CERRAR
Tags Posts tagged with "wind"

wind

0 5

The in-depth study, which analyses hydrogen’s current state of play and offers guidance on its future development, is being launched by Dr Fatih Birol, the IEA’s Executive Director, alongside Mr Hiroshige Seko, Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, on the occasion of the meeting of G20 energy and environment ministers in Karuizawa, Japan.

Hydrogen can help to tackle various critical energy challenges, including helping to store the variable output from renewables like solar PV and wind to better match demand. It offers ways to decarbonise a range of sectors (including long-haul transport, chemicals, and iron and steel) where it is proving difficult to meaningfully reduce emissions. It can also help to improve air quality and strengthen energy security.

A wide variety of fuels are able to produce hydrogen, including renewables, nuclear, natural gas, coal and oil. Hydrogen can be transported as a gas by pipelines or in liquid form by ships, much like liquefied natural gas (LNG). It can also be transformed into electricity and methane to power homes and feed industry, and into fuels for cars, trucks, ships and planes.

To build on this momentum, the IEA report offers seven key recommendations to help governments, companies and other stakeholders to scale up hydrogen projects around the world. These include four areas:

  • Making industrial ports the nerve centres for scaling up the use of clean hydrogen;
  • Building on existing infrastructure, such as natural gas pipelines;
  • Expanding the use of hydrogen in transport by using it to power cars, trucks and buses that run on key routes;
  • Launching the hydrogen trade’s first international shipping routes.

 

The report notes that hydrogen still faces significant challenges. Producing hydrogen from low-carbon energy is costly at the moment, the development of hydrogen infrastructure is slow and holding back widespread adoption, and some regulations currently limit the development of a clean hydrogen industry.

Today, hydrogen is already being used on an industrial scale, but it is almost entirely supplied from natural gas and coal. Its production, mainly for the chemicals and refining industries, is responsible for 830 million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. That’s the equivalent of the annual carbon emissions of the United Kingdom and Indonesia combined.

Reducing emissions from existing hydrogen production is a challenge but also represents an opportunity to increase the scale of clean hydrogen worldwide. One approach is to capture and store or utilise the CO2 from hydrogen production from fossil fuels. There are currently several industrial facilities around the world that use this process, and more are in the pipeline, but a much greater number is required to make a significant impact.

Another approach is for industries to secure greater supplies of hydrogen from clean electricity. In the past two decades, more than 200 projects have started operation to convert electricity and water into hydrogen to reduce emissions.

Expanding the use of clean hydrogen in other sectors – such as cars, trucks, steel and heating buildings – is another important challenge. There are currently around 11,200 hydrogen-powered cars on the road worldwide. Existing government targets call for that number to increase dramatically to 2.5M by 2030.

Policy makers need to make sure market conditions are well adapted for reaching such ambitious goals. The recent successes of solar PV, wind, batteries and electric vehicles have shown that policy and technology innovation have the power to build global clean energy industries.

0 15

Deep declines in wind, solar and battery technology costs will result in a grid nearly half-powered by the two fast-growing renewable energy sources by 2050, according to the latest projections from BloombergNEF (BNEF). In its New Energy Outlook 2019 (NEO), BNEF sees these technologies ensuring that – at least until 2030 – the power sector contributes its share toward keeping global temperatures from rising more than 2 ºC.

Each year, NEO compares the costs of competing energy technologies through a levelized cost of energy analysis. This year, the report finds that, in approximately two-thirds of the world, wind or solar now represent the least expensive option for adding new power-generating capacity.

Electricity demand is set to increase 62%, resulting in global generating capacity almost tripling between 2018 and 2050. This will attract $13.3 trillion in new investment, of which wind will take $5.3 trillion and solar $4.2 trillion. In addition to the spending on new generating plants, $840 billion will go to batteries and $11.4 trillion to grid expansion.

NEO starts by analyzing technology trends and fuel prices. The results show coal’s role in the global power mix falling from 37% today to 12% by 2050 while oil as a power-generating source is virtually eliminated. Wind and solar grow from 7% of generation today to 48% by 2050. The contributions of hydro, natural gas, and nuclear remain roughly level on a percentage basis.

BNEF’s power system analysis reinforces a key message from previous New Energy Outlooks – that solar photovoltaic modules, wind turbines and lithium-ion batteries are set to continue on aggressive cost reduction curves, of 28%, 14% and 18% respectively for every doubling in global installed capacity. By 2030, the energy generated or stored and dispatched by these three technologies will undercut electricity generated by existing coal and gas plants almost everywhere.

The projected growth of renewables through 2030 indicates that many nations can follow a path for the next decade and a half that is compatible with keeping the increase in world temperatures to 2 degrees or less. And they can do this without introducing additional direct subsidies for existing technologies such as solar and wind.

The days when direct supports such as feed-in tariffs are needed are coming to an end. Still, to achieve this level of transition and de-carbonization, other policy changes will be required – namely, the reforming of power markets to ensure wind, solar, and batteries are remunerated properly for their contributions to the grid. NEO is fundamentally policy-agnostic, but it does assume that markets operate rationally and fairly to allow lowest-cost providers to win.

Europe will decarbonize its grid the fastest with 92% of its electricity supplied by renewables in 2050. Major Western European economies in particular are already on a trajectory to significantly decarbonize thanks to carbon pricing and strong policy support. The U.S., with its abundance of low-priced natural gas, and China, with its modern fleet of coal-fired plants, follow at a slower pace.

China sees its power sector emissions peaking in 2026, and then falling by more than half in the next 20 years. Asia’s electricity demand will more than double to 2050. At $5.8 trillion, the whole Asia Pacific region will account for almost half of all new capital spent globally to meet that rising demand. China and India together are a $4.3 trillion investment opportunity. The U.S. will see $1.1 trillion invested in new power capacity, with renewables more than doubling its generation share, to 43% in 2050.

The outlook for global emissions and keeping temperature increases to 2 degrees or less is mixed, according to this year’s NEO. On the one hand, the build-out of solar, wind and batteries will put the world on a path that is compatible with these objectives at least until 2030. On the other hand, a lot more will need to be done beyond that date to keep the world on that 2 degree path.

One reason is that wind and solar will be capable of reaching 80% of the electricity generation mix in a number of countries by mid-century, with the help of batteries, but going beyond that will be difficult and will require other technologies to play a part – with nuclear, biogas-to-power, green hydrogen-to-power and carbon capture and storage among the contenders.

BNEF’s analysis suggests that governments need to do two separate things – one is to ensure their markets are friendly to the expansion of low-cost wind, solar and batteries; and the other is to back research and early deployment of these other technologies so that they can be harnessed at scale from the 2030s onwards.

In NEO 2019, BNEF for the first time considers 100% electrification of road transport and the heating of residential buildings, leading to a significant expansion of power generation’s role.

Under such this projection, overall electricity demand would grow by a quarter compared to a future in which road transport and residential heat only electrify as far as assumed in the main NEO scenario. Total generation capacity in 2050 would have to be three times the size of what is installed today. Overall, electrifying heat and transport would lower economy-wide emissions, saving 126GtCO2 between 2018 and 2050.

Source: BloombergNEF (BNEF)

0 4

Today the average car runs on fossil fuels, but growing pressure for climate action, falling battery costs, and concerns about air pollution in cities, has given life to the once “over-priced” and neglected electric vehicle. With many new electric vehicles (EV) now out-performing their fossil-powered counterparts’ capabilities on the road, energy planners are looking to bring innovation to the garage — 95% of a car’s time is spent parked. The result is that with careful planning and the right infrastructure in place, parked and plugged-in EVs could be the battery banks of the future, stabilising electric grids powered by wind and solar energy.

“EVs at scale can create vast electricity storage capacity, but if everyone simultaneously charges their cars in the morning or evening, electricity networks can become stressed. The timing of charging is therefore critical. ‘Smart charging’, which both charges vehicles and supports the grid, unlocks a virtuous circle in which renewable energy makes transport cleaner and EVs support larger shares of renewables,” says Dolf Gielen, Director of IRENA’s Innovation and Technology Centre.

Looking at real examples, a new report from IRENA, Innovation Outlook: smart charging for electric vehicles, guides countries on how to exploit the complementarity potential between renewable electricity and EVs. It provides a guideline for policymakers on implementing an energy transition strategy that makes the most out of EVs.

Smart implementation

Smart charging means adapting the charging cycle of EVs to both the conditions of the power system and the needs of vehicle users. By decreasing EV-charging-stress on the grid, smart charging can make electricity systems more flexible for renewable energy integration, and provides a low-carbon electricity option to address the transport sector, all while meeting mobility needs.

The rapid uptake of EVs around the world, means smart charging could save billions of dollars in grid investments needed to meet EV loads in a controlled manner. For example, the distribution system operator in Hamburg — Stromnetz Hamburg — is testing a smart charging system that uses digital technologies that control the charging of vehicles based on systems and customers’ requirements. When fully implemented, this would reduce the need for grid investments in the city due to the load of charging EVs by 90%.

IRENA’s analysis indicates that if most of the passenger vehicles sold from 2040 onwards were electric, more than 1 billion EVs could be on the road by 2050 — up from around 6 million today —dwarfing stationary battery capacity. Projections suggest that in 2050, around 14 TWh of EV batteries could be available to provide grid services, compared to just 9 TWh of stationary batteries.

The implementation of smart charging systems ranges from basic to advanced. The simplest approaches encourage consumers to defer their charging from peak to off-peak periods. More advanced approaches using digital technology, such as direct control mechanisms may in the near future serve the electricity system by delivering close-to real-time energy balancing and ancillary services.

Advanced forms of smart charging

An advanced smart charging approach, called Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G), allows EVs not to just withdraw electricity from the grid, but to also inject electricity back to the grid. V2G technology may create a business case for car owners, via aggregators, to provide ancillary services to the grid. However, to be attractive for car owners, smart charging must satisfy the mobility needs, meaning cars should be charged when needed, at the lowest cost, and owners should possibly be remunerated for providing services to the grid. Policy instruments, such as rebates for the installation of smart charging points as well as time-of-use tariffs, may incentivise a wide deployment of smart charging.

We’ve seen this tested in the UK, Netherlands and Denmark. For example, since 2016, Nissan, Enel and Nuvve have partnered and worked on an energy management solution that allows vehicle owners and energy users to operate as individual energy hubs. Their two pilot projects in Denmark and the UK have allowed owners of Nissan EVs to earn money by sending power to the grid through Enel’s bidirectional chargers.

Perfect solution?

While EVs have a lot to offer towards accelerating variable renewable energy deployment, their uptake also brings technical challenges that need to be overcome.

IRENA analysis suggests uncontrolled and simultaneous charging of EVs could significantly increase congestion in power systems and peak load. Resulting in limitations to increase the share of solar PV and wind in power systems, and the need for additional investment costs in electrical infrastructure in form of replacing and additional cables, transformers, switchgears, etc., respectively.

An increase in autonomous and ‘mobility-as-a-service’ driving — i.e. innovations for car-sharing or those that would allow your car to taxi strangers when you are not using it — could disrupt the potential availability of grid-stabilising plugged-in EVs, as batteries will be connected and available to the grid less often.

Impact of charging according to type

It has also become clear that fast and ultra-fast charging are a priority for the mobility sector, however, slow charging is actually better suited for smart charging, as batteries are connected and available to the grid longer. For slow charging, locating charging infrastructure at home and at the workplace is critical, an aspect to be considered during infrastructure planning. Fast and ultra-fast charging may increase the peak demand stress on local grids. Solutions such as battery swapping, charging stations with buffer storage, and night EV fleet charging, might become necessary, in combination with fast and ultra-fast charging, to avoid high infrastructure investments.

Source: IRENA

0 7

The Energy Division of Acciona has developed a pioneering solution at global level in the field of hybridization between wind and photovoltaic power. It consists of covering a wind turbine tower with flexible organic panels to produce energy for the internal electricity consumption of the turbine. The innovative project will allow the study of the performance of the organic panels -an emerging photovoltaic technology- and their application to improve wind turbine efficiency.

The system has been installed in one of the turbines of the Breña Wind Farm (Albacete, Spain), which ACCIONA owns and operates. The turbine is an AW77/1500 of Nordex-Acciona Windpower technology, mounted on an 80-metre-high steel tower (hub height).

Installed on the tower are 120 solar panels facing southeast-southwest to capture the maximum of the sun’s rays throughout the day. They are distributed at eight different heights, occupying around 50 metres of the tower’s surface area. The photovoltaic modules, with an overall capacity of 9.36 kWp, are of Heliatek technology (HeliaSol 308-5986 model). They are only 1 mm thick, and each one has a surface area of 5,986 x 308 mm.

In contrast to the conventional technology used in the manufacture of photovoltaic models based on silicon, these organic panels use carbon as raw material and are characterized by their structural flexibility, which makes them adaptable to very different surfaces. Other key features are lower maintenance costs, less energy consumption during manufacture, easier logistics and the complete recycling of the materials used, although their efficiency is still below that of silicon modules.

“The hybridization project in Breña means the optimization of the use of space for renewable energy production and it will enable us to test the efficiency of organic photovoltaics, a technology that we believe has one of the best improvement curves in terms of technological efficiency. That is why we have decided to pilot it”, says Belén Linares, Energy Innovation Director in Acciona.

Optimizing generation

The immediate application of the Breña project is to produce part of the energy that the internal systems of the wind turbine need. When the turbine is running, some of the energy generated is used to power the auxiliary systems. In shutdown mode, certain systems need to continue functioning so they are fed from the grid, which means that the wind turbine is registering a net consumption of energy.

The new photovoltaic system with panels on the tower will be able to cover, completely or partially, the energy demand related to the operation of the wind turbine when there is solar radiation, or even -in a possible later phase of the project- when the sun is not shining. This would be done through a battery storage system, leading to an improvement in the net production sent to the grid.

The organic panels are connected to two inverters that convert DC into AC for later connection to the grid which supplies the electrical equipment of the wind turbine.

The entire system is monitored with a view to evaluating it under real conditions, both from the point of view of energy production and degradation of the solar modules. Conceptually, it is a very innovative design in relation to previous experiences in wind power-photovoltaic hybridization, based on panels installed on the ground.

The idea is part of a wide-ranging innovation project driven by Acciona to study a number of emerging photovoltaic technologies, with the aim of pioneering the adoption of more efficient solutions in each case and consolidating its leadership as a PV developer. The company currently has over 1,200 MWp in operation or under construction in different parts of the world.

Source: Acciona

0 13

As the cheapest source of electricity in several parts of the world, wind energy has taken a key role in the global energy transition, unlocking growth opportunities in new markets and customer segments for Vestas. To grasp these opportunities, Vestas is executing our strategy to invest in technology and commercial capabilities beyond wind energy technology, enabling us to develop sustainable energy solutions that meet current and future customer demand.

To support Vestas’ strategy and increase our capability to partner with our customers in project development in selective markets, Vestas today announces the acquisition of a 25.1 percent minority stake in SOWITEC with an option to acquire the entire company within three years. Headquartered in Germany, SOWITEC is a leading sustainable energy developer with around 60 wind and solar projects totalling more than 2,600 MW across the globe. By investing in SOWITEC, Vestas enhances our ability to offer full-scope sustainable energy solutions by tapping into SOWITEC’s proven offering within development services.

Juan Araluce, Vestas’ Chief Sales Officer, says “With the acquisition of a minority stake in Sowitec, Vestas gains access to an independent development entity that strengthens our co-development portfolio and improves our solutions and capabilities in strategic markets in Latin America. Vestas is continuing to invest in solutions and capabilities that increase our ability to meet our customers’ evolving needs and to partner with them through the energy transition”.

Frank Hummel, SOWITEC Chief Executive Officer, says “We are proud to have Vestas as a strategic partner that further strengthens our equity and helps us to go further in the value chain. Together with our strong track record in emerging markets and our vast experience in developing utility-scale renewable energy projects, this partnership will help SOWITEC grow faster and give us the chance to profit from Vestas’ worldwide experience and presence”.

Based on SOWITEC’s proven track record within solar PV project development, the acquisition also strengthens Vestas’ offering within hybrid power plant solutions. With sustainable energy’s share of the energy mix set to grow from around 10 percent today to more than 30 percent by 2035, hybrids are a key part of Vestas’ objective to develop sustainable energy solutions with wind at their core. As such, hybrids are emerging as a grid-friendly and cost-effective solution that can store and release renewable energy into the grid when needed, and hereby increase the penetration of onshore wind.

On a stand-alone basis, SOWITEC is expected to report 2018 consolidated revenues of approximately EUR 30 million. The acquisition, which is subject to regulatory approval, is expected to be finalised during the second quarter of 2019 and will have no significant impact on Vestas earnings.

Source: Vestas

0 19

As the urgency to take bold climate action grows, new analysis by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) finds that scaling-up renewable energy combined with electrification could deliver more than three quarters of the energy-related emission reductions needed to meet global climate goals. According to the latest edition of IRENA’s Global Energy Transformation: A Roadmap to 2050, launched at the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue, pathways to meet 86 per cent of global power demand with renewable energy exist. Electricity would cover half of the global final energy mix. Global power supply would more than double over this period, with the bulk of it generated from renewable energy, mostly solar PV and wind.

“The race to secure a climate safe future has entered a decisive phase,” said IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera. “Renewable energy is the most effective and readily-available solution for reversing the trend of rising CO2 emissions. A combination of renewable energy with a deeper electrification can achieve 75 per cent of the energy-related emissions reduction needed.”

An accelerated energy transition in line with the Roadmap 2050 would also save the global economy up to USD 160 trillion cumulatively over the next 30 years in avoided health costs, energy subsidies and climate damages. Every dollar spent on energy transition would pay off up to seven times. The global economy would grow by 2.5 per cent in 2050. However, climate damages can lead to significant socio-economic losses.

“The shift towards renewables makes economic sense,” added Mr. La Camera. “By mid-century, the global economy would be larger, and jobs created in the energy sector would boost global employment by 0.2 per cent. Policies to promote a just, fair and inclusive transition could maximise the benefits for different countries, regions and communities. This would also accelerate the achievement of affordable and universal energy access. The global energy transformation goes beyond a transformation of the energy sector. It is a transformation of our economies and societies.”

But action is lagging, the report warns. While energy-related CO2 emissions continued to grow by over 1 per cent annually on average in the last five years, emissions would need to decline by 70 per cent below their current level by 2050 to meet global climate goals. This calls for a significant increase in national ambition and more aggressive renewable energy and climate targets.

IRENA’s roadmap recommends that national policy should focus on zero-carbon long-term strategies. It also highlights the need to boost and harness systemic innovation. This includes fostering smarter energy systems through digitalisation as well as the coupling of end-use sectors, particularly transport, and heating and cooling, via greater electrification, promoting decentralisation and designing flexible power grids.

“The energy transformation is gaining momentum, but it must accelerate even faster,” concluded Mr. La Camera. “The UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and the review of national climate pledges under the Paris Agreement are milestones for raising the level of ambition. Urgent action on the ground at all levels is vital, in particular unlocking the investments needed to further strengthen the momentum of this energy transformation. Speed and forward-looking leadership will be critical – the world in 2050 depends on the energy decisions we take today.”

Source: IRENA

0 4

The Ingeteam Group, world supplier in the wind industry, is to showcase its technology at the WindEurope 2019 Conference & Exhibition. This is the most important event in the European wind power sector, attracting more than 7,000 professionals and 300 exhibitors from 50 countries. The conference will serve to discuss the opportunities and challenges faced by the wind industry, as well as its role in the new energy model.

As a major global supplier to the sector, Ingeteam will be present at the summit and will be exhibiting its technology. The Group has production plants in Spain, the United States, Brazil, Mexico and India, allowing it to operate throughout the world. As part of its ongoing expansion strategy, in 2018 the company opened a new production plant in Chennai, India, and two new subsidiaries in Morocco and Peru.
Well-established as a leading ISP (Independent Service Provider), with maintained wind power of more than 8.6 GW, + 12 GW of total renewable power, Ingeteam Power Technology offers a wide range of wind turbine solutions as well as O&M services. The very latest version of Ingeboards, the company’s pioneering lifetime extension tool, is to be showcased at WindEurope.

Likewise, the company is the world’s #1 independent provider of wind power converters, boasting an installed capacity of 45 GW and an 8% market share. Ingeteam Power Technology offers low and medium voltage converters up to 15 MW, optimized for DFIG and Full Converter topologies. The converters are specifically designed to comply with the strictest grid codes. Air or air-water cooled solutions can be supplied for hostile environments.

Indar, an Ingeteam company, is the centre of excellence for wind generators. This technology company boasts a track record of 22 years in the wind power sector, providing innovative solutions for high performance and maximum efficiency. Indar has a highly qualified team of staff in Spain and in the USA, with a global installed power of 29 GW. The company is working jointly with the leading OEMs in the sector to create wind generator platforms (IG, PMG and DFIG topologies).

Source: Ingeteam Group

0 10

Portada_Separata_Eolica

Special report focusing on the wind power market, published as a separate issue to the February 2019 edition of FuturENERGY for special distribution at: Mexico WindPower, an event to be celebrated from 20 to 21 March in Mexico City, AEMER’s Seminar “The new challenges of renewable maintenance”, to be held in Madrid on 21 March, Hannover Messe that will be celebrated in Hannover from 1 to 5 April, Wind Europe Conference & Exhibition (Bilbao, 2-4 April) and CIREC Week to be celebrated in Santiago de Chile from 2 to 4 April; where FuturENERGY has an active presence as media partner.

This special report includes the following:

COVER STORY
Vestas introduces EnVentus, an innovative modular platform, with two new wind turbine variants

WOMEN & ENERGY
Reflections on the sustainable and clean energy evolution
By: María Isabel López Ferrer. CEO and Founder of IZHARIA

RENEWABLES
Two projects to reduce costs and harness the potential of offshore renewable energy

WIND POWER
51.3 GW of global wind capacity installed in 2018
Claims management for renewable energy plants
Early error detection in wind farms by analysing scada systems information
Standing up to the wind
Taking asset management decisions thanks to wind farm performance analysis
The ALEX17 experiment: characterising wind flow in complex terrain

Read more…

DOWNLOAD COMPLETE REPORT

0 7

Wind energy provided 14% of the EU’s electricity last year, up from 12% in 2017, according to statistics released today by WindEurope. Wind power capacity rose in Europe by 11.3 GW in 2018: 8.6 GW onshore and 2.65 GW offshore.

Continued growth in capacity and the use of more powerful turbines are helping to drive up wind’s share in the electricity mix. Denmark had the highest share of wind in its electricity last year (41%) followed by Ireland (28%) and Portugal (24%). Wind was 21% of Germany’s electricity.

Wind accounted for 49% of all the new power generation capacity in Europe in 2018. But the amount of new wind capacity was down a third on 2017 (a record year). Wind energy won 9 GW of new capacity in auctions last year, compared to 13 GW in 2017. Capacity additions in Germany were down by over half after poorly designed auctions (now sorted) and problems with permitting (ongoing). And the number of new onshore wind farms dried up in the UK. Europe now has 189 GW of wind power capacity: 171 GW onshore and 18 GW offshore.

2018 was a record year for new wind capacity financed. 17 GW of future projects reached Final Investment Decision (FID): 13 GW onshore and 4.2 GW offshore. This is 45% more than in 2017 but only 20% more in euros invested, showing that costs continue to fall and you get more bang for your buck.

WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson said: “Wind energy now provides 14% of the EU’s electricity, up from 12% in one year. More and more people and businesses are benefitting from the clean and affordable power that wind delivers. But beneath the surface many things are not right. Last year was the worst year for new wind energy installations since 2011. Growth in onshore wind fell by over half in Germany and collapsed in the UK. And 12 EU countries didn’t install a single wind turbine last year.”

“Investments in future capacity were quite good last year thanks to the UK, Spain, Sweden – and thanks also to the further expansion of offshore wind. But the outlook for new investments is uncertain. There are structural problems in permitting, especially in Germany and France. And with the noble exception of Lithuania and despite improvements in Poland, there’s a lack of ambition in Central and Eastern Europe.”

“The 2030 National Energy & Climate Plans are a chance to put things right. But the draft Plans are badly lacking in detail: on policy measures, auction volumes, how to ease permitting and remove other barriers to wind investments, and how to expand the grid. Governments need to sort this out before they finalise the Plans this year.”

Source: WindEurope

0 5
Fuentes: Elaborado por AleaSoft con datos de REE y del Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica / Source: Prepared by AleaSoft using data from REE and the Ministry for the Ecological Transition

AleaSoft analyses the content of the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan and its proposals for the electricity sector, where the role that the consultancy foresees for hydrogen technologies is lacking.

The Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) is a broad and cross-cutting document that addresses the goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emission from many angles, from transportation and electricity generation, to employment and R&D. The objective of the Plan is to achieve a 20% reduction in emissions in 2030 compared to the levels recorded in 1990. This means reducing the current emission levels by more than 30%. The draft lays the foundations to advance in the energy transition and achieve the ultimate goal of totally decarbonising the economy and converting Spain into a carbon neutral country by 2050.

In the energy transition and the reduction of polluting gas emissions, electricity generation will have a central role. The electricity generation sector is one of the most responsible for the emission of CO2 and other greenhouse gases, but it is also one of the sectors with the greatest power to reduce emissions thanks to the production of electricity from renewable energy sources.

The objective of the Plan is to achieve, in the year 2030, a penetration of renewable energy sources in the final energy consumption of at least 35%. Specifically for the electricity system, the objective is the generation of at least 70% of the electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and with the final goal of 100% by 2050. To do this, the NECP proposes to install 69 GW of renewable capacity before 2030, and reduce conventional generation by 15 GW.

The star technology in this renewable revolution will be the solar energy with new 37 GW, of which 32 GW will be of photovoltaic technology and 5 GW of solar thermal. This new capacity to be installed represents an increase of 530% compared to the current power. The second potential technology to be installed before 2030 is the wind energy with new 27 GW and a capacity growth of 114%. And behind the solar and the wind energy, with much less new capacity are the rest of renewable technologies that will add another 5 GW.

On the side of the reduction of conventional generation, the technology that is intended to be eliminated more quickly is coal. In 2030, it is expected to have removed at least 8.7 GW from the current 10 GW, but with the possibility of closing 100% of the power plants if security of supply allows it. The Plan estimates that coal thermal power stations will no longer be competitive by 2030 if the price of CO2 emission rights reaches 35 €/t. Right now, the price of emissions is around 23 €/t after it tripled in 2018.

The other conventional technology condemned to disappear according to the draft is the nuclear. By 2030 it is expected to halve the installed capacity by closing 4 GW. On a smaller scale, the other technologies to be reduced are cogeneration, generation with waste and fuel-gas.

The willingness of the Plan to withdraw up to 2 GW of cogeneration is somehow surprising. The employers of the sector have already shown their disagreement. Cogeneration is one of the most efficient ways to produce heat for the industry. Producing all that thermal energy directly using electricity would be a disproportionate expense for those industries. According to AleaSoft, the best strategy to reduce emissions in industries that require heat is cogeneration with renewable gas or even with hydrogen, which, according to the consultancy, is the fuel of the future and, in addition, does not produce emissions.

As highlighted by AleaSoft, the renewable transition proposal of the Plan shows very explicitly the need that renewable energies continue to have a backup technology due to its intermittent nature: to remove 15 GW of conventional capacity it is necessary to install 69 GW of renewable capacity . The draft is committed to maintaining gas as a backup technology, maintaining the installed capacity of this technology at least until 2030. But the support for intermittent renewable production is also addressed from two other angles: storage and interconnections.

In terms of energy storage, the Plan will promote the pumped storage hydropower plants with new 3.5 GW that allow the management of renewable production and, additionally, can support the regulation of watersheds in conditions of extreme phenomena. The installation of up to 2.5 GW of batteries is also contemplated gradually as the technology matures.

In AleaSoft the mention of hydrogen is lacking as a tool for storing large amounts of energy over long periods of time, being able to counteract the seasonality of a large part of the renewable production. In the Plan, hydrogen is only mentioned as an alternative fuel for transportation.

On the interconnection side, the Plan contemplates the already planned projects to increase interconnections with France up to 8000 MW and with Portugal up to 3000 MW. Even with these increases in exchange capacity, Spain will not achieve a 10% interconnection with respect to its total installed capacity and will continue far from the minimum target of 15% of the European Union.

The draft Plan also takes into account the increase in energy efficiency as an essential tool for the energy transition.

Other important aspects that the draft also takes into account are self-consumption and, in general, a more active role for the consumer. With the approval of the Plan, the demand aggregator will be created as the new subject of the electricity sector to boost the participation of demand in the ancillary services. It is promoted that the aggregation of demand allows a greater participation of distributed generation and self-consumption in the imbalance and ancillary markets.

Source: AleaSoft Energy Forecasting

123...16Next Page 1 of 16
COMEVAL

wind Archives - FuturEnergy

© Copyright 2018 - FuturEnergy