“It’s a violation of contract. It’s allowing the status quo to continue and doing so at the expense of an industry that is just now scaling up to size,” said Denise Bode, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), regarding Bonneville Power Administration’s (BPA’s) decision to temporarily limit output from non-hydropower resources.
Bode addressed BPA’s actions during a press conference at the Windpower 2011 Conference and Exhibition in Anaheim, Calif. on May 23. High seasonal river flows and hydroelectric generation in the Pacific Northwest led BPA to issue an interim decision on May 13 to address what it called a “potentially imminent need” to temporarily limit wind generation and other sources.
“We’ve been begging Bonneville to take action and move forward,” Bode said. “Now when they’re in trouble, they shut down the only other renewable sector besides hydro and they let the coal keep burning.”
BPA, however, says it is limiting the output of all non-hydroelectric energy, including fossil-fuel and other thermal generation and wind energy, according to a BPA press release. BPA says the action was required to protect salmon and steelhead, maintain the reliability of the power grid and avoid shifting costs to BPA’s customers.
Governor Brian Schweitzer of Montana, who also participated in the press conference, said that BPA has been short-sided regarding its decision to limit wind power. “What they don’t have is transmission capacity to get the electricity to market. If we don’t move now, five and ten years from now, it’s going to be much greater as we come out of this recession.”
While BPA is under AWEA’s scrutiny, the state of California is receiving AWEA’s high praises for the continued success of its goal to have 33 percent of its electric generation from renewable sources by 2020. Bode said that since Senate Bill 2X was signed into law, interest in California wind portfolios has exploded.
“It’s like the floodgates have opened,” Bode said.
The wind industry now supports 15 wind-related manufacturing facilities in California. In addition, 4,000 to 5,000 permanent workers help maintain and operate the 3,177 MW of wind power already online in California, equaling 3 to 5 percent of the state’s generation, depending on peaking needs.
Bode also applauded the role that wind energy played during the March earthquake and tsunami in Japan. None of the wind turbines in Japan were impacted by the disasters, Bode said, evidence to the quality of the product. However, wind generation was limited at times due to transmission issues.
“Japan’s story really told the story for a need for diversification. Renewable resources should be a part of every portfolio.”
Monday, May 23, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Would you like to add solar to your order?
Solar energy augmentation projects are being cooked up world over. Traditional coal and natural gas-fired plants are adding solar to their plants -- both as a way to generate more power, but perhaps also as a way to create a more positive public image.
On April 13, Areva was awarded a contract to install a solar thermal addition to CS Energy’s coal-fired Kogan Creek power station in Queensland, Australia. Adding solar energy to the Kogan Creek power station will increase its output by up to 44 MW in peak solar conditions to the current 750 MW.
Solar boosts like these are taking place in the U.S. as well. My colleague Brian Wheeler wrote a story for our May issue of Power Engineering on Florida Power & Light’s Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center located near Indiantown, Fla., which started operations in December 2010. Thousands of parabolic mirrors concentrate the sun’s thermal energy onto heat collection elements that contain a heat transfer fluid called Dowtherm A. The fluid heats up and is pumped through heat exchangers, producing steam from feed water supplied by the existing plant. The steam is sent to existing Nooter-Erikson combined-cycle heat recovery steam generators. It is expected that 100 additional megawatts with be generated through this steam process, adding to the pre-existing 1,150 MW of generation.
Various studies are taking place to increase the effectiveness of solar-augmented coal plants, such as at Tri-State’s 245 MW Escalante Station in Prewitt, N.M. With a goal of increasing power plant efficiency while incorporating renewable technologies, Tri-State entered into an agreement with the Electric Power Research Institute in 2009 to host the case study. The ongoing project attempts to provide a conceptual design study, analyze options to retrofit the existing power plant and identify new plant design options.
Here are a few reasons why adding solar to an existing facility just makes sense:
1. Cooling. In the case of the Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center and other CSP projects, the water needed for cooling is already available via feed water from the existing plant.
2. Transmission. Existing power plants are already connected to the grid, preventing problems with access to transmission that new concentrated solar power (CSP) plants often face.
3. Financials. Advocates of solar augmentation also argue that the technique achieves higher thermal to electric conversion efficiency and potentially lower costs compared to stand-alone solar facilities. Also, the addition of a solar component allows access to renewable energy credit markets and other fiscal incentives for clean energy.
For more on traditional power plants that have added solar to their “generation menu,” check out this story that ran in the November 2010 Power Engineering. Order up!
On April 13, Areva was awarded a contract to install a solar thermal addition to CS Energy’s coal-fired Kogan Creek power station in Queensland, Australia. Adding solar energy to the Kogan Creek power station will increase its output by up to 44 MW in peak solar conditions to the current 750 MW.
Solar boosts like these are taking place in the U.S. as well. My colleague Brian Wheeler wrote a story for our May issue of Power Engineering on Florida Power & Light’s Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center located near Indiantown, Fla., which started operations in December 2010. Thousands of parabolic mirrors concentrate the sun’s thermal energy onto heat collection elements that contain a heat transfer fluid called Dowtherm A. The fluid heats up and is pumped through heat exchangers, producing steam from feed water supplied by the existing plant. The steam is sent to existing Nooter-Erikson combined-cycle heat recovery steam generators. It is expected that 100 additional megawatts with be generated through this steam process, adding to the pre-existing 1,150 MW of generation.
Various studies are taking place to increase the effectiveness of solar-augmented coal plants, such as at Tri-State’s 245 MW Escalante Station in Prewitt, N.M. With a goal of increasing power plant efficiency while incorporating renewable technologies, Tri-State entered into an agreement with the Electric Power Research Institute in 2009 to host the case study. The ongoing project attempts to provide a conceptual design study, analyze options to retrofit the existing power plant and identify new plant design options.
Here are a few reasons why adding solar to an existing facility just makes sense:
1. Cooling. In the case of the Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center and other CSP projects, the water needed for cooling is already available via feed water from the existing plant.
2. Transmission. Existing power plants are already connected to the grid, preventing problems with access to transmission that new concentrated solar power (CSP) plants often face.
3. Financials. Advocates of solar augmentation also argue that the technique achieves higher thermal to electric conversion efficiency and potentially lower costs compared to stand-alone solar facilities. Also, the addition of a solar component allows access to renewable energy credit markets and other fiscal incentives for clean energy.
For more on traditional power plants that have added solar to their “generation menu,” check out this story that ran in the November 2010 Power Engineering. Order up!
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