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Photovoltaic Power Is Coming to the French Island of Corsica
By Michael Lippert
batteries is coming to the French island of Corsica. Two PV power-generating plants with lithium battery power stor- age will be installed on Corsica and be made part of the Corsican operating power grid by the end of 2015. The pow- er systems will be in compliance with the French Energy Regulatory Commis- sion — Commission de Régulation de l’Energie (CRE). They will include work by battery supplier Saft and energy spe- cialist Schneider Electric, working on projects financed and constructed by the French Langa group of renewable ener- gy companies. Saft and Schneider Elec- tric partnered to meet the Langa group’s requirements, with a solution that includes the design, supplying, and installation of the power producing equipment, management system, and maintenance services. Each of the photovoltaic plants
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will be designed to produce more than 1,300 MWh/yr energy in full compliance with the CRE. This combination of pho- tovoltaic power generation and efficient energy storage will optimize the inte- gration of solar energy into Corsica’s
hotovoltaic power is natural and can be cost-effective. And photo- voltaic power through lithium
electric grid. The batteries permit ener- gy produced during peak generation times during the day to be effectively stored and then redistributed during the evening and after sunset, when photovoltaic energy is no longer being generated. It is estimated that the two photovoltaic plants together will meet the electricity needs of more than 400 Corsican homes each year.
Renewable Energy The power plants are being con-
structed to be reliable sources of re- newable energy. The two new solar power plants and their advanced ener- gy storage systems will be constructed in Corsica for the Langa Group by the Schneider Electric and Saft Consor- tium. Each power plant will be de- signed to generate 1 MWp installed ca- pacity from solar energy with 1 MWh storage capacity based on lithium-ion batteries, with each plant producing more than 1,300 MWh of energy every year in compliance with CRE specifica- tions. The new solar power plants will be based near Corte and Castifao, on the French island of Corsica. A con- tract was signed in June 2015 between the Langa Group and a two-company
consortium formed of the Schneider Electric and Saft companies, with a schedule that calls for the two power plant installations to be grid connected by the end of 2015.
Renewable Energy Growth As Hervé Guérin, founder and
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Langa Group, explained: “Energy stor- age systems are required for continued growth of renewable energies; they will allow integration of energy production into the distribution grid in an opti- mized way. We were convinced by the solution proposed by Schneider Electric and Saft, two French leaders in their markets. Their expertise in solar energy and energy storage, their competitive of- fer, along with their local presence have been key in our choice.” This combination of photovoltaic
power generation and an efficient en- ergy storage system optimizes the in- tegration of solar energy, which varies drastically from day to night and with different environmental conditions during the day, into the Corsican is- land electric grid. Energy produced during daylight hours, when sun irra- diance is at its peak, can be stored in batteries for future use, and redistrib- uted during the evening, during peak demand times, and after sunset.
French Consortium Schneider Electric is the leader of
the two-company consortium and will implement its own solutions dedicated to solar energy and energy storage. These solutions include the firm’s PVBox for solar power conversion, ES- Box for battery power conversion, En- ergy Management System (EMS) for global equipment management and control of Saft batteries, and project engineering and services to guarantee proper system performance. Schneider Electric is also in charge of intercon- nections between various components of the plants and with the electric dis- tribution network. Schneider Electric developed and industrialized an offer for energy storage and its coupling with renewable energy production as- sets and supports its customers’ proj- ects with expert engineering and serv- ices teams. For each solar energy generation
and storage project, Saft will deploy its own Intensium® Max+ 20E energy storage solution. This integrated solu- tion is fully developed and manufac- tured by Saft and composed of a lithi- um-ion (Li-ion) battery with approxi- mately 1 MWh capacity housed in a 20- ft. container. The container includes thermal and safety management sys- tems, as well as battery management capabilities through a Battery Manage- ment System (BMS) subsystem, which is the interface with the Schneider Elec- tric control system. Saft supports its customers during their projects’ lifecy- cles, extending from early optimization of storage system sizing to maintenance services once the installation is com- pleted. The Langa Group project is the
result of a series of contracts won by Saft for Li-ion storage systems for is- land grids around the world. To summarize, Schneider Elec-
tric is a global specialist in energy management and automation, with op- erations in more than 100 countries. It offers integrated solutions across mul- tiple market segments, including lead- ership positions in nonresidential and residential buildings, industrial and machine manufacturers, utilities and infrastructure, and data centers and networks. With 170,000 employees and revenues of more than 25 billion euros in 2014, Schneider Electric fo- cuses on making energy safe, reliable, productive, and “green,” though an ac- tive commitment to helping individu- als and organizations make the most efficient use of their energy. Saft is a leading designer of ad-
vanced battery technologies and manu- facturer of advanced batteries for indus- trial applications. A major manufactur- er of nickel batteries and primary lithi- um batteries for the industrial infra- structure and processes, and for trans- portation, civil, and military electronics markets, Saft is also a leading supplier of batteries for space and defense appli- cations with its Li-ion technologies. These batteries and technologies are al- so deployed in the energy storage, trans- portation, and telecommunication net- work markets. The organization has more than 4,000 employees in 18 coun- tries, with 14 manufacturing sites and an extensive sales network contributing to its growth. Finally, the Langa Group was
founded in 2008 and is a member of the Neworld Energies group. The Langa Group develops, builds, and operates renewable-energy plants both in France and internationally. The company ini- tially focused on large building-inte- grated-photovoltaic (BIPV) plants but has diversified into ground-mounted photovoltaic materials, biomass, bio- gas, and wind power. The company cur- rently owns and operates about 100 MWc of photovoltaic power plants, 9 MWth of biomass plants, and 1.6 MW of biogas plant capability. A further 300 MW of nominal capacity is either in fi- nal development or under construction. For this power-generating/man-
aging group, environment and econo- my are not opposed but instead are complementary. The companies share a goal of building together the energy of the future, which is renewable, clean, and adapted to the needs of the
consumers. Contact: Schneider Electric
United States, North American Div., Boston One Campus, 800 Federal St., Andover, MA 01810 % 877-342-5173 Web:
www.schneider-electric.com; SAFT, 711 Gil Harbin Industrial Blvd., Valdosta, GA 31601 % 229-247-2331 fax: 229-247-8486 Web:
www.saftbatteries.com; Langa Paris, Place de la Defense, 92974 Paris la Defense Cedex, France Web:
www.langa.fr r
August, 2015
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