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ABB to develop energy storage solution in Switzerland

Located in Dietikon, the pilot storage facility will be integrated into the utility’s power distribution network and evaluated in key areas such as balancing peak loads, intermittent power supply, and the viability of such a solution for grid optimization.

“Storage will play a key role in the evolution of more flexible and smarter grids as we address the challenge of accommodating growing amounts of intermittent renewable energies like solar and wind power,” said Oleg Aleinikov, head of ABB's substations business, a part of the company’s Power Systems division. “We are pleased to partner EKZ on the development of this pilot battery storage project, which will provide useful insights and knowledge in this technology.”

ABB will supply and install the one megawatt lithium-ion battery-based solution with an initial capacity to store 350-500 kWhs (kilowatt hours) of electricity providing additional power to the grid on demand. EKZ will evaluate the connection and behavior of grid-linked battery storage and monitor various operational and economic parameters. The pilot is scheduled to be energized by the end of 2011 when EKZ will take over the operations.

"This pilot will help us to evaluate battery storage as an option to ensure a secure and reliable power supply” said Peter Franken, head of energy distribution at EKZ. "Energy storage will be a focus area with the increase in distributed generation and renewables and could play an important part in the smart grid of tomorrow."

ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 124,000 people.

France: Companies bid for wind farm tender

A consortium led by Iberdrola has submitted two bids for windfarm projects off the Brittany and Atlantic coasts as part of the French Government’s plans to install up to 3GW of offshore wind capacity.

The consortium, which comprises renewable energy project designer Eole Res, French turbine manufacturer Areva, engineering and construction company Technip, and the developer Neoen Marine, is bidding for two of five contracts in the first phase of the development.

This represents 980MW, divided between two areas: Saint-Brieuc, located in Côte d’Armor (Northern Brittany), which has a potential maximum capacity of 500MW, and Saint-Nazaire (Loire-Atlantique) on the Atlantic coast, with a potential capacity of 480MW.

Two French companies, EDF and GDF Suez, have also submitted bids for the 3,000MW project. GDF is partnering with German turbine manufacturer Siemens, while EDF will partner with either Areva or Alstom.

The results of the tender for the €10bn, 600 turbine development will be announced in April with the first wind farms due to be commissioned in 2015.

Germany and the UK: feed-in-tariff update

The German Federal Network Agency has cut the country’s photovoltaic feed-in tariffs (FIT) by 15% of 2011 rates for 2012.

The move comes in response to increasing capacity installation rates — 1.6GW of new photovoltaic capacity was installed between July and September 2011, slightly below the 2010 level of 1.7GW.

Meanwhile in the UK, the Court of Appeal has delayed its decision as to whether the Government’s consultation and implementation of new feed-in-tariff rates was lawful.

The delay has infuriated the solar industry, which is waiting to see what tariff levels will apply and when.

John Faulks, general counsel of Solarcentury, said: “The Secretary of State’s defence is seriously worrying. He thinks he has the power to do whatever he likes to FITs whenever he likes. And that means no FITs are safe for any technology installed or not at any time.

“We will be awaiting a judgment for at least a week, and hope for the sake of all stakeholders in our renewable energy future — investors, consumers and the general public — that we win this case to secure the robust, secure feed-in tariff we need to drive our low carbon future. DECC have it within their power to remove the uncertainty immediately.”

Poland's wind power capacity on the rise

Poland is slowly developing its wind power generator capacity but is still a long way behind the UK, Denmark, Netherlands and Belgium, says Cleantech Poland.

According to the Ministry of Transport, Construction and Maritime Economy, there are 31 planning applications in place for the construction and operation of artificial islands and other infrastructure needed for offshore wind energy projects.

Projects in the pipeline include PGE Energia Odnawialna’s plans for three artificial islands on which wind turbines could be installed, PKN Orlen’s wind farm plans as well as other developments proposed by Portuguese and Spanish companies.

Compared to Europe in general, Poland is lagging behind in terms of wind energy generation capacity: the total output of European offshore wind farms has already exceeded 3GW, and it could reach 40GW by 2020. According to the Polish Wind Energy Association, Poland could have 10GW of offshore wind energy installed by 2030.