The Anonymous Widower

Octopus Energy Forays Into German Offshore Wind Market With Butendiek Acquisition

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.

This is the sub-heading.

Octopus Energy’s generation arm has made its first offshore wind investment in Germany with the acquisition of a 5 per cent stake in the 288 MW Butendiek offshore wind farm from Ewz, the Zurich Municipal Electric Utility.

This paragraph introduces the wind farm.

Located 32 kilometres west of Sylt Island in the North Sea, the Butendiek offshore wind farm features 80 3.6 MW Siemens Gamesa wind turbines. The project has been operational since 2015, generating enough clean power for 370,000 homes.

It appears to be a mature smaller wind farm. As it has been operating for eight years, the electricity generates and any costs associated with the farm, will be well defined.

If someone made an investment, the return could probably be fairly accurately predicted.

These paragraphs outline Octopus’s strategy for investing in wind farms.

According to Octopus Energy, the deal marks the next step in the company’s global offshore wind strategy and follows its decision to channel more than EUR 1 billion of investment into green energy infrastructure in Germany by 2030.

Since entering the market last year, the company invested in four onshore wind farms with a combined capacity of 100 MW.

Octopus Energy plans to unleash USD 20 billion in offshore wind investment globally.

Besides Germany, the company invested in offshore wind farms in the UK and the Netherlands, as well as in developers of new offshore wind projects including Norway, Sweden, and South Korea.

In World’s Largest Wind Farm Attracts Huge Backing From Insurance Giant, I explain how Aviva invest in wind farms to get a return to back up their pension and insurance businesses.

As Octopus probably understand wind farms as well as, if not better than Aviva, what better place is there for the company to invest their spare cash and customers’ balances?

Octopus and Aviva are almost showing how wind farms can be used as deposit accounts, that generate a predicable return.

I suspect that other assets like energy storage, interconnectors and solar farms, where there is a history of electricity flows and maintenance costs, can also be run as deposit accounts for investors.

I can also see individuals being able to put their money into a bank account backed by renewable assets.

 

Note.

November 13, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance | , , , , | Leave a comment

‘Phantom’ Power Projects Are Holding Back The UK’s Energy Security – Centrica Report

The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Centrica.

These are the three bullet points.

  • New report shows queue for new energy projects is blocked by developers that may not even have land rights and haven’t applied for planning consents
  • Estimated size of these power projects in the queue is 62GW, roughly one fifth of all power in the queue
  • Centrica CEO argues such ‘phantom’ projects should have Construction Agreements terminated if developers miss key milestones – and urges Ofgem to give National Grid ESO the power to remove projects from the existing grid queue

This is the first two paragraphs.

A new independent report, commissioned by Centrica, has revealed the extent of the power projects holding back the UK’s energy security and creating risk around hitting net zero.

The report examined the UK’s existing queue for Transmission Entry Capacity (TEC) – the queue for connecting new projects to the transmission grid – and discovered that it is up to four times oversubscribed. Not only that, but this oversubscription has become significantly worse in the last few years.

The report found these three totals.

  • There are currently 371GW of projects in the queue, enough to significantly improve the UK’s energy security.
  • Around 114GW worth of projects have listed their connection date as before 2029.
  • But around 62GW of these projects are only in the scoping phase and developers may not even have secured land rights or applied for planning consent.

This is both good and bad news!

Here Is The Good News!

Currently, the UK is using 37 GW of electricity, of which 32 GW are generated in the UK, 5 GW is being imported through interconnectors and around 6 GW are coming from renewables.

So this means that when we build all the 371 GW in the queue, we’ll have around eleven times the electricity we are using today.

Of the 114 GW of projects listed for connection before 2029, it looks like 62 GW won’t be delivered, as they haven’t secured land rights or applied for planning consent.

But that still means that as much as 52 GW could be delivered by 2029.

Even this reduced level of new projects still increases the amount of electricity that can be generated by nearly 150 %.

If I’m being ultra pessimistic, I would say that the average capacity factor of the extra capacity was 50 %, so we’d only be adding 26 GW, so the electricity, that can be generated would only rise by around 70 %.

I suspect all in the UK can live with these paltry increases.

Here Is The Bad News!

This is a paragraph from the report.

The report suggests that the oversubscribed queue, and longer wait for connections. has a damaging effect on the investments that could drive the UK’s energy transition and energy security.

Developers and investors will decamp to countries, where they be sure of getting a return on their time and money.

Think of having two supermarkets close to you live, where one is professional and one is chaotic. Where would you shop?

The congestion caused by phantom projects must be solved.

Ofgem’s Solution

This is the solution in the press release.

Ofgem is exploring rule changes (CMP376) to address queue issues and is expected to decide these before 10 November. These rule changes would grant the ESO the ability to remove projects from the queue if they miss key milestones. Ofgem is currently considering whether to apply this rule change to just new projects entering the queue, or whether the rule change should also be applied to projects already in the queue.

They can probably come up with a solution.

An Alternative Method From My Past

In 1969, I worked for ICI, where one of my jobs was building specialist instruments for chemical plants.

Most instruments, that were designed by the group I belonged to, included a chassis on which the components and electronics were mounted. So we had a workshop and about seven or eight staff at our disposal to build the chassis and the parts outside of our skills. As they were used by several groups in the building, where we were all based, the workshop was very busy and everything was delivered late.

Eventually, a manager decided to get a grip on the situation.

He insisted, that the workshop would not do what you wanted if your delivery date was as soon as possible, rather than a date agreed by both parties.

The results were amazing and everything was delivered on the agreed date.

With the renewable energy connection queue, I am sure, that if a procedure was developed, that only allowed fully-planned projects with an agreed completion date to enter the queue, then the problems of phantom projects would be solved.

It might also reduce the cost of developing these renewable projects.

 

 

 

October 25, 2023 Posted by | Energy | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sun-Powered Rooftops Could Generate Two Nukes Of Electricity…If England Follows Peterborough’s Lead

The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit.

This is the sub-heading.

Household and commercial rooftop solar could save £450 million on bills.

These are the first two paragraphs.

If all English constituencies matched Peterborough, which has the highest proportion of homes with rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, the country’s solar capacity could be increased by around 7GW (gigawatts), new analysis from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) has found.

The nuclear power station Hinkley C will have a capacity of around 3.2GW, so the capacity rooftop solar on domestic properties could be more than the capacity of two new nuclear power stations.

It is an interesting thought.

I should say, that I have rooftop solar and it generates more electricity, than I ever thought it would.

I find this an interesting paragraph.

In addition, industry analysis shows that the capacity potential of solar on the roofs of commercial properties, such as warehouses, is 15GW. Combined, Peterborough levels of domestic solar and industry estimates for commercial solar could deliver an additional 22GW capacity, which is the equivalent of the capacity of almost 7 nuclear power stations. However, industry has reported that it is currently difficult to get commercial roof top developments connected to the grid, with waits up to a decade or more, and it can be costly.

22 GW is a lot of electricity, but I do feel, that with innovation that probably uses energy storage devices, the connection problems can be solved.

In Denny Bros Completes Solar Scheme At Bury St Edmunds Factory, I wrote about what one company in Suffolk has done with their roofs.

The technology already exists, so how long will it be before a company offers an electrolyser to convert excess electricity into hydrogen, which is used for transport, heating or an industrial process?

In Government Hydrogen Boost To Help Power Kimberly-Clark Towards 100% Green Energy Target, I talked about how Kimberly-Clark are partially switching from natural gas to green hydrogen.

September 1, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage, Hydrogen | , , , | 8 Comments

Hydrogen Business Model / Net Zero Hydrogen Fund: Shortlisted Projects Allocation Round 2022

The title if this post, is the same as this notice from the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero.

These are the the first three paragraphs.

The shortlist contains the following electrolytic hydrogen projects, totalling 408MW of capacity across England, Scotland and Wales.

Projects that have not been shortlisted for this allocation round are encouraged to submit updated bids for the second allocation round – see more details.

We expect to award contracts totalling up to 250MW of capacity from HAR1, subject to affordability and value for money. We aim for contracts to be awarded in Q4 2023, with first projects becoming operational in 2025.

Note.

  1. A rough calculation says that 408 MW of electrolysers could product about 177 tonnes of hydrogen per day.
  2. It’s not long to the fourth quarter of 2023, when hopefully we shall know more.

These are the seventeen shortlisted projects.

Aldbrough Hydrogen Pathfinder

Aldbrough Hydrogen Pathfinder is being developed by SSE Thermal in Yorkshire.

This paragraph outlines the operation of the Aldbrough Hydrogen Pathfinder.

The concept would see green power sourced from grid through Renewable PPAs, in compliance with the Low Carbon Hydrogen Standard. Hydrogen would then be produced via a 35MW electrolyser before being stored in a converted salt cavern and then used in a 100% hydrogen-fired turbine, exporting flexible green power back to grid at times of system need. In future, hydrogen storage will also benefit offtakers in other sectors, for example in industry, heat or transport.

Initial storage at Aldbrough could be as high as 320 GWh.

I went to see their presentation in June and wrote about my visit in Did I See The UK’s Hydrogen-Powered Future In Hull Today?.

Barrow Green Hydrogen

Barrow Green Hydrogen is being developed by Carlton Power in North West England.

The Barrow Green Hydrogen project has its own web site, where this is the introductory paragraph.

Barrow Green Hydrogen is an industry leading project, that will use renewable energy to produce green hydrogen fuel which will decarbonise industry, and in the future, transport and heating. The development will have an initial capacity of 35 MW, which will produce enough hydrogen to heat the equivalent of 14,000 homes. The project has the potential to expand to several hundred megawatts.

There is also a section, that is entitled; Why Barrow?, where this is said.

Barrow-in-Furness is ideally located because the area has several industrial sites, which are able to take green hydrogen without extensive modification to decarbonise their operations, which otherwise rely on natural gas. Further to this, it is well placed to serve commercial applications in other areas of Cumbria, once the project is scaled up and these applications become hydrogen ready. The site in Barrow is also well positioned to use renewable electricity from existing installations and will also enable additional new generation capacity to be installed.

In Government Hydrogen Boost To Help Power Kimberly-Clark Towards 100% Green Energy Target, I explain how this hydrogen hub will supply one of Kimberly-Clark’s factories with hydrogen to replace natural gas.

 

Bradford Low Carbon Hydrogen

Bradford Low Carbon Hydrogen is being developed by Hygen in Yorkshire.

These paragraphs from this press release on the Hygen web site outline the operation of Bradford Low Carbon Hydrogen.

A partnership between gas distributor Northern Gas Networks (NGN) and clean energy pioneers Hygen Energy (Hygen) and Ryze Hydrogen for an ambitious low carbon hydrogen production and dispensing facility in the heart of Bradford has been shortlisted for government funding.

NGN, the gas distributor for the North East, Cumbria and much of Yorkshire, is carrying out the project in a Joint Venture with the two companies.

The project will be built on NGN’s decommissioned gas storage site of Bowling Back Lane in the heart of Bradford. It will deliver one of the UK’s largest low carbon hydrogen production facilities with a clear objective of using renewable energy to power an electrolyser which will produce clean hydrogen. The site will also have on-site refuelling for hydrogen vehicles, EV charging, and a low carbon technology education centre. Residents and businesses in West Yorkshire will be able to use the refuelling facilities, with Ryze distributing hydrogen to industrial users across the region.

Note.

  1. The press release has an excellent visualisation of the project.
  2. Using a site that was previously used for gas storage, must give advantages in designing the project and its operational procedures.
  3. If anybody knows the capacity, please tell me!

It looks like a hydrogen facility for all of Bradford, its citizens and its businesses.

Cheshire Green Hydrogen

Cheshire Green Hydrogen is being developed by Progressive Energy Net Zero in North West England.

This press release from HyNet NorthWest gives these details.

HyNet partner, Progressive Energy, Statkraft and Foresight, will be working together to jointly develop a suite of green (‘electrolytic’) hydrogen projects in the North West of England.

This includes the proposed 28 megawatt (MW) Cheshire Green Hydrogen project which will use renewable electricity from Frodsham wind farm in Cheshire. This will generate green hydrogen which will supply low carbon hydrogen via the HyNet project’s planned pipeline.

The initial phase of 100MW of projects will reduce carbon dioxide emissions from industry by up to 180,000 tonnes.

The initial capacity will be 28 MW.

Commercial Scale Demonstrator

Commercial Scale Demonstrator is being developed by ERM Dolphyn in Scotland.

There is not much specific information on the ERM Dolphyn web site.

Cromarty Hydrogen Project

Cromarty Hydrogen Project is being developed by Pale Blue Dot Energy in Scotland.

This paragraph describes the Cromarty Hydrogen Project.

The facility would have a maximum output of up to 50 megawatt (MW) although this is likely to be limited in the first instance to around 30MW and be able to produce up to 20,000 kg of green hydrogen per day. The facility will have multiple electrolysers feeding on-site low pressure storage containers. The hydrogen will then be compressed onto tube trailers for transportation off-site to customers. It is our intention to use low or zero carbon fuels for the hydrogen transport vehicles wherever possible.

There is a lot of information on the web site.

Gigastack

Gigastack is being developed by Phillips 66 in North East England.

The Gigastack web site appears to be lacking in updates.

Gordonbush Hydrogen Project (GBH2)

Gordonbush Hydrogen Project is being developed by SSE Renewables in Scotland.

The proposed development is introduced like this.

The proposed development comprises a green hydrogen production facility. This would be located within the existing infrastructure of Gordonbush Wind Farm.

At this stage, the detailed design has not been fully developed and a level of refinement of the scheme is expected prior to submission of the planning application.

As with much of what SSE Renewables does, it seems a very professional project.

Green Hydrogen 1, 2 And 3

I’ll discuss these three projects together.

  • Green Hydrogen 1 is being developed by RES and Octopus Renewables in Scotland.
  • Green Hydrogen 2 is being developed by RES and Octopus Renewables in Wales.
  • Green Hydrogen 3 is being developed by RES and Octopus Renewables in South East England.

RES and Octopus Renewables have formed a joint company called Hyro.

On the Hyro web site, this is said on the opening page.

Market Leaders Coming Together For Decarbonisation

HYRO is a joint venture between Octopus Energy Generation and RES

RES is the world’s largest independent renewable energy developer – having delivered 23GW of generation in 11 countries.

Octopus Energy Generation is one of Europe’s largest investors in renewable energy. The team manages over 3GW of green power assets worth £5bn across 11 countries. It’s the generation arm of Octopus Energy Group, the global energy tech pioneer, using technology to unlock a customer focused and affordable green energy revolution.

That’s not a bad opening statement.

In Government Hydrogen Boost To Help Power Kimberly-Clark Towards 100% Green Energy Target, I explain how Green Hydrogen 2 and 3 will supply two of Kimberly-Clark’s factories with hydrogen to replace natural gas.

The initial capacity of Green Hydrogen 2 and 3 will be 50 MW. So will Green Hydrogen 1, 2 and 3 all be 25 MW electrolysers?

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Hyro doing more deals with large natural gas users.

H2 Production Plant at High Marnham

H2 Production Plant at High Marnham is being developed by J G Pears in the East Midlands of England.

J G Pears is the driver here and the About page of their web site is a must-read.

This section describes their approach.

From our humble beginnings, we have grown to become one of the largest businesses in the UK animal by-products sector. We’ve achieved this thanks to constant innovation and investment plus a relentless focus on building relationships with customer and partner businesses.

Innovation, investment and customer focus.

We actively look for new and better ways to work, and invest continuously in new ideas and processes. We plan everything we do around the twin goals of making our operations as clean and green as possible and delivering products and services that meet customer needs.

And this section details their story.

We started as a family business, and we’re still a family business. But today, our family now includes a group of companies, customers and suppliers worldwide, and a large workforce across our various sites.

The story starts in 1972, with the Pears family developing a livestock farming business in and around Penistone, South Yorkshire.

As time went on, the family farming business diversified into animal by-product and food waste collection services. More recently we added two by-product processing facilities to the Group’s activity portfolio. This ensures complete control of our end to end collection and processing services.

The original family farm in Penistone is still very much part of the business, continuing our farming heritage and housing the Group’s head office.

They’ve recently added a combined heat and power plant (CHP).

These two paragraphs describe how they use the CHP.

The CHP plant generates renewable energy by providing steam and electricity to our existing businesses as well as exporting its excess electrical power to the National Grid.

This biomass-fired CHP plant will use meat and bone meal (MBM) to replace over 90% of the fossil fuels used in the current business processes. MBM is a sustainable alternative with a calorific value of the same magnitude as coal, meaning that more than 150,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide will be saved per year. MBM can also be sourced more locally than the fuels currently used, which in turn reduces carbon emissions from transport and transport kilometres.

It’s a new one on me, to use meat and bone meal to replace coal.

Their services and products are worth a look.

The company are certainly proof of the old Yorkshire saying of “Where there’s muck there’s brass!”

HyBont

HyBont is being developed by Marubeni Europower on Wales.

Hybont has a comprehensive web site, where this is said about the concept.

We are developing plans for a green hydrogen production and refuelling facility at Brynmenyn Industrial Estate, partially powered by a solar farm at Bryncethin.

A wide number of uses for the hydrogen, including vehicle fuelling are proposed.

HyGreen Teesside

HyGreen Teesside is being developed by BP Alternative Energy Investments in North East England.

HyGreen Teesside has a comprehensive web site, where this is said about the project.

HyGreen Teesside aims to be one of the biggest green hydrogen production facilities in the UK. Green hydrogen is made by electrolysing water using power from low carbon energy sources such as solar or wind.

Located in Teesside, HyGreen Teesside is targeting 80MWe of green hydrogen capacity by 2025 – and targeting growth to 500 MW by 2030, delivering up to 5% of the UK government’s hydrogen target of 10GW by 2030.

It is eventually going to be a large electrolyser.

Langage Green Hydrogen

Langage Green Hydrogen is being developed by Carlton Power in South West England.

Langage Green Hydrogen has a comprehensive web site, where this is said about the project.

Langage Green Hydrogen is an industry leading project, that will use renewable energy to produce green hydrogen fuel which will decarbonise industry, and in the future, transport and heating. The development will have an initial capacity of 10 MW, which will produce enough hydrogen to heat the equivalent of 14,000 homes. The project is part of the wider Langage Energy Park.

 

Note.

 

Quill 2

Quill 2 is being developed by INOVYN ChlorVinyls in North West England.

There is very little about Quill 2 on the Internet.

Personally, I find that a pity, as I used to work on what is now INOVYN’s Runcorn site.

Tees Green Hydrogen

Tees Green Hydrogen is being developed by EDF Renewables Hydrogen in North East England.

This page on the EDF Renewables web site gives this spotlight for Tees Green Hydrogen.

Tees Green Hydrogen, will be a pioneering project, using the green electricity from nearby Teesside Offshore Wind Farm along with a new solar farm, which EDF Renewables UK intends to construct near Redcar, to power its hydrogen electrolyser. The project will supply local business customers with hydrogen to support decarbonisation efforts and a significant reduction in industrial pollution.

There is also an informative animation.

This is said about the capacity.

In its initial phase, the electrolyser will have a 7.5MW capacity. It is hoped that work could begin on site in 2024, with the facility operational by 2026. Future phases will seek to deliver up to 300MW in Teesside before 2030.

Quel énorme!

Trafford Green Hydrogen

Trafford Green Hydrogen is being developed by Carlton Power in North West England.

This is the introduction on the project web page.

Trafford Green Hydrogen is an industry leading project, that will use renewable energy to produce green hydrogen fuel for industry, transport and heating. The development will have an ultimate capacity of 200MW, which will be sufficient to take around 8,000 petrol cars off the road annually. The initial phase will be 20MW.

Carlton are also developing two other projects;

West Wales Hydrogen Project – Phase 1

West Wales Hydrogen Project – Phase 1 is being developed by H2 Energy and Trafigura in Wales.

The best source of information is this must-watch Youtube video.

The company appears to be able to lease you a hydrogen truck on a pay per mile basis, at the same price as a diesel truck.

Get the finance right for your customers and yourself and everybody will be happy.

Whitelee Green Hydrogen

Whitelee Green Hydrogen is being developed by Scottish Power in Scotland.

The Whitelee wind farm is described like this on this web page.

Whitelee is the UK’s largest onshore windfarm, located on Eaglesham Moor just 20 minutes from central Glasgow. Its 215 turbines generate up to 539 megawatts of electricity, enough to power over 350,000 homes*.

With more than 130 kilometres of trails to explore, on foot, by cycle or by horse, with free parking and free entry to our onsite Visitor Centre, Whitelee is a great destination for a day out with the whole family.

I wrote about this project in Whitelee Green Hydrogen Facility To Power Public Transport.

Conclusion

These projects will create a lot of green hydrogen.

These are my highlights.

  • J G Pears, who have developed an animal by-products business with a distinct green agenda.
  • Kimberly-Clark planning three hydrogen plants in Cumbria, Kent and North Wales to decarbonise their paper products business.
  • The up to 300 MW Tees Green Hydrogen being developed by EDF Renewables.
  • The H2 Energy and Trafigura hydrogen truck business in West Wales.

Don’t forget to watch the video for the last project.

 

 

 

August 19, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Hydrogen | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Brits Are Future Proofing Their Homes, Increasingly Valuing Sustainable Elements

The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Centrica.

These are the first two paragraphs.

It may still be true that for many, their home is their ‘castle’ but if so, it better be a well-insulated castle, as new research shows that Brits increasingly value energy efficient and environmentally friendly houses.

A survey from Hive revealed that the top selling points on a dream home for modern Brits are related to sustainability, with solar panels (68 percent) and good roof insulation (67 percent) valued more than design features such as natural lighting (53 percent), wooden flooring (22 per cent) and reclaimed woodwork (21 percent). Smart home technology such as a smart heating system (62 percent), a smart energy meter (48 percent) and an EV charger on the driveway (39 percent) were also top considerations.

As I fitted solar panels and good roof insulation to my house, their research could fit me.

I haven’t fitted an EB charger as I don’t drive.

June 30, 2023 Posted by | Energy | , , | 2 Comments

DOE Announces 7 Awards To Cut Heliostat Costs

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Solar Paces.

I haven’t talked about heliostats much before and can only find these two posts; one about Australia and one about Spainspain

I feel it is good that the Americans are backing this technology.

These are a summary of the projects.

  • SunRing: Advanced Manufacturing and Field Deployment: This project by Solar Dynamics LLC and partners will develop processes to maximize cost-competitiveness, performance, and reliability of Solar Dynamics’ existing SunRing heliostat design.
  • HELIOCOMM: A Resilient Wireless Heliostats Communication System: This components-and-controls project by the University of New Mexico will model a resilient wireless communication system based on the principles of integrated access and backhaul (IAB) technology, entropy-based routing, dynamic spectrum management, and interference mitigation.
  • An Educational Program on Concentrating Solar Power and Heliostats for Power Generation and Industrial Process: This project by Northeastern University will develop an educational program focused on concentrating solar power (CSP) and heliostats for power generation and industrial processes.
  • Demonstration of a Heliostat Solar Field Wireless Control System: Solar Dynamics LLC, with partners Remcom and Vanteon Corporation, will carry out a project aimed at demonstrating the reliable operation of a wireless heliostat solar field control system using commercially available products and developing analytical tools to de-risk the large-scale deployment of the wireless technology to solar fields with tens of thousands of heliostats.
  • Twisting Heliostats With Closed-Loop Tracking: This project will design, manufacture, and test a new type of heliostat and study its application for high-concentration CSP.
  • Digital Twin and Industry 4.0 in Support of Heliostat Technology Advancement: The Tietronix project aims to leverage technologies from the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0) to enhance the CSP industry and achieve the cost reduction experienced by other industries that have already adopted such advancements.
  • Robotic-Assisted Facet Installation (RA-FI): Sarcos Technology and Robotics Corp., in collaboration with Heliogen, will investigate the feasibility of a novel mobile robotic system capable of supporting the installation of mirror facets onto a heliostat.

Governments and institutions and individuals with money should support this sort of research and development.

June 4, 2023 Posted by | Energy | , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Gresham House Energy Storage Sets GBP80 Million Fundraise

Gresham House Energy Storage Fund must be doing something right, as similar headlines are used in half-a-dozen places on the Internet and they regularly seem to be raising more money.

But then, as a Graduate Control Engineer and a previous owner of half a finance company, I’ve always thought raising money to build batteries was a good idea.

My only niggle with Gresham House, is that I would have thought by now, they would have put some money into building one of the excellent new technology batteries that are coming through.

The storage fund or some of its employees, may of course have contributed to some of the crowdfunding for these new technologies, all of which I feel have a good chance of being a success.

Note.

  1. Energy Dome is Italian and all the others are at least fifty percent British.
  2. Most of the British batteries have had backing from the UK government.
  3. All these batteries are environmentally-friendly.
  4. None of these batteries use large quantities of rare and expensive materials.
  5. Energy Dome even uses carbon dioxide as the energy storage medium.

In addition, in Scotland, there is traditional pumped storage hydro-electricity.

Project Iliad

This article on renews.biz has a slightly different headline of Gresham House To Raise £80m For US Battery Buildout.

This is the first two paragraphs.

Gresham House Energy Storage Fund is seeking to raise £80m through a share placing.

The new equity raised will primarily be used to finance 160MW of solar with co-located four-hour battery projects in California, US, known as Project Iliad.

The article then gives a lot of financial details of Project Iliad and Gresham House.

Will Gresham House be backing co-located solar/battery projects in the UK?

  • In Cleve Hill Solar Park, I write about a co-located solar/battery project in Kent.
  • This press release from National Grid is entitled UK’s First Transmission-Connected Solar Farm Goes Live, which also describes a co-located solar/battery project, being built near Bristol.

These two projects are certainly serious and could be pathfinders for a whole host of co-located solar/battery projects.

WillGresham House back some of this new generation?

 

May 18, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage, Finance | , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Boralex Commissions BESS At Wind Farm In France In EU-Supported Demonstration Project

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Energy Storage News.

These two paragraphs outline the project.

Canada-based renewable energy firm Boralex has turned on a 3.3MWh battery storage unit attached to a wind farm in France.

The battery storage project has been installed at the site of the Plouguin wind farm, an 8MW generating facility in the Finistere department of Brittany, northwest France.

Note.

  1. The project was co-financed by the European Union through its European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
  2. The project was launched to demonstrate the technical feasibility of a hybrid wind-plus-storage project.
  3. Boralex added in its announcement that the project will contribute to the stability of the French electricity grid.

There will be a lot of projects like this in the future.

This paragraph makes an interesting point about using batteries with solar and wind power.

Wind farms are less frequently hybridised with energy storage than solar PV because of the larger minimum project size and less predictable variability, with sharper peaks meaning heavier battery cycling and potentially faster degradation.

My control engineering knowledge and experience says that larger power sources and those that are highly variable will need batteries with more capacity for the same stability and quality of power output.

This sounds to me like a very good reason for developing larger and more affordable batteries, like those of Cheesecake Energy, Energy Dome, Gravitricity and Highview Power.

It also probably means that to stabilise several gigawatts of wind power, you need a very large amount of storage, that can only be provided by pumped storage hydroelectricity.

Conclusion

A very large amount energy storage is going to be needed.

Projects like these are essential to make sure we use them to their full possibilities.

May 2, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage | , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

UK Government Grants £30 Million For Long Duration Energy Storage Projects

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Solar Power Portal.

These two paragraphs outline the grants and their recipients.

The UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) is providing £30 million in grants for three long-duration energy storage (LDES) projects using novel energy storage technologies.

The three projects awarded funding are from Synchrostor, Invinity Energy Systems and Cheesecake Energy. Synchrostor and Cheesecake Energy are to receive £9.4 million each to fund thermal energy storage systems and Invinity Energy Systems receiving £11 million to develop a vanadium flow battery.

The UK Government seems to give out a lot of these grants for research and development purposes and from feedback I have received from recipients and also by applying my own experience, I am of the opinion, that they are spending tax-payers money more in a wise, rather than a foolish direction.

Cheesecake Energy

I wrote about Cheesecake Energy’s grant in Cheesecake Energy Collects £9.4m Government Funding.

The Government’s press release says this about Cheesecake’s grant.

Cheesecake Energy Ltd, Nottingham, which will receive £9.4 million to test their FlexiTanker technology which stores electricity using a combination of thermal and compressed air energy storage and uses a reversible air compression / expansion train to charge and discharge. They will then install pilot units at 2 sites within a microgrid development in Colchester.

If this project proves successful, it surely is one that can be duplicated in many places.

I have had my eye on Cheesecake Energy for some time and this could be their breakthrough.

Invinity Energy Systems

I first wrote about Invinity Energy Systems in UK’s Pivot Power Sees First Battery On Line By 2021.

The Government’s press release says this about Invinity’s grant.

Invinity Energy (UK) Limited, Scotland, which will receive £11 million to develop and manufacture their 7MW, 30MWh 4-hour Vanadium Flow Battery (VFB), the largest in the UK. Invinity will manufacture the 30 MWh VFB at the Company’s factory in West Lothian, Scotland. The location of the plant will be confirmed in due course.

In this article on renews.biz, which is entitled Invinity Wins Funds For 30MWh UK Battery, these two paragraphs introduce the project.

Invinity Energy Systems plc has today been awarded £11m in funding by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to build what it says is the largest grid-scale battery ever manufactured in the UK.

The £11m in funding will come from the Longer Duration Energy Storage Demonstration (LODES) Competition, with funding matched by Invinity’s, as yet unnamed, project partner.

These are other points from the article.

  • It will be a fast-response 30MWh battery.
  • The battery will be assembled at Bathgate in Scotland.
  • It will operate as a stand-alone energy storage asset.
  • It will be connected to the National Grid.
  • Invinity’s vanadium flow batteries are an alternative to lithium-ion.

The aim is to go live by 2025.

This paragraph indicates the differences between a vanadium flow battery and a traditional lithium ion one.

Invinity said this battery is safer as they cannot catch fire, more durable as they do not degrade with use and are almost completely recyclable at the end of their 25+ year life, reducing environmental impacts and disposal costs for project owners.

I believe that there will come a point, when fully-developed vanadium flow batteries, will become very attractive for financial reasons to the successful energy storage funds like Gresham House and Gore Street.

If the UK government’s funding hastens the day, when energy storage funds feel that these new-fangled vanadium flow batteries are a safe investment, then it is money well spent.

It is not as though the money is going to an early start-up, as this page on the Invinity Energy Systems web site indicates  at least a dozen installations.

This project for an as yet unnamed customer, which has a capacity of 30 MWh, is probably much bigger and the Government help is probably very much welcomed.

SynchroStor

SynchroStor was new to me, today.

The Government’s press release says this about SynchroStor’s grant.

Synchrostor, Edinburgh, Scotland, which will receive £9.4 million to build a Pumped Thermal Energy Storage (PTES) grid-connected demonstration plant operating at 1MW, with the ability to charge and discharge for a period of 10 hours, longer than current battery technology.

This page named Technology on their web site, explains their technology, both with words and diagrams.

It is probably the most complex technologies of the three batteries, but I don’t think that will be a problem.

Conclusion

The Government has given grants to three different storage technologies.

If all goes well three good sizable pilot plants will be created and those companies like Centrica, Gore Street, Gresham House, National Grid, Ørsted, SSE and others, will be able to judge, which system is best for their needs.

 

April 14, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Centrica Plan Green Energy Hub At Former Gas Power Plant

The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Centrica.

These three paragraphs outline the project.

A former gas fired power plant in North Yorkshire is to be turned in to a green energy hub under ambitious plans by Centrica.

The energy company has acquired the four-acre former Knapton Generating Station from Third Energy and plans to develop a 28MW battery on the site.

In addition, Centrica is exploring how Knapton could be used for off-grid hydrogen production, as well as the possibility for solar energy in the surrounding area.

Over the last few months, I’ve written about other small projects from Centrica.

The company has also announced links with other companies.

Note, that the first concerns generators and the others concern hydrogen.

The Centrica news item about the Knapton generating station has this fourth paragraph.

The multi-million pound deal is part of Centrica Business Solutions strategic plan to create a 900MW portfolio of solar and battery assets by 2026.

It seems obvious to me that the Brigg, Knapton and Redditch projects fit this Centrica Business Solutions strategic plan, with sizes as follows.

  • Brigg – 49 MW
  • Knapton – 41.5 MW
  • Redditch – 20 MW

I would expect to see Centrica behind several more of these smaller energy projects.

For that reason I have tagged all articles dealing with these projects as Centrica Small Energy Projects.

These are my thoughts about the Knapton generating station.

Third Energy

Third energy’s web site defines Third Energy as an unusual fossil energy company.

  • The History page says that Knapton Generating Station was producing electricity using gas from the Vale of Pickering for over 25 years.
  • The Net Zero Rise page describes their involvement in the Net Zero RISE consortium with Durham, Leicester and Oxford Universities.
  • The Plug & Abandon and Geothermal pages are very much worth a read.

According to the Centrica news item, Third Energy will retain the ownership of the 12 well-sites and associated gas pipeline network.

I shall be watching this company and their developing relationship with Centrica.

The Net Zero RISE Consortium

The Net Zero RISE Consortium has a home page on the Newcastle University web site.

The page has this sub-heading.

Research Infrastructure for Subsurface Energy: an academic-industry partnership to deliver the UK’s first deep test sites.

This is said under a heading of Our Ambition.

This is the most cost-effective way of developing the UK’s first deep test site onshore.

Repurposing wells leverages previous capital investment. Using an onshore site with existing wells and geophysical data:

  • eliminates the major cost of drilling and engineering
  • reduces uncertainty by drawing on knowledge of the well and surrounding geological conditions
  • is safer and easier access than offshore locations

We propose developing three test sites: CO2 storage; H2 storage and geothermal.

This seems to be a very sensible research collaboration and I wouldn’t be surprised to see more companies and universities join.

The Battery

The Centrica news item says this about the battery.

The first project at the site near Malton will be a 56MWh battery which will utilise some of the 41.5MW export capability of the existing grid connection. It’s anticipated the battery would be able to power around 14,000 homes for two hours.

This paragraph would indicate that the battery is supplying just 2 kWh per hour.

A common figure on the Internet is that the average house uses 8 kWh per day, which is 0.33 kWh per hour.

I have a feeling that the figures need correcting somewhere.

Solar Power

The third paragraph of the Centrica news item mentions solar energy.

In addition, Centrica is exploring how Knapton could be used for off-grid hydrogen production, as well as the possibility for solar energy in the surrounding area.

This Google Map shows the site.

It appears to be several hundred metres to the nearest house.

I have read a very simple rule, that says a hectare, which is about the size of a full-size football pitch can accommodate a MW of panels. Obviously Centrica will have accurate calculations.

Off-Grid Hydrogen Production

The third paragraph of the Centrica news item mentions off-grid hydrogen production.

In addition, Centrica is exploring how Knapton could be used for off-grid hydrogen production, as well as the possibility for solar energy in the surrounding area.

Consider these points about the Knapton site.

  • It has been handling gas for at least twenty-five years.
  • It is connected to the electricity and gas grids.
  • It has connections to a dozen gas wells.
  • There would be space for a smaller electrolyser.
  • Hydrogen could be exported from the site, by blending into the natural gas grid.

If Third Energy and the Net Zero RISE Consortium develop Knapton as a site for their H2 Storage test well, Centrica and an off-grid hydrogen production facility would be ideal partners.

Centrica could even use the site to try out new ideas.

This appears to be one of those engineering projects, that has been thought through whilst drinking several pints of real ale in a welcoming hostelry nearby.

Geothermal Engineering

This site could be used for experiments with geothermal engineering, but there doesn’t seem many places nearby, that would need a good supply of hot water.

Conclusion

There’s more to this deal, than meets the eye.

April 7, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage, Hydrogen | , , , , , | 1 Comment

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