systems

A co-located solar and storage project in Malawi. Photo: JCM Power.

The US International Development Corporation (DFC) has provided a US$25 million loan for a 5MW/10MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) solar-plus-storage project in Malawi.

Scott Nathan, chief executive of the government-owned development finance institution, last week (September 21) signed a letter of commitment to fund the project, which went online in May.

The Golomoti Solar project combines a 28.5MWp solar photovoltaic power plant and a 5MW/10MWh BESS in southeastern Malawi, although announcements describe it as a 20MW project.

DFC’s loan comes two months after the World Bank announced it would guarantee $24 million in equity and equity loan investments for the project.

CEO Nathan commented: “DFC’s US$25 million investment in Golomoti Solar will support a new solar plant in Malawi and deliver electricity to the national grid to directly benefit Malawian businesses and communities. The Golomoti plant also incorporates Malawi’s first battery energy storage system, creating a reliable energy source that will promote economic stability for the country’s future development.”

JCM Power and InfraCo Africa jointly developed Golomoti Solar. This is JCM Power’s second renewable energy project in Malawi, after the 60 MW Salima Solar project entered commercial operation in October 2021.

Solar panels are becoming more and more popular as a climate-friendly, clean energy source, but their efficiency drops by up to 50 percent when contaminated by dust or dirt. However, a former team of Red Deer Polytechnic engineering technology students has been recognized for solving this common problem.

Former Red Deer Polytechnic engineering technology students Kyle Victor, Carson West and Nathan Crombie have developed a low-maintenance, cost-effective and simple-to-install, fully automated, no-water supply, pneumatic air blast cleaning system with few moving parts. it can work in any climate, adapt to any panel array geometry, and has the potential to work with the same solar panel system it is designed to clean.

The former team was honored as a provincial finalist for the Alberta Association of Science and Engineering Technology Professionals (ASET) Capstone Project of the Year Award.

In the former team’s prototype, one pneumatic air sprayer was installed at the top of the solar panel and another in the middle. An air compressor with pipes is connected to the sprinklers. An Arduino kit, an open-source electronics platform based on easy-to-use hardware and software, is programmed to operate in a set sequence for each sprinkler. When the process starts, the overhead sprayer will spray the air for a few seconds. When dust is removed from the top half of the panel, the top sprinkler turns off and the middle sprinkler turns on for a few seconds to carry the already moving dust from the rest of the panel.

“Our team had two goals for this project. The first was to create an applicable design for both residential and industrial solar panel systems. The second was to ensure that it would be cheaper and more efficient than currently available cleaning systems,” says Victor, a former member of the team. “Our system can clean a solar panel in seconds, unlike other systems where, depending on the location of the panel, that panel may be the last in line waiting to be cleaned and may run for hours at low efficiency.”

“The former Red Deer Polytechnic team should be commended for their clear approach to solving a practical solar energy problem,” said ASET CEO Barry Cavanaugh. “This is an important step forward in improving the efficiency of an important clean energy source and demonstrates the combination of practicality and innovation that characterizes the engineering technology profession.”

The former Red Deer Polytechnic team’s project is one of eight finalists named by ASET for the 2022 Capstone Project Award. The winning project will be announced later this year.

The Capstone Project of the Year Award was established by ASET in 2017 in response to overwhelming member interest in preschool stories about Capstone projects undertaken by teams of engineering technology students from NAIT, SAIT, Red Deer Polytechnic and Lethbridge College. their requirements at the end of the program.

Local residence on national solar tour Oct. 1 Tiffin Advertiser Tribune

City of Allen to get solar power

Posted on Friday, September 23, 2022 at 7:06 am

Allen Parish is among four communities to receive carbon-free energy from solar installations in the state under contracts approved Wednesday for Entergy Louisiana.

Under the plans, Opdenergy will build Elizabeth Solar, a 125-megawatt resource to supply Entergy with solar energy.

The Louisiana Public Service Commission has given Entergy Louisiana the green light to expand its renewable energy portfolio by adding 475 megawatts of new solar generating capacity, which will nearly triple the company’s total renewable generation capacity in the state.

The commission also approved the Geaux Green option, a new green tariff that will allow customers to subscribe to and benefit from renewable energy sources. Geaux Green will offer an additional option for Entergy Louisiana customers interested in renewables and, for some, help meet sustainability goals.

More information on registration opportunities for Geaux Green will be available in the coming weeks.

“Our customers are increasingly interested in renewable energy, and the LPSC’s approval of these resources allows Entergy to bring more solar power to Louisiana and offer interested customers a green rate,” said Entergy Louisiana President and CEO Phillip May. “We continue to make great strides in expanding our green portfolio, and these solutions will help us continue to provide more affordable, cleaner and more reliable energy today and into the future.”

Under the approved contracts, the company will purchase carbon-free energy from four solar facilities across the state, including the Vacherie Solar Energy Center – St. 150 megawatt resource in James Parish; St. Jacques Louisiana Solar – 150 megawatt resource in St. James Parish; Elizabeth Solar – 125 megawatt resource in Allen Parish and

Sunlight Road Solar – 50 megawatt resource in Washington Parish.

Most sites are expected to start delivering electricity to customers in 2024. St. The Jacques facility will come online in 2025, subject to local permits and approvals.

Once built and ready to connect to the grid, Entergy Louisiana will receive power from the Vacherie, Sunlight Road and Elizabeth solar facilities under 20-year contracts. The St. Jacques solar facility will be under a build-own-handover agreement, meaning Entergy will own and maintain the facility after construction is complete.

The 350 megawatt solar resources in St. James and Washington Parish will be built by DE Shaw Renewable Investments (DESRI), while the Allen Parish facility will be built by Opdenergy.

“DESRI is pleased to deliver another 350 megawatts of clean energy projects to Entergy and its customers with this important milestone,” said Hy Martin, DESRI’s Chief Development Officer. “Delivering reliable, affordable energy to Entergy Louisiana while driving economic growth in local communities is critical to DESRI’s partnership with Entergy and more broadly across the state.”

Entergy Louisiana currently has approximately 280 megawatts of renewable resources, including the Capital Region Solar facility, which began providing power to the grid in October 2020.

Whom cost of living crisis Spread across Europe, we are all looking for ways to reduce our energy costs.

But 62-year-old Tokyo resident Chikako Fujii has already mastered the art. In fact, he has not paid his electricity bill for 10 years.

And that’s not why refused to pay.

There is no TV, oven, washing machine or air conditioner in Chicago. The only electrical equipment he has is powered by four solar panelsinstalled on the balcony.

Although Chikako’s lifestyle may seem impossible, what can we learn from her about how to reduce our own energy consumption?

What are the best ways to save energy?

“I started this lifestyle because of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011. Shortly after the earthquake, there were several scheduled blackouts here, so suddenly. electricity is out and I felt that I should make my own electricity. So I built a solar panel,” said Chikako.

Chikako raised him solar panel collection ever since. The panels produce an average of 1,000 watts of energy on a sunny day, powering his electrical appliances and lighting for several days.

Chikako rides when the sun is low electric power generating bicycle it produces about 10 watts of electricity for 10 minutes in the morning. That’s enough to light a light bulb for three hours, he says.

How to cook without electricity

One of Chikako’s other big lifestyle changes is that she cooks her food using the power of the sun.

On sunny days, he leaves the food he wants to cook in black pots on his balcony for a few hours.

“On sunny days, a slice of fish can be cooked in about an hour, and a piece of chicken breast takes about an hour and a half,” he says.

Cooking rice and baking cakes requires more heat, so she uses a solar oven. This contraption uses mirrors to focus the sun’s energy into a central point where it heats up enough to cook food.

He also uses it candles to heat the stove top.

Is it easy to live a low-energy lifestyle?

Chikako dabbles in textile dyeing and uses a foot pedal sewing machine for her projects.

Although Chikako says she only chooses activities she enjoys and can do Resistantit must be admitted that his life path is not easy.

As the climate crisis, the temperature rises and brings extreme heat wavesChikako found more and more it’s hard to cope without air conditioning or chilled food and drinks. Recently, he bought a small refrigerator it is powered by solar panels.

He is considering giving it up because of his age and the scorching summer heat eco lifestyle.

Chikako is more optimistic now Japan has more clean energy compared to ten years ago.

Even if he gets plugged back in, he says he’ll even continue to cook with solar energy.

“Cooking in the sun is delicious, it doesn’t use gas or electricity. And it can be used in the event of a natural disaster. I want to continue cooking in the sun and develop skills,” he adds.

Watch the video above to learn more about Chikako’s off-the-grid lifestyle.