| From: Eric | 8/1/2024 8:44:51 PM | | | | | | 8 GW of solar-plus-storage at resilience hubs in California could save lives
Solar and storage at almost 20,000 community sites across California could help protect its population during power outages, especially during heat and smoke events, a study found.
August 1, 2024 William Driscoll
Disaster Recovery
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California
Wildfire in California.
Image: Jeff Turner, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
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California faces public safety power shutoffs, wildfires and heat waves that “increasingly trigger outages across the state,” creating a “pressing need” to support increased community resilience, says a research paper.
To help meet its climate resilience needs, the state could add rooftop solar and storage to about 20,000 schools, community centers and places of worship, creating what the authors call “resilience hubs.”
Resilience hubs could provide clean, cool air for those “who might otherwise die” in heat waves or smoke events, the study says, adding that the elderly and those with chronic health conditions are particularly vulnerable to heat waves.
Each site could, as a baseline, add an amount of solar-plus-storage that is economically optimal for everyday use, such that it could be financed, perhaps with state loan guarantees. Across all the sites, 5.5 GW of rooftop solar and 1.8 GW of storage could be financed to power everyday operations. In an emergency, if grid power is available, the sites could provide smoke-free, conditioned air for 40% of California’s 39 million people, and also power communication and medical devices, the study projected.
Increasing the rooftop solar to nearly the 8 GW maximum potential across all sites and increasing storage would increase resilience capacity. Because that increased capacity could not be financed at current electric rates, it would require grant funding, incentives, or more favorable rate designs.
The community sites considered could only partially help the state meet its needs for resilient power, the study found.
The nonprofit PSE Healthy Energy, which employs most of the study’s authors, said on a landing page for the study that resilience hubs are unlike emergency cooling centers as they are “built in trusted community spaces and provide resilience-building services on an ongoing basis,” such as helping vulnerable communities “to address underlying risk factors and improve resilience to disaster over time.”
Hybrid systems
The study evaluated resilience hubs powered by solar-plus-storage, but acknowledged that hybrid systems that add fossil generation “may be more economical, particularly when high levels of resilience are required.” Even so, fuel-based backup requires regular testing and maintenance, they study says, citing research finding that half of poorly-maintained generators fail within 48 hours during a long-duration outage.
The study used the REopt model, developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, in its analysis of the solar-plus-storage potential at the community buildings it considered.
The open-access study, published in the journal Risk Analysis, is titled “Modeling and design of solar + storage-powered community resilience hubs across California.”
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| From: Eric | 8/1/2024 8:47:37 PM | | | | | | Clean energy transition drives Queensland jobs growth
New data has revealed 2,750 clean energy jobs have been created in the last two years within six publicly owned energy businesses, putting the state on track to reach a forecast of 100,000 jobs by 2040.
August 1, 2024 Ev Foley
Powerlink Queensland
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Employment data from six Queensland publicly owned energy businesses showed a 28% increase in full-time-equivalent staff, or 2,750 people, between November 2022 and 30 June 2024, on track to achieving the state’s forecast of 100,000 direct and indirect energy transition jobs by 2040.
Up from 9,792 to 12,562, the figures were sourced from transmission services provider Powerlink, network operator Energy Queensland, energy solutions company Stanwell, renewables developer CleanCo, electricity generator CS Energy and Queensland Hydro.
The companies have also partnered with the Queensland government to launch an online job list portal specific to energy projects, and categories such as skills in demand and technology options like solar, batteries, transmission, and distribution.
Queensland Minister for Energy and Clean Economy Jobs Mick de Brenni said the portal not only opens up job opportunities, but establishes career and skills focus during the transition to a clean economy.
“Not only can new energy workers leverage the abundant opportunities available, our $150 million Job Security Guarantee ensures our valued workers in Queensland’s government owned coal-fired power stations and associated mines are supported through the energy transformation,” de Brenni said.
Electricity network operator Energy Queensland (EQ) says it currently has about 8,900 employees working in energy transition roles, with a large number of apprenticeship programs underway.
EQ Chief Executive Officer Peter Scott said their employees are not only working on the electricity network of today, but also on what is coming in the near future and further down the track, due to the scale and speed of the energy sector’s transformation.
“This year Ergon and Energex recruited 182 new apprentices who are now working at locations from the Gulf to the Gold Coast and west across outback Queensland. Ergon Energy and Energex also offer work experience placements for high school students currently in years 10, 11 or 12, or students completing a relevant course through TAFE,” Scott said.
Combined, Energex and Ergon Energy Network have more than 500 apprentices, scholarship students and graduates.
Queensland electricity and energy solutions company Stanwell is currently transforming its workforce at its coal-fired Stanwell Power Station, 680 kilometres north of Brisbane with the building of its Future Energy Innovation and Training Hub (FEITH).
Stanwell Chief Executive Officer Michael O’Rourke said the hub will provide real-life, hands-on training for energy employees to develop the skills needed to work on new energy technologies.
“We’re not only utilising all the skills Stanwell has in our current workforce and supporting our people with career pathways and opportunities under the Job Security Guarantee, but we are recruiting more workers every week so that we can deliver on our massive pipeline of renewable generation and storage projects while continuing to operate our current portfolio safely and reliably,” O’Rourke said.
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| From: Eric | 8/2/2024 12:38:40 PM | | | | | | 
Image credit: rPlus Energies
Over $1 Billion Secured For 400 MW PV Solar + Storage Project In Utah
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rPlus Energies recently announced that it secured over $1 billion in construction debt financing for a huge solar power and energy storage project. The funding is for 400 MW of solar PV and 400 MW/1,600 MWh of battery storage at the Green River Energy Center project in Utah. The project will be the largest planned solar power and storage facility in that state.
This project is even larger than one I wrote about in Arizona five months ago, which is 255 MW/1,020 MWh for energy storage. Seven months ago, Steve Hanley wrote about a 185 MW/565 MWh Hawaii energy storage project. Even though these are really large energy storage systems, this new Utah one almost makes them look small at 400 MW/1,600 MWh.
rPlus Energies President Luigi Resta answered some questions about it for CleanTechnica.
Where will the 400 MW of solar PV be located, and will all the panels be ground mounted?
Emery County, UT, yes all ground-mounted single axis tracking.
What will all the solar power be used for?
Providing energy to the grid to support Pacificorp’s energy needs.
Once completed, what will the 400 MW/1,600 MWh energy storage project be used for?
Providing “dispatchable” energy to the grid (will enable storage of solar energy for delivery later).
Are the battery systems in containers such as those used in shipping?
Yes, the batteries are fully containerized and arrive on-site fully assembled and ready to “plug in” – they are pre-manufactured in a factory in the US.
What is the battery chemistry used in them?
Lithium ion, specifically lithium ferrous phosphate (LFP).
What will the energy storage project’s lifespan be?
The battery system is contracted for 20 years and the design will exceed that timeframe.
What is the total project cost for the solar and energy storage?
Roughly $1bn (this is consistent with the press release for debt financing).
About how much land will be utilized for the battery systems once they are installed?
The BESS area is roughly 15 acres.
How many jobs are created for the installation phase, and then once completed, for the operations?
Up to approximately 500 construction phase jobs — once operational, there will be approximately 10 staff on site on a regular to periodic basis.
What does routine maintenance look like for the solar power and battery systems?
Regular inspection of electrical equipment such as inverters and high voltage substation, battery units, site is remotely monitored around the clock via specialized telemetry which enables coordination with the grid and ensuring everything is working correctly, or spotting issues to be addressed.
Once the batteries are at the end of their use-life, can they be recycled?
Yes.
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| From: Eric | 8/2/2024 3:29:54 PM | | | | | | France announces two new PV tenders for 1.2 GW
Between August 19 and 30, the ground-mounted PV tenders will accept up to 925 MW of projects, in parallel with the building-mounted PV call for tenders, between August 26 and September 6, which aims for a total capacity of 300 MW. The latter marks the end of the carbon footprint requirements based on life cycle analysis (LCA) in favor of a “country mix” approach.
August 2, 2024 Marie Beyer
Image: 9397902, Pixabay
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From pv magazine France
Pending France's new multi-year energy plan (PPE) and the new government composition, the Directorate General for Energy and Climate (DGEC) and the Directorate General for Enterprises (DGE) have announced two new calls for tenders for photovoltaic installations by the end of summer 2024. A total of 1.225 GW of solar energy will be offered in two auctions.
In detail, the tender periods for solar energy are planned: between August 19 and 30 for ground-mounted PV, for a total capacity of 925 MW; and between August 26 and September 6 for building-mounted PV, for a total capacity of 300 MW
Solar installations on sheep and cattle farms will be able to apply for the ground-mounted call for tenders. Depending on their height, other agrivoltaic projects will be able to subscribe to the call for tenders on the ground or buildings.
“Candidates must undertake to guarantee the preservation of significant agricultural activity below the panels, in line with the objectives set out by the law for the acceleration of the production of renewable energies,” the DGE stated.
Change of the carbon criterion
To promote European-made panels, the building call for tenders will include new criteria with regard to the carbon footprint of solar modules. The well-known “French particularity” on this point is changing with the abandonment of the life cycle analysis (LCA) method in favor of a “mix-country” approach. Concretely, each country will be assigned a carbon score that will be applied for each module, cell, or wafer imported from that country. “This modification could, if successful, be generalized to all photovoltaic mounting systems,” the DGE specified in a press release.
According to the agency, this new methodology aims to limit the possibilities of fraud and circumvention of carbon footprint requirements. For market observers, it is also a way of directly promoting future French and European solar panel production projects with favorable ratings, despite a carbon footprint that is sometimes little better or equal to current Chinese producers.
The LCA method enabled Chinese manufacturers to make efforts in their production lines and to support, on a global scale, a more environmentally-friendly solar value chain, according to observers. This methodology allowed production units to be rated according to their actual carbon footprint, and thus enhanced the value of manufacturers' initiatives such as changing suppliers or developing on-site self-consumption PV systems to avoid the burden of China's carbon-intensive energy mix, among others.
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| From: Eric | 8/2/2024 3:32:45 PM | | | | | | Solar-plus-storage systems inaugurated at two Ukrainian hospitals
Two Ukrainian hospitals recently hosted inauguration ceremonies for hybrid solar and storage systems that have been installed through an initiative spearheaded by the RePower Ukraine Charitable Foundation.
August 2, 2024 Patrick Jowett
Image: RePower Ukraine
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Hospitals in the Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv and Brovary have begun benefiting from solar-plus-storage energy systems, installed through an initiative led by charitable foundation RePower Ukraine.
The array at the Brovary Multidisciplinary Clinical Hospital, which lies within the Kyiv region, was inaugurated on July 25. It consists of a 24 kW solar power plant with a 28.8 kWh backup system and was designed and built using components manufactured by German company SMA.
The hospital, which serves over 187,000 residents, has 24 departments and centres and the solar plant is specifically designed to backup power supply to the hospital’s intensive care unit. The Kyiv Regional Military Administration and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine had requested a system be installed at the facility.
The second system is a 30 kW solar power plant, with a 43 kWh backup system, located at Kharkiv Children’s Hospital, in northeastern Ukraine. Inaugurated on July 19, the installation features 54 solar panels and ensures uninterrupted power for the hospital.
“Imagine a child on life support, their family anxiously watching. Now, imagine the power fails,” said Vladlena Salnikova, the hospital's medical director. “With this system, that fear vanishes. We're not just saving on bills; we're saving lives and offering peace of mind.”
RePower Ukraine says the recent inaugurations follow an installation at a hospital in Irpin, west of Kyiv, which was equipped with solar panels and a backup power system, as well as another solar power project in Kharkiv.
“We are creating a model of supporting energy supply for hospitals that needs to be scaled to other medical facilities throughout Ukraine with the participation of local and central authorities,” a statement from the foundation said.
It added the projects have been made possible through contributions from European companies including BSW, SolarPower Europe and SMA Solar Technology. A spokesperson for RePower Ukraine told pv magazine the installations are “compelling examples of how Europe is supporting Ukraine in implementing renewable energy initiatives and overcoming energy challenges posed by the ongoing war”.
In July, it was announced that Ukraine had received a total of 5,876 solar panels under the Ray of Hope project, to be delivered to healthcare facilities in the Zhytomyr, Volyn, Khmelnytskyi, Kyiv and Odesa regions.
A study by the United Nations Development Programme in Ukraine, published earlier this year, looked at the feasibility of implementing 37 solar projects at hospitals and water supply facilities across the country. It found the potential to generate around 16 million kWh of clean energy if fully implemented, ensuring an uninterrupted power supply.
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| From: Eric | 8/2/2024 3:35:40 PM | | | | | | Aerosols from wildfires slash North American solar production
Throughout July, smoke from wildfires in Canada and the US West Coast significantly impacted irradiance across North America, while Hurricane Beryl and upper atmospheric conditions delivered unstable cloud cover across the central and eastern United States.
August 2, 2024 SOLCAST
Image: Solcast
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From pv magazine Global
Throughout July, smoke from wildfires in Canada and the US West Coast significantly impacted irradiance across North America, while Hurricane Beryl and upper atmospheric conditions delivered unstable cloud cover across the central and eastern United States.
Analysis using the Solcast API shows that the combined effects of reduced clearsky irradiance from smoke-related aerosols and cloud cover led to irradiance levels as low as 80% of long-term July averages along the Gulf Coast, East Coast, and the Midwest. In contrast, stable atmospheric conditions on the West Coast resulted in increased irradiance, extending across the Rockies as far as West Texas.
Whilst the fires raged, atmospheric aerosols have blown east and south, across the continent. Aerosols impact irradiance by scattering and absorbing radiation in the atmosphere, and reduce solar generation even on a day with no clouds. Peak ‘aerosol optical depth’, a measure of the impact of aerosols on irradiance, shows where the aerosol impact was strongest, and that smoke impacted all of the continent.
The below analysis of clearsky irradiance (a measure of irradiance before cloud or other weather phenomena) down up to 20% in some regions of Canada close to the fires, shows the large areas impacted as the smoke spreads through the atmosphere. Whilst in a normal month the impact of clouds and weather is much higher than that of aerosols, the intensity of this impact across July is reflected in the clearsky irradiance and the overall GHI.
In addition to the fires, a strong upper-atmosphere dipole created clear and stable conditions on the West Coast and unstable, cloudy conditions on the East Coast. This led to irradiance levels 10-20% above long-term averages in parts of British Columbia, Washington State, California, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Western Texas. While these clear conditions exacerbated the wildfires, prevailing westerly winds prevented the smoke from significantly impacting these states. Conversely, the same atmospheric conditions led to instability on the East Coast, reducing irradiance in the Carolinas, Virginia, and parts of New England. Hurricane Beryl further affected irradiance, casting a large shadow over the Gulf Coast and South-East early in the month.
Solcast produces these figures by tracking clouds and aerosols at 1-2km resolution globally, using satellite data and proprietary AI/ML algorithms. This data is used to drive irradiance models, enabling Solcast to calculate irradiance at high resolution, with typical bias of less than 2%, and also cloud-tracking forecasts. This data is used by more than 300 companies managing over 150GW of solar assets globally.
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| From: Savant | 8/2/2024 4:48:05 PM | | | | | | Coating magic elevates solar panel power to a 31% efficiency milestone The researchers have developed a strategy for surface passivation that allows the surface defects of the perovskite layer to be smoothed out.
A new coating of special organic molecules can pave the way for a new generation of solar panels, according to the researchers.
According to the researchers, this coating can increase the efficiency of monolithic tandem cells made of silicon and perovskite, while also lowering their cost as they are made of standard silicon wafers.
A Chinese team headed by Prof. Kai Yao carried out the research at Nanchang University, Suzhou Maxwell Technologies, the CNPC Tubular Goods Research Institute (Shaanxi), the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Wuhan University of Technology, and Fudan University (Shanghai).
New coating removes solar panel defects, boosts efficiency to 31% (interestingengineering.com) |
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| From: Sam | 8/5/2024 2:26:57 PM | | | | | | This seems nuts to me. Are they also going to curtail tax credits to other foreign firms that build factories and employ people in the US? E.g., foreign auto makers? Semiconductor firms?
Bill aims to cut 45X tax credits for Chinese solar makers
While the lucrative tax credits has attracted clean energy manufacturers from around the world to build factories in the U.S., the fact that many of the new manufacturing facilities are from Chinese companies has created a controversy that this new bill aims to solve.
August 1, 2024 Anne Fischer
A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers introduced the American Tax Dollars for American Solar Manufacturing Act, aiming to prevent Chinese solar module manufacturers from claiming subsidies for their American factories.
The Inflation Reduction Act, passed in 2022, offers manufacturing 45 X tax credits for solar components made in America. While the lucrative tax credits have been attracting clean energy manufacturers worldwide to build factories in the U.S., the fact that some of the new manufacturing facilities are from Chinese companies has created a controversy that this new bill aims to solve.
The bill was introduced by Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Bill Cassidy (D-LA), Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and Rick Scott (D-FL), seeks to protect U.S. solar manufacturing by removing the tax incentives for Chinese companies and from other “foreign entities of interest” would not be able to receive the 45X tax credits.
“By reshoring the solar supply chain, we can bolster solar manufacturing in the U.S. and ensure our country is not dependent on China for a technology that was invented here and accounted for half of our new grid energy additions last year, said Mike Carr, Executive Director of the Solar Energy Manufacturers for America (SEMA) Coalition.
The Defend Solar USA Alliance also supports the new legislation. The Alliance said in a release that while the 45X tax credit has contributed to the largest investments in factory production in nearly 100 years, it’s estimated that Chinese-controlled companies could collect more than $100 billion in federal tax credits. These credits, the Alliance contends, were “designed to support U.S. clean-energy manufacturers”.
“We shouldn’t be in the business of rewarding China at the expense of our domestic solar industry,” said U.S. Army General John Adams (ret.), and Board Member of the Defend Solar USA Alliance. “The bipartisan bill would ensure that Americans’ taxpayer dollars stay right here at home rather than help subsidize a foreign government’s efforts to put domestic manufacturers out of work. By building a successful domestic solar industry, the U.S. can break from its reliance on foreign energy sources, strengthen our supply chain and reduce our vulnerability to geopolitical conflicts.”
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| From: Eric | 8/5/2024 7:47:49 PM | | | | | | 450 MW of BESS planned for Scottish Highlands in three projects
In the north of Scotland, multiple new BESS projects are under consideration by the local council, two at up to 200 MW, along with a 49.9 MW project.
August 5, 2024 Tristan Rayner
An artist's impression of the proposed Opdenergy BESS in Scotland.
Image: Opdenergy
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From ess-news
The Highland Council, a local government body in northern Scotland that includes the famous Highlands region, is considering several new large-scale battery energy storage systems (BESSs) in the region, which could add as much as 450 MW of storage capacity.
The Highlands are dominated by wind farms and hydroelectric schemes, with proposed BESS projects set to add to additional sustainable infrastructure to the region.
Three main projects from developers are under consideration, with the authority submitting notifications of its plans to its North Planning Applications Committee:
- Near Mey, Caithness: A facility with up to 200MW capacity, located on open, flat land, and developed by Field Rigifa Limited, a subsidiary of Field, a London-based developer.
- Near Garve, Wester Ross: Another facility with up to 200MW capacity, to be located at an existing substation, and developed by Field Corriemollie Ltd, a subsidiary of Field.
- Near Forss, Thurso: A smaller facility with 49.9MW capacity, chosen for its proximity to the Forss Business & Energy Park, and developed by Forss Energy Storage Limited.
No details specifying the energy capacity in MWh were provided.
These projects will serve as part of the council’s broader initiative, announced last year, to explore generating and storing its own power, and would assist in meeting climate change targets set by the Scottish and UK governments. The committee will meet on August 7th to consider the matters.
In recent weeks, renewable energy company Opdenergy also announced an initial proposal to build a 49.9MW BESS in the Highlands, with a planning application to the Highland Council estimated for the end of 2024.
Previously, two massive BESS projects in Scotland were given planning permission, including a 1 GW/2 GWh Rawhills Energy Storage facility in Coalburn, south of Glasgow, and a 500 MW/1,000 MWh Devilla Energy Storage site in Fife, north of Edinburgh.
50 MW threshold change proposed
In much of the UK, energy storage and energy generation projects under 50 MW can be approved by a standard local planning process, while projects above 50 MW are classified as Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) and require a more complex consent process. This has seen the clustering of generation and storage projects at 49. 9 MW, under the 50 MW limit.
In England over the past week, NSIP thresholds are currently under review with new proposed thresholds for solar set at 150MW to prevent market distortions. This may eventually lead to changes in Scotland, which has its separate thresholds.
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| From: Eric | 8/5/2024 7:50:20 PM | | | | | | Projects & Applications
Energy storage as a service gets underway near Bondi Beach, Australia
Australian distribution company Ausgrid has delivered its first community battery that can offer energy storage as a service for households, as part of a roll-out of as many as 400 community batteries to deliver between 1 GW to 2 GW of storage.
By
David Carroll
Aug 05, 2024
Distributed
Projects & Applications
A community battery installation in Bondi Beach, Australia, rated at 160 kW / 412 kWh. | Image: Plus ES
Ausgrid has delivered a ninth community battery to residential customers commissioning a 160 kW / 412 kWh battery near Bondi Beach in Sydney, designed to soak up consumer-generated solar and help stabilise the local grid.
The battery is part of the Community Batteries for Household Solar Program run by the Australian government, aiming to store excess solar power generated from residential rooftops, while offering reliability, voltage control, reverse power flows, and energy resilience in the face of natural disasters via localalized batteries.
The Bondi battery, which also includes an electric vehicle charger, is the first from Ausgrid to offer an energy storage as a service (ESaaS) retail plan. Ausgrid Chief Executive Officer Marc England said this marks a “step change” in the evolution of community batteries.
“ESaaS allows multiple eligible customers to use community batteries in a similar way to a household battery but without the upfront costs,” he said.
“It’s a fundamental shift in one of the ways in which we’re engaging customers in this, because what this allows us to do is to pass through to them a lower grid charge for the customers in this area when they engage them in their electricity, and that’s a step change in how this industry works.”
England said enabling customers to store electricity locally reduced their reliability on the wider grid and could also help apply downward pressure on energy prices.
“Eligible customers in the vicinity of Ausgrid’s community batteries use the network less and therefore pay less in network charges, potentially saving them hundreds of dollars per year,” he said.
The company publishes maps of where eligible customers must be located to use each community battery, which depends on how the local distribution network is laid out, with proximity also key.
Ausgrid said the ESaaS retail plan will be offered in collaboration with retailers Energy Australia and Origin under a trial tariff and is available to all eligible residential customers connected to any Ausgrid community battery on an opt-in basis.
“This approach can deliver cost savings for consumers, improve grid reliability, facilitate greater integration of renewable energy and support home electrification,” ? Ausgrid said.
From pv magazine Australia
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