Grid Congestion for Renewable Energy May Expand to South Japan

Power grids in southern Japan are close to capacity for solar and wind projects as the country pushes to add stations that derive power from clean energy. Chugoku Electric Power Co. (9504) and Kyushu Electric Power Co. (9508) each have less than 1 Giga watt of available grid capacity for solar or wind projects after deducting existing and approved capacity, according to estimates by Bloomberg New Energy Finance released yesterday.

The study coincides with a debate about how to fix grid congestion on Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan. Hokkaido Electric Power Co. (9509), the island’s sole utility, says applications for large-scale solar plants have surged since Japan began offering inducements to promote clean energy, leaving it with more proposed capacity than its grid can handle. Japan has approved 22.4 Giga watts of renewable energy capacity since an incentive program began in July 2012, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. BNEF estimates. Japan has 34 Giga watts of technical grid availability for new solar and wind projects.

Reform of the power market could improve the country’s grid, the London-based researcher said in the report. Such a bill is expected to be submitted to parliament in the autumn.

Source:  http://www.bloomberg.com

Switzerland plans radical solar subsidy cuts

The Swiss Solar Energy Professional Association (Swissolar) calls the government's plans for PV "catastrophic". Feed-in tariffs, payment duration and the separate category for integrated PV systems are on the chopping block. Still there might be some positive outcomes.

The Swiss government has plans to revise the Energy Regulation in the country. Among these revisions is also the threat to massively reduce FITs for renewable energy installations. The planned changes are "catastrophic" according to Swissolar. 

The plan is to reduce the FITs for photovoltaic systems by 35 to 40% and lower the remuneration period to 15 years. For all other renewable technologies, the compensation rates are to be reviewed and increased in view of the reduced payment period, added Swissolar. The solar association believes that with its first estimate it would take 22 years thus for photovoltaic systems to be profitable with such proposed tariffs. Moreover the government is also planning to completely axe the category "integrated systems," thereby reducing the tariffs for integrated photovoltaic systems by up to 50%. The so-called "cost covering feed-in tariff"  for solar power, or KEV as known in Switzerland, is 19.9 to 39.4 Swiss Rappen per kWh (16.1 to 31.9 Euro cents per kWh). 

Still Swissolar sees positive aspects as well in the government proposal. This way project progress reports will account for PV as well. And there will also be no more annual subsidy cut. A transition period is also expected. Old rates will apply for all PV systems that are operational before the implementation of the new FITs. Also PV systems that are connected later, but already have assurance for FITs, will receive the higher subsidies. 

The adoption of the solar subsidies is planned for January 1, 2014. The new energy bill will only apply from May 1 when there will be referendum. Currently the consultation process is ongoing and will carry on until mid-September. The solar association added, "Swissolar will make use of this period to make it clear to the authorities that excessive tariff reductions in the solar sector will inflict massive damage."

Source: http://www.pv-magazine.com

Scientists Produce Cheap Hydrogen from Rust and Sunlight

Researchers at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) have managed to accurately characterize the iron oxide nanostructures to be used in producing hydrogen at the “lowest known possible cost”.

The news could make is possible to achieve the idea that water and some nano-structured iron oxide is all it takes to produce bubbles of solar hydrogen.  Photoelectrochemical cells (PECs) are devices able of splitting water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen in a single operation using only solar radiation.

The French are feeling pretty good.  Michael Grätzel, Director of the Laboratory of Photonics and Interfaces (LPI) at EPFL and inventor of dye-sensitized photoelectrochemical cells said, “As a matter of fact, we’ve already discovered this precious ‘chalice’. Today we have just reached an important milestone on the path that will lead us forward to profitable industrial applications.”

The peer-reviewed paper appeared this week in Nature Materials.  The standout point of the paper is they have managed to accurately characterize the iron oxide nanostructures to be used in a water splitting operation.

Scott C. Warren, first author of the article said, “The whole point of our approach is to use an exceptionally abundant, stable and cheap material: rust.”

The press release isn’t especially complete, but hints a major point of the groups progress may have been Kevin Sivula, one of the collaborators at the LPI laboratory, presenting a prototype electrode based on the same principle last year. Its efficiency was such that gas bubbles emerged as soon as it was under a light stimulus. That lit off realizing the potential of such cheap electrodes was demonstrated.  Still, there is still room for improvement.
 
The researchers were able to precisely characterize the movement of the electrons through the cauliflower-looking nanostructures forming the iron oxide particles, laid on electrodes during the manufacturing process by using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques.

Grätzel explains, “These measures have helped us understand the reason why we get performance differences depending on the electrodes manufacturing process.”

Then comparing several electrodes, whose manufacturing method is now mastered, the scientists were able to identify the “champion” structure. A 10×10 cm prototype has been produced and its effectiveness is in line with expectations. The next step will be the development of the industrial process to large-scale manufacturing. A European funding and the Swiss federal government could provide support for this last part.

The long-term goal is to produce hydrogen in an environmentally friendly and especially, a competitive way. Grätzel said, “Current methods, in which a conventional photovoltaic cell is coupled to an electrolyzer for producing hydrogen, costs €15 per kilo at their cheapest. We’re aiming at a €5 charge per kilo.”

Source: http://actu.epfl.ch/

Thailand Plans to Boost Renewable Energy Output to 25% of Total

Thailand plans to increase production of electricity from renewable sources to 25 percent of total output over the next 10 years to reduce imports and boost energy security, the Ministry of Energy said. 

Power generation from renewables will jump by 51 percent to 13,927 megawatts by 2021, from a current target of 9,201 megawatts, the ministry said in a statement yesterday. 

Under the new goal, approved by the National Energy Policy Committee, output from biomass will be 4,800 megawatts; biogas 3,600 megawatts; solar 3,000 megawatts; wind 1,800 megawatts and the balance will come from hydropower and waste, it said. 

Thailand is providing incentives for renewable energy projects to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels, which account for more than 80 percent of the nation’s energy consumption, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on its website. 

Demco Pcl (DEMCO), a builder of electricity networks, rose 7.1 percent to 9.05 in Bangkok as of 3:50 p.m. local time, poised for its highest close in almost three weeks. Gunkul Engineering (GUNKUL) Pcl, a power producer and engineering company, gained 4.6 percent. Both companies will benefit from the government’s plan to diversify Thailand’s energy sources, Maybank Kim Eng Securities Thailand Pcl (MBKET) wrote today in a note to clients.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com

TMEIC's utility-scale PV Inverter Business

Junichi Ichihara, President and CEO of TOSHIBA MITSUBISHI-ELECTRIC INDUSTRIAL SYSTEMS CORPORATION (TMEIC) has announced 2012 utility-scale PV Inverter orders above 1GW.

Total shipments for 2012 reached 472MW, most in the first quarter of 2013. TMEIC's current production capability of 1.5 GW per year will be expanded to 2GW per year by July, 2013.

TMEIC has been manufacturing the Solar Ware(R) line of large scale PV inverters since 2009. The product line includes inverter capacities of 100/175/250/500/630kW. TMEIC has been expanding production capability and growing the sales network to meet the needs created by Japan's renewable energy FIT program, announced in July, 2012.

TMEIC's industry-leading efficiency characteristics, shortened lead-time, production capabilities, and sophisticated power control capabilities have been very well recognized by the market, leading to 2012's high number of orders. Utility Scale Installations accounted for most of the orders, followed by market share growth in the Utility segment.

About Toshiba Mitsubishi-Electric Industrial Systems Corporation (TMEIC):

Toshiba Mitsubishi-Electric Industrial Systems Corporation (TMEIC) was formed in 2003 from the merger of the industrial systems departments of Toshiba Corporation and Mitsubishi Electric Corporation. TMEIC manufactures and sells variable frequency drives, motors, and advanced automation systems for a range of industrial applications.

Source: http://asia.wsj.com/