THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - JULY 2017
4 Americas News
California legislates
100 per cent renewables
Progressive US states continue to lead the way on clean energy policies in spite of Trump’s attempts to underpin the
fossil fuel sector.
Siân Crampsie
Lawmakers in California have approved
legislation to implement one
of the most ambitious renewable
energy targets in the world.
The state Senate has approved, by a
vote of 25-13, a bill setting a target of
100 per cent renewable energy by
2045. The legislation also includes
proposals to accelerate the US state’s
renewables portfolio standard (RPS),
and will now be considered by the
state Assembly.
The move is an indication that policy
makers and legislators in the country
remain willing to pursue climate goals
despite President Donald Trump’s decision
to withdraw the country from
the Paris Climate Accord.
“We passed the most ambitious target
in the world to expand clean energy
and put Californians to work,” said
Senate Leader Kevin de Leon (D-Los
Angeles) in a press release. “Now more
than ever, it is critical that we double
down on climate leadership as we learn
that the President intends to withdraw
from the Paris agreement. Regardless
of what Washington does, California
will show the way forward.”
In June, the Business Network for
Offshore Wind said that that Trump’s
decision to withdraw from the Paris
Accord would not stop offshore wind
farms from being built in the USA.
Liz Burdock, executive director of
the Business Network for Offshore
Wind, said that Trump’s decision
would embolden progressive states to
take action on climate change, and that
a formal withdrawal from the deal
would take a minimum of four years.
Burdock added that 90 MW of offshore
wind development in New York
and that state’s plans to achieve 2400
MW were “secure”. Current policies
will also keep the onshore wind sector
growing through 2020, according to
the American Wind Energy Association
(AWEA).
Solar energy is also continuing to
grow in the USA, with system prices
on a downward trajectory.
A recent report from GTM and the
Solar Energy Industries Association
(SEIA) shows that ome 2044 MW of
solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity was
installed in January-March 2017.
California was the leader in total deployments,
with 507 MW for the
quarter, it added.
If the bill passed in California becomes
law, the state will have to entirely
abandon fossil fuel electricity in
less than three decades and accelerate
its RPS of 50 per cent by 2030. California
would also have to reach 50 per
cent renewables by 2026 and 60 per
cent by 2030.
Energy storage facilities continue to
come on line in North America as
utilities seek solutions for maintaining
reliable electric services.
E.On has celebrated the opening of
its 10 MW Iron Horse energy storage
facility near Tuscon, Arizona, while
Powin Energy Corporation announced
that it planned the construction of
two facilities in Canada.
E.On’s 10 MW lithium titanium oxide
storage facility and accompanying
2 MW solar array is now helping Tucson
Electric Power (TEP) to maintain
reliable electric service by providing
frequency regulation and voltage control
support. The facility is E.On’s first
grid-connected lithium battery system
in North America, E.On said, adding
in a statement that “energy storage has
the potential to truly revolutionize the
21st century grid”.
“We expect energy storage systems
like Iron Horse to play an increasingly
important role in the delivery of safe,
reliable electric service to customers
as we continue our expansion of renewable
resources,” said Carmine
Tilghman, Senior Director of Energy
Supply and Renewable Energy for
TEP.
Powin said in mid-June that it
planned to partner with Hecate Energy
to build energy storage projects
at two sites in Ontario with a total
capacity of 12.8 MW/52.8 MWh. The
projects will be based on Powin’s
Stack140 modular battery system and
deployed on “an extremely aggressive
timeline”, according to Geoffrey
Brown, Powin’s President.
The Ontario projects will be used for
frequency regulation, voltage control,
and reactive power support, and combined
represent the largest rollout of
energy storage in Canada. They will
start operating in September 2017.
Powin Energy recently installed a 2
MW/9 MWh energy storage system in
Irvine, California, for Southern California
Edison.
E.On is currently building two further
storage projects at its existing
Pyron and Inadale wind farms in west
Texas. The so-called Texas Waves
projects will be based on lithium-ion
battery technology and are due on line
by the end of 2017.
The company developing the Rio
Grande hydropower complex in Peru
has been asked to provide more information
on the project by the country’s
environmental authorities.
Odebrecht Energía del Perú is in
the planning stages of the 750 MW
project and has been asked by the
Peruvian Energy and Mines Ministry
to respond to 149 observations on
its environmental impact statement
(EIS).
The hydropower complex comprises
the 600 MW Rio Grande I and 150
MW Rio Grande II plants on the Marañón
river. Opponents to the project
say that it threatens the area’s sensitive
wildlife and will also have social
impacts on local indigenous people.
The EIS observations relate to project
description, environmental management
strategy, compensation,
community and contingency plans,
and citizen participation.
Chile will consider increasing its
renewable energy target to 100 per
cent, according to local reports.
The country currently has a target of
increasing renewable energy sources’
share of the country’s power mix to
70 per cent by 2050. However, Andres
Romero, Executive Secretary of the
National Energy Commission (CNE),
told Chile’s Diaio Financiero that
Chile will analyse whether the country
should lift their current target to
100 per cent.
Chile is on track to reach its interim
target of 20 per cent renewable energy
by 2025 five years ahead of schedule,
Romero said, adding that the falling
costs of renewables coupled with the
country’s potential for solar and wind
energy made more aggressive targets
possible.
Non-hydro renewables account for
12 per cent of Chile’s electricity generating
mix, according to Bloomberg
New Energy Finance (BNEF), and the
country is also keen to reduce reliance
on energy imports.
At the end of May, Electro Power
Systems (EPS) said it had completed
a new hybrid energy storage system
and microgrid installation in Chile for
Enel Green Power (EGP).
The EPS system is currently meeting
part of the energy demand of a camp
that hosts over 600 technicians working
at the Enel Green Power’s Cerro
Pabellón geothermal plant, located in
Ollagüe, in the Antofagasta region. It
comprises a 125 kWp solar installation,
backed by a 450 kWh hydrogen
and 132 kWh lithium energy storage
technologies.
The combination of technologies
means that the microgrid is capable of
supplying clean energy 24 hours per
day, with no need for support from
diesel generators. It is also able to
switch from on-grid to off-grid seamlessly,
EPS said.
n Samsung C&T and Korean Southern
Power (KOSPO) have completed the
517 MW Kelar gas fired combined
cycle power facility in Chile’s Mejillones
region. The Kelar power plant
will provide energy for BHP Billiton’s
mining operations in the region and
will run on liquefied natural gas.
Some 12 wind farms in Brazil have
won financial backing from local
development bank BNDES.
The bank has approved loans totalling
around BRL 1.04 billion ($303
million) to support the construction
of the wind farms, which have a combined
capacity of 311 MW.
The funds will also cover the construction
of the respective transmission
systems, BNDES added.
The wind farms are owned by EDF
Energies Nouvelles, Enel and local
firm Alianca, a partnership between
Vale and Cemig.
Last month Brazilian energy regulator
Aneel also approved four new
wind plants with a combined capacity
of 86 MW to start commercial or test
operations. They will be allowed to
start commercial operations if the test
results are positive.
Earlier this year Aneel said that Brazil
had added 2491 MW of new wind
energy capacity in 2016, bringing its
cumulative installed wind capacity to
almost 11 GW.
E.On, Powin boost
storage capacity
Peru examines Rio
Grande complex
Chile mulls
100 per cent
target
Brazil wind on the march