to an existing interconnection substation.

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Energy Storage Solutions (E22) and Alencon Systems have partnered to offer a unique, turnkey DC-coupled Solar + Storage solution. The integrated solution, offered by E22, is called the DC Power Optimiser™. Both companies will officially launch the solution at SPI 2019.

The DC Power Optimiser™ consists of a DC to DC bidirectional converter, Alencon’s Bi-Directional Optimizer for Storage Systems – the BOSS™, connected to a battery, packaged in a single containerized package. This container includes control and communication equipment, a battery management system, and cooling and safety systems as well as Alencon’s BOSS. The unit is compliant with UL1741 and designed to UL9540A. These distributed systems can connect with string inverters sized up to 150 kW and 1,500 VDC. The system is controlled via E22’s ETER software, a proprietary energy management and system control software platform developed by E22.

E22’s DC Power Optimiser offers a truly turnkey DC-coupled solar + storage solution which provides users a number of powerful benefits over traditional AC coupled systems while eliminating the system configuration challenges and deployment limitations of other DC-coupled solutions. The DC Power Optimiser offers greater round-trip efficiency, while firming intermittent solar output to both extend solar production and turn solar into a truly dispatchable energy resource.

Including Alencon’s BOSS galvanically isolated, rack-level DC-DC converter in this container provides a myriad of benefits to project owners. The DC Power Optimiser can be easily connected to the grid via a string inverter, the first DC-coupled system to offer such a feature. This will allow PV plant owners to easily integrate storage into existing PV plants using string inverters. The inclusion of the BOSS also allows for superior system safety and maximum battery rack utilization by isolating each battery rack. By controlling the charge of the system at the rack level, the BOSS assures maximum utilization of each battery rack while at the same time improving system safety by minimizing the risk of fault currents and other safety risks. The battery rack level charge approach provided by the BOSS also greatly simplifies battery rack augmentation that will invariably need to occur over the life of a Solar + Storage project.

Each DC Power Optimiser can be sized to include up to 240 kWh of energy storage. Based on the C-Rate chosen, the duration of discharge of the battery is between two to four hours. The DC Power Optimiser contains all cooling, control, safety and isolation in the same unit. E22’s proprietary ETER software controls the interfaces with PV inverters to manage MPPT while providing control over the rest of the system. E22’s ETER software also communicates with the battery management system. For new deployments, the PV Inverter may be mounted on or next to each DC Power Optimiser minimizing additional hardware.

For larger PV installations, the DC Power Optimiser can be housed in a central container configuration to reduce parts count and simplify O&M.

Source: Energy Storage Solutions (E22)

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Australia’s growing battery storage industry has prompted the update of battery rules. From June to July Growatt will join a number of senior industry experts in New Battery Rules Training Workshops held by Australia’s SEC (Smart Energy Council) and present its smart solar storage solutions to the audience. PV and battery installers, designers, electricians and sales representatives are coming together for training on battery installations, system configurations and storage solutions.

Growatt provides a wide range of solar storage solutions for customers. Growatt SPH single-phase and three-phase hybrid inverters can work at both on-grid and off-grid modes, and they are also compatible with a variety of lithium batteries. For existing solar system, owner can choose to retrofit the system with Growatt SPA single-phase or three-phase inverter and turn it into energy storage system.

Yet, that’s not all. At the event in Melbourne on June 27, Growatt product manager Rex Wang introduced a neat storage ready inverter, TL-XH. The inverter works with low voltage battery and is perfect for home owners who are looking to convert their rooftop PV systems into solar storage systems in the future. What makes it more special is its smart storage management system. With the system, Growatt can gather real-time battery data, including cycle number, cell information, voltage and current of each battery cell. Customers can read the electricity generation, battery status, power consumption on Growatt OSS(Online Smart Service) platform. This data can also help service engineers quickly analyze and diagnose the system and locate faulty part in case of a system failure.

Furthermore, Growatt has been developing and testing its Smart Home Energy Management System that will maximize energy production and optimize power consumption of your solar storage system according to your system location, power consumption habits, etc. In addition, grid operators can access Growatt storage system and integrate the system into the “Micro Grid” to enhance grid stability.

For better customer experience, Growatt offers battery, inverter and accessories as a package. Customers can avoid the hassle reaching out to both inverter and battery manufacturers in case there’re system issues. With extraordinary products and services Growatt has become the World Top 3 Single-Phase PV Inverter Supplier by 2018 according to IHS Markit. Globally, Growatt shipped a total capacity of more than 3.3 GW inverters in 2018 and the number is expected to reach 4 GW this year.

Source: Growatt

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Sistema de conversión de potencia de Ingeteam para un proyecto piloto en Dubái, el primer sistema de almacenamiento de energía en EAU acoplado a una planta fotovoltaica a gran escala / Ingeteam's power conversion system (PCS) for a pilot project in Dubai, the first energy storage system paired with a PV plant at a grid-scale level in the UAE. Foto cortesía de /Photo courtesy of: Ingeteam

In a recently published report, Wood Mackenzie projects solar-plus-storage LCOE for both utility-scale and distributed commercial & industrial (C&I) segments to decline considerably over the next five years. As grid resiliency and renewables intermittency continue to be a challenge in Asia Pacific’s power markets, solar-plus-storage could address these issues particularly as solar and battery costs continue to decline.

According to Wood Mackenzie, unsubsidised utility-scale LCOE for a 4-hour lithium-ion solar-plus-storage will command a cost premium between 48% and 123% over solar LCOE in 2019. This will reduce to between 39% and 121% in 2023. By then, solar-plus-storage costs would already be competitive against gas peakers in all the National Electricity Market (NEM) states of Australia. The country’s utility-scale solar-plus-storage LCOE will hover at about 23% above average wholesale electricity price.

Only Thailand is expected to have a utility-scale solar-plus-storage LCOE below the average wholesale electricity price by 2023. While the country does not have a wholesale electricity market, industrial power price taken as a proxy is higher compared to other wholesale markets and hence shows competitive solar-plus-storage economics.

CAPEX subsidies and additional remuneration through different forms of renewables certificate will be crucial for projects to go-ahead.

In general, Wood Mackenzie expects the average solar-plus-storage LCOE in Asia Pacific to decrease 23% from US$133/MWh this year to US$101/MWh in 2023.

On the distributed C&I solar-plus-storage front, the storage premium over solar LCOE is between 56% and 204% this year. In 2023, the cost premium will narrow to between 47% and 167%. The reason for such wide LCOE range is because there are some mature markets where solar cost is extremely competitive while others are not and some in-between. This is due to a mix of labour/ land/ environment/ civil costs, weighted average cost of capital, and procurement methods (tenders vs feed-in tariffs (FIT)). Also, some markets have very well established supply chains with the availability of storage manufacturing.

Unsubsidised C&I solar-plus-storage is expected to be competitive in Australia, India and the Philippines by 2023.

The residential market also poses a great opportunity for solar-plus-storage. In 2018 with the help of government subsidies, Australia’s New South Wales saw a 76% savings on annual electric bills through solar-plus-storage installations. Another attractive residential solar-plus-storage market is Japan. FIT for 600 MW of solar projects is poised to expire this year. As power prices are set to increase, storage retrofits provide an opportunity for home consumers to avoid high residential prices.

Source: Wood Mackenzie

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CSP with thermal storage will bridge dispatchable energy gap according to GlobalData. The company’s latest report ‘Energy Storage – A Key Determinant for the Future of Concentrated Solar Power Market’ reveals that retirements of coal based plants and increase in influx of intermittent renewable power sources in order to achieve climate goals provide potential market opportunity for CSP with thermal storage.

The influx of renewable power sources such as wind and solar backed by ambitious targets and plans to phase out coal- or decommission coal fleet to reduce carbon footprint by various countries will lead to an energy gap for dispatchable generation. CSP with energy storage has the ability to bridge the demand and supply gap for dispatchable electricity.

Global installed capacity for CSP was around 5.6 GW at the end of 2018, of which only 2.6 GW is with energy storage. In contrast, of the total CSP projects under various stages of development, 95.8% of the upcoming capacity has storage. Majority of the active CSP projects with storage are with a thermal storage capacity in the range of 6-10 hours. In case of the under-development CSP capacity, 62.8% is with storage of 10-13 hours and 14% has over 13 hour storage. This shows the increased importance given to long hours of storage by project developers and owners to not only provide stable and reliable power 24/7, but also reduce the cost of electricity generation from CSP by using longer duration of thermal energy storage.

Auction results over last few years indicated declining cost of generation for CSP projects with storage. The years 2017 and 2018 have been breakthrough years for CSP in terms of cost reduction with prices for projects expected to be commissioned from 2020 onwards to be in the range of $0.06/kWh to $0.12/kWh.

Source: GlobalData

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For most people, their personal energy revolution begins with the installation of a PV system on the roof of their home. This allows them not only to cover their domestic energy needs, but also to make use of the entire spectrum of options offered by energy sector integration thanks to the intelligent solutions from Fronius Solar Energy. The ultimate goal is to power an entire household exclusively from self-generated solar energy, which can also be used to heat water and for e-mobility. This helps to increase the rate of self-sufficiency and to more efficiently utilise the PV system. When it comes to e-mobility in particular, it is important to have a suitable overall concept comprising a PV system, energy storage system, hot water generation and a wallbox – in other words, a domestic charging station for electric cars, bringing a new level of meaning to ‘solar power’.

A personal energy revolution involves exploiting the entire spectrum of energy sector integration. Optimum energy management enables the highest possible rate of self-sufficiency to be achieved with self-generated solar energy. This increases profitability and the rate of self-consumption while simultaneously reducing costs. Alongside electricity and heat, mobility is the third major sector that can be powered with electricity from a user’s own roof using solutions from Fronius.

“If you own an electric car, you’ll want to power it with solar energy,” explains Martin Hackl, Global Director Solar Energy at Fronius. “But you’re often not at home when the electricity from your domestic PV system is available.” This is where Fronius comes in: the solar energy experts are taking e-mobility to the next level and are making it possible to charge an electric car in the afternoon or evening with the electricity stored throughout the day. “It’s about having an energy solution that guarantees an electric car really is fuelled with green electricity,” adds Hackl. “To achieve this, you need to get the entire package right.”

Fuelling a car with green electricity

Owners of electric cars essentially have three ways of charging their vehicles. The easiest, yet most ineffective method, is to simply plug the car into the socket or wallbox when power is required and use the energy available at that moment. This often only enables the user to achieve a slight increase in self-consumption, as a large proportion of the electricity needed is drawn from the public grid.

To charge the electric car’s battery intelligently, a Fronius inverter with an integrated energy management function and a compatible wallbox (charging station for the home) is required alongside the PV system on the roof. The inverter informs the wallbox when there is surplus electricity available, which then charges the electric car. Self-consumption can typically be increased by a further 20% in this way.

Dynamic charge control (the car is charged with precisely the amount of surplus electricity that is available at the given time) and an additional Fronius battery raise the rate of self-consumption up to almost 100%, depending on the system size and consumption behaviour. With this method, the energy management system sends the surplus electricity that has been produced throughout the day to a Fronius Solar Battery for temporary storage until it is later needed to fuel the car with solar power.

“This ingenious method enables users to really get the most out of e-mobility,” says Hackl. “If you also upgrade your system with a Fronius Ohmpilot, which draws on surplus electricity to generate hot water, you will have a solution that makes the most economic sense and achieves the highest level of self-sufficiency.”

Source: Fronius

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CMBlu Energy and Mann+Hummel have signed an agreement for the joint development and industrialization of energy converters for organic redox flow batteries. The aim of both partners is to support electric mobility through the development of the charging infrastructure and offer the energy sector a sustainable and highly cost-efficient storage technology for a successful energy transition.

From the idea to the laboratory, then series production

The business idea for redox flow batteries with organic electrolytes derived from lignin (‘Organic Flow’) was already conceived in 2011 and since 2014, CMBlu has carried out intensive research and development. These batteries essentially consist of two tanks of liquid electrolyte and an energy converter, which consists of a large number of adjacent rows of cells and is therefore also referred to as a battery stack. The liquids are pumped through the battery stacks and is charged or discharged as required.

The technology developed by CMBlu has now reached the prototype stage. The further development and industrialization of the battery stack is regulated in the long-term cooperation agreement with Mann+Hummel. For this purpose Mann+Hummel has created a spin-off named i2M, which is dedicated to the development and commercialization of innovative technologies. In the next step Mann+Hummel will build a complete production line in an European plant. CMBlu will realize special pilot projects with reference customers in the next two years. Starting in 2021, CMBlu plans to market the first commercial systems.

Benefits of organic flow batteries

Similar to the principle of conventional redox flow batteries, CMBlu’s organic flow batteries store electrical energy in aqueous solutions of organic chemical compounds derived from lignin that are pumped through the energy converter, i.e. battery stack. The special feature of the flow batteries is that the capacity and electrical output can be scaled independently. The number of stacks defines the output of the batteries. A higher number of stacks multiplies the output. The capacity of the battery is only limited by the size of the tanks. This allows flexible customization to take into account the respective application area. For example, solar power can be stored for several hours and then fed into the grid at night.

In order to achieve cost-effective mass production, the most important components in the stack were adjusted to the organic electrolyte. In this process, almost the entire value chain for the stacks can be supplied locally. There is no dependency on imports from other countries. In addition, the battery stacks do not require rare-earth metals or heavy metals. The aqueous electrolytes in the system are not combustible or explosive and can be used safely.

Variety of applications in the grid

Organic flow batteries are suitable for numerous application areas in the power grid such as the intermediate storage of power from renewable energy generation or in connection with the balancing of demand peaks in industrial companies. An additional application area is the charging infrastructure required for electric mobility. The batteries enable a buffer storage to relieve power grids which do not have to be upgraded for additional loads. It enables simultaneous fast charging of electric vehicles. Ultimately, a decentralized charging network for electric vehicles will only be possible in connection with a high performance and scalable energy storage system.

Nature as a model for energy storage

The concept is based on the mode of energy in the human body. In the citric acid cycle the body also uses a redox reaction of organic molecules. CMBlu has now succeeded in applying this principle to large-scale storage of electrical energy. For this purpose the company use the mostly unused resource of lignin, which is readily available in unlimited quantities and accrues in amounts of millions of tons annually in the pulp and paper industry. CMBlu’s technology enables a very large and cost effective energy storage system. The battery stack is the core of the system and requires the highest quality and process reliability in the production process.

The manufacture of electrolytes includes a number of filtration steps, which Mann+Hummel performs using new special membranes. This technology further expands its product range and at the same time contributes to build the infractruture needed for electric vehicles.

Source: CMBlu Energy and Mann+Hummel

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Acciona Energía has begun a project to generally implement the traceability of the renewable nature of its electricity generation worldwide through blockchain technology, meaning that its clients who require it can check –in real time and from any location in the world- that 100% of the electricity supplied is clean.

For the development in the initial phases of the project, called GREENCHAIN, Acciona Energía has reached agreement with FlexiDAO, a company that specializes in offering software tools to electric power companies for digital energy services. FlexiDAO was one of the start-ups selected by Acciona in the second edition of its open innovation programme I’MNOVATION last June, in which 231 companies from 16 countries were assessed.

Since then, FlexiDAO has worked with Acciona Energía on the creation of a commercial demonstrator to ensure the traceability of the renewable generation from five wind and hydro facilities in Spain to its supply to four corporate clients in Portugal. Acciona Energía has thus become the first entity to trace renewable energy through blockchain in Spain and Portugal. A specialized blockchain platform for the electric power sector called Energy Web Blockchain has been used for this demonstrator.

The next step is to continue implementation in new areas, starting with the most suitable markets for this kind of service, i.e. those that do not have consolidated renewable energy certification systems, as is the case in several Latin American countries where Acciona Energía has a strong presence, such as Mexico and Chile.

“Tracing the renewable origin of energy is an ever-increasing demand, associated with the growth of the corporate contracting market for green energy, and blockchain technology can facilitate this service considerably to clients in any part of the world. We are very pleased to take this first step along a route that will surely set the trend over the next few years”, says Belén Linares, Director of Innovation of Acciona Energía.

FlexiDAO co-founder and CEO Simone Accornero adds that “we are demonstrating that the traceability of renewable energy is now a viable proposition that generates real value for the consumer. Together with Acciona we want to be pioneers in showing that this blockchain-based system is commercially viable on a large scale”.

The advantages of the system lie in the simplicity of its integration with data systems, both of Acciona and the end client: ease of access, scalability and the complete security and privacy of data that blockchain ensures.

Acciona has also pioneered the application of traceability through blockchain in its two renewable plants with energy storage in batteries in Spain: at Barásoain (with wind power) and Tudela (with PV), both located in Navarra, under the STORECHAIN project.

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