Daily News Wrap-Up: juwi to Build Solar Battery Hybrid Project at Egypt’s Largest Gold Mine
UL to develop automation tool for residential solar projects in Illinois
May 6, 2021
Here are some noteworthy cleantech announcements of the day from around the world:
South Africa-based subsidiary of German renewable energy company juwi has signed an agreement with Sukari Gold Mines to design, supply, build, and integrate a solar battery hybrid power plant for Egypt’s largest gold mine. The hybrid power solution will reportedly reduce diesel consumption by an estimated 22 million liters of emission per year and bring down sustaining costs and fuel price volatility. The initiative is not only slated to curb carbon emissions by an estimated 60,000 tCO2 emission per year but also reduce the increased reliability of the power system.
Solar developer ReneSola Power has entered into a joint venture (JV) with Eiffel Investment Group to fast-track the company’s current and future solar projects across Europe. Under the JV, ReneSola will have a 51% stake and Eiffel, 49%. The initial portfolio will consist of 340 MW of projects in advanced stages of development located in Poland, Spain, and France, which will be completed by the partners. The JV company intends to fund the development of up to 700 MW of solar projects in the next three years across Europe.
Danish power company Ørsted has completed its Permian Energy Center project, a 460 MW hybrid solar and battery storage facility located in Andrews County, Texas. The project has placed Ørsted’s onshore operating capacity at 2.1 GW. The project’s 1.3 million solar panels will generate enough clean energy to power more than 80,000 US households. The project with 420 MW of solar PV and 40 MW of battery storage will be located on a 3,600-acre site alongside existing oil and gas installations and will serve the growing West Texas demand for electricity.
Wind turbine manufacturer Vestas has been selected by Neoen to deliver engineering, procurement, and construction solutions to its 404 MW Mutkalampi onshore wind project in Finland. Apart from looking into the project’s civil and electrical works, Vestas will also deliver its EnVentus platform to the Mutkalampi project, its largest order yet in Europe for the wind turbine platform. The order takes sales of the EnVentus platform to over 2.9 GW, with approximately 1.2 GW of those orders being installed in Finland, indicating Finland’s eagerness for turbine technology uptake. Most of the electricity produced in Mutkalampi will supply Google, Heineken, Nobian (previously Nouryon), Philips, and Signify through five 10-year corporate power purchase agreements for a combined total of 251 MW. Fully owned by Neoen, Mutkalampi will be Finland’s biggest wind farm.
Illinois-based UL has signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to collaborate towards the commercialization of the SolarAPP+ automated permitting tool. The tool will help local governments expedite permitting on residential solar projects while determining compliance with safety and code standards. The device is likely to cut down on the time required to grant a permit from a national average of five business days to zero.
Siemens Gamesa has been confirmed as the supplier for Hai Long’s 1,044 MW offshore wind projects. Siemens Gamesa’s largest offshore agreement in Taiwan to date now covers the Hai Long 2B (232 MW) and Hai Long 3 (512 MW) projects. Siemens Gamesa will deliver SG 14-222 DD offshore wind turbines to all three wind power projects of Hai Long. The SG 14-222 DD offshore wind turbines are planned to be installed 50 km off the coast of Changhua County. Each turbine will have a capacity of 14 MW and feature a rotor diameter of 222 meters using 108-meter-long Siemens Gamesa IntegralBlades.