Solar power is improving the living conditions of thousands of Mozambicans living in rural areas not connected to the national electricity network. The solar panels have been installed by the National Energy Fund (FUNAE) to provide electricity for homes, schools, health units, police stations, public lighting and public buildings.
The project to install the solar panels has been implemented with financial support from the European Union.
A team from FUNAE recently visited some of the zones covered by the project in northern Mozambique to analyse the socio economic impact.
The team visited the districts of Chiure and Meluco in Cabo Delgado province, Nipepe in Niassa province and Monapo in Nampula province. It found that residents are using the energy for lighting, refrigeration, and charging mobile telephones.
In the health units the power is being used for refrigerators to conserve medicines and to provide lighting so that patients can be treated at any time of day.
The team also found that night schools are being organised for adult education and computers are being introduced into classrooms.
Nationally, about thirty per cent of the population have access to electricity, of whom twenty per cent have access through the electricity grid.
FUNAE intends to provide solar power to 2.1 million Mozambicans as part of a fifteen year strategy for the development of new and renewable energy.
Other forms of electricity generation that are being investigated include the use of small hydro-electric generators, wind generators, geothermal systems and biomass from organic material such as sugar cane. The strategy also covers power generation from the sea, using wave and tidal energy, and temperature variations in the ocean
Source:http://www.power-eng.com/news/2012/07/03/solar-power-transforming-lives.html
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Monday, July 2, 2012
Japan launches generous solar power incentives
Japan yesterday kicked off a new era in renewable energy with feed-in tariffs for solar power, as well as other renewables, that are expected to turn the country into one of the world’s biggest markets.
The new premium feed-in tariff price for solar electricity is around triple the level for conventional power and is designed to drive uptake of the technology to plug the gap left by nuclear power.
Japan has turned off all its nuclear power stations, which provided around 30% of the country’s power, in the wake of the Fukushima crisis last year.
According to media and financial reports, utilities will now pay ¥42 per kilowatt hour to solar generators with installations over 10 kW for a 20-year period, almost twice the rate in Germany, which has been a market leader in solar power.
Japan, which is currently ranked sixth in the world in terms of solar capacity, has plans for 3.2-4.7 GW of new solar capacity next year to add to its existing 5 GW.
The growth means that Japan will be second only to China in terms of solar capacity growth, becoming an attractive market for investment.
The feed-in tariffs announced by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, which are among the highest in the world, also cover wind, hydro, geothermal and bioenergy technologies.
But Japan has a lot of ground to make up. Currently, the country only ge
Source:http://www.energyefficiencynews.com/articles/i/5233/?cid=4
Sunday, July 1, 2012
PSC backs solar power generation
A decision Friday by the V.I. Public Services Commission gave the green light to the territory's new solar energy project.
In a unanimous vote, the commission approved six power purchase agreements between the V.I. Water and Power Authority and three solar companies - Toshiba International Corporation, Lanco Virgin Islands and Sun Edison.
Under the agreements, the companies will invest about $65 million to build, operate and maintain multiple solar arrays on St. Thomas and St. Croix to produce a total of 18 megawatts of power.
WAPA Executive Director Hugo Hodge Jr. said the solar project will supply the utility with about 14 percent of the territory's peak load demand.
On St. Croix, three solar array sites will be placed throughout the island - one east, one west and one mid-island. The mid-island site will be next to the Home Depot.
On St. Thomas, the majority of the solar panels will be constructed on the roof of Tutu Park Mall, as well as on the roof of a canopy covered parking at the mall that will be constructed soon. Ground-installed solar arrays also will be located in the Donoe area near Home Depot.
Each solar array will sell power to WAPA at a different rate based on the cost to produce the electricity. Hodge said the cost to purchase the solar power will be between 14 and 24 cents per kilowatt hour, with a weighted average of between 16 and 17 cents per kilowatt hour. The rates represent the average terms for the life of the power purchase agreements, which are about 20 years.
Hodge said the rates are far below WAPA's avoided cost - the amount it would cost to produce the same amount of energy in its power plants.
Hodge said the solar project provides stability for the utility, because the rates will not change as they do being dependent on the volatile fuel oil market. Additionally, the peak load hours - during the day - are when the sun is shining and the solar panels are producing the most energy, he said.
Public Services Commission consultant Jim Madan recommended at Friday's meeting that the commission approve the power purchase agreements.
"The projects will reduce price volatility and increase WAPA's fuel diversification, and we think those are important objectives," he said.
Madan said the average residential customer using 500 kilowatt hours a month will see a decrease in their bill by about $1.55 to $1.75 once all the solar panels are operational.
Commercial customers using 5,000 kilowatt hours a month will see bills drop by about $15, and those using about 20,000 kilowatt hours a month will see a $62 savings, Madan said.
Public Services Commission Chairman Donald Cole said the time has come to move to alternative energy.
"I think WAPA has done an excellent job in going out and procuring this so we can diversify our energy here in the territory," Cole said.
Source:http://virginislandsdailynews.com/news/psc-backs-solar-power-generation-1.1337231
In a unanimous vote, the commission approved six power purchase agreements between the V.I. Water and Power Authority and three solar companies - Toshiba International Corporation, Lanco Virgin Islands and Sun Edison.
Under the agreements, the companies will invest about $65 million to build, operate and maintain multiple solar arrays on St. Thomas and St. Croix to produce a total of 18 megawatts of power.
WAPA Executive Director Hugo Hodge Jr. said the solar project will supply the utility with about 14 percent of the territory's peak load demand.
On St. Croix, three solar array sites will be placed throughout the island - one east, one west and one mid-island. The mid-island site will be next to the Home Depot.
On St. Thomas, the majority of the solar panels will be constructed on the roof of Tutu Park Mall, as well as on the roof of a canopy covered parking at the mall that will be constructed soon. Ground-installed solar arrays also will be located in the Donoe area near Home Depot.
Each solar array will sell power to WAPA at a different rate based on the cost to produce the electricity. Hodge said the cost to purchase the solar power will be between 14 and 24 cents per kilowatt hour, with a weighted average of between 16 and 17 cents per kilowatt hour. The rates represent the average terms for the life of the power purchase agreements, which are about 20 years.
Hodge said the rates are far below WAPA's avoided cost - the amount it would cost to produce the same amount of energy in its power plants.
Hodge said the solar project provides stability for the utility, because the rates will not change as they do being dependent on the volatile fuel oil market. Additionally, the peak load hours - during the day - are when the sun is shining and the solar panels are producing the most energy, he said.
Public Services Commission consultant Jim Madan recommended at Friday's meeting that the commission approve the power purchase agreements.
"The projects will reduce price volatility and increase WAPA's fuel diversification, and we think those are important objectives," he said.
Madan said the average residential customer using 500 kilowatt hours a month will see a decrease in their bill by about $1.55 to $1.75 once all the solar panels are operational.
Commercial customers using 5,000 kilowatt hours a month will see bills drop by about $15, and those using about 20,000 kilowatt hours a month will see a $62 savings, Madan said.
Public Services Commission Chairman Donald Cole said the time has come to move to alternative energy.
"I think WAPA has done an excellent job in going out and procuring this so we can diversify our energy here in the territory," Cole said.
Source:http://virginislandsdailynews.com/news/psc-backs-solar-power-generation-1.1337231
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