14 NEWS IN BRIEF


Aggreko in China- based joint venture A joint venture with power rental


company Shanghai Yudehas been announced by Aggreko which has plans to expand its China operation. The new move reflects Aggreko’s long-term strategy to ‘grow its business in China with an experienced and respected local partner’, said a company release. Aggreko has taken 21.5% equity in the new company and operations will be managed by Shanghai Yude in line with Aggreko’s standards and procedures. “This mutually beneficial partner- ship with Shanghai Yude means we can bring reliable power and joint expertise to a rapidly growing market,” comments Stephen Beynon, Managing Director, Aggreko Power Solutions.


Europe to reach off- grid energy parity up to 20 years ahead of


the US Europe is set to hit off-grid parity


by 2022; some US states could take until 2042, says researchers from EY Global Power Utilities. They estimate that it will cost the same to self- generate and store power as it will to buy from an energy provider by 2022 in Europe and as soon as 2021 in Oceania.


The findings suggest that US markets will take much longer to reach off-grid parity, and as late as 2042 in the Southeast region, where the energy sector is complex and highly regionalised. The data also indicates that electric vehicles (EVs) will reach cost and performance parity with traditional combustion engine vehicles across all markets by 2025.


SOLIDpower installs the 1,000th BlueGEN fuel cell generator at City of Braunschweig site In mid-January 2018, the 1000th


BlueGEN fuel cell generator was installed close to the city of Braunschweig in Germany. The manufacturer SOLIDpower


produced this unit just a few weeks ago before it was delivered to the home of its new owner, Frank Ziegeler. The installation was completed shortly


after by Ziegeler himself, as his company is a certified partner of SOLIDpower. For Ziegeler fuel cells are a forward- thinking technology that he was more than happy to install in his own private home, where he consumes about 9,000 kilowatt hours annually. A BlueGEN system produces approx.


13,000 kilowatt hours of low-cost electricity per year at a continuous out- put of 1.5 kilowatts. The cost-savings were not the most important reason for the installation though. “For me the primary reasons were independence and ecological considera- tions,” Ziegeler explains. “The reduced electricity cost came third.” Andreas Ballhausen, Managing Director of SOLIDpower in Germany, tells WIP: "The swift installation of the 1000th BlueGEN show once more that the market demand for fuel cells is increasing. We’re excited that experienced installers like Frank Ziegeler have recognised the potential of BlueGEN and become certi- fied partners of SOLIDpower.” BlueGEN is a micro CHP system


based on fuel cell technology and optimised for maximum use and benefit of electricity, to supply small businesses, private households or public buildings with highly efficient power and heat.


Polo frozen foods are using rooftop PV system to power HQ operations in Italy


The Italian headquarters of food wholesaler Polo is now being powered by new


rooftop solar PV system. The 367 kWp array produces 410 MWh per year using PV modules from Korean-German manufacturer Hanwha Q Cells. Installed by Omnia Energy 3, 90% of the energy generated will be used to power Polo’s headquarters, which includes a logistics centre and a 25°C fully automatic frozen food service facility. The solar system’s payback period is estimated at less than four years, resulting in


savings of around €72,000 per year. A 25-year performance guarantee was included with the installation, Hanwha Q Cells. The company claims that “with high performance solar modules from Q Cells, solar self-consumption pays off for companies in commerce and industry in Italy – even without feed-in tariffs”. “We are very happy with our initial experiences with operating the solar system. The technology represents an important step for making our company´s energy setup fit for the future – and that goes both, in ecological and in economic terms,” concludes Galdino Peruzzo, Polo’s president.


Worldwide Independent Power January - February 2018 www.gmp.uk.com


The system supplies around 13,000 kWh


(kilowatt hours) of low-emission electricity per year and thus can meet consumer electricity needs either completely or in part. An electrical efficiency of up to 60%, claimed to be ‘without equal in the world’, means that producing electricity is around 50% cheaper compared with current market prices. Operators receive government subsidies for operating the plant and can thus achieve substantial savings . BlueGEN is powered by the fully


integrated fuel cell module, which, by using solid oxide ceramic fuel cells, ranks among the most efficient energy conversion systems currently available on the market. The waste heat of BlueGEN produced by


the process of generating electricity can optionally be used to heat water. About the size of a washing machine, BlueGEN can be installed right there where the electricity is needed. Natural gas or biomethane is used as the source of energy.


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