NEWS


energy to power waste plant & save money


Swindon uses solar


1GW of flexible power for London


Swindon Borough Council-owned Public Power


Solutions has switched on Barnfield Solar Farm. The 2.5MW facility will power the solid recoverable fuel (SRF) plant and depot at the adjacent Swindon household waste recycling centre via a private wire, cutting power bills by around £185,000 a year. The SRF plant process 70,000 tonnes of rubbish a year,


converting it to renewable fuel and diverting 97% of Swindon’s domestic rubbish from landfill. The council invested directly in the solar farm. Cabinet


member for highways and the environment, Maureen Penny, said the scheme ticked multiple boxes. Reducing its carbon footprint is “a top priority” as is cutting energy costs “at a time when we have to deliver large savings from out budget”. Steve Cains, head of power solutions at PPS, said the


company “expects to work on many more private wire solutions” now that solar subsidies have been removed. In 2012, the government announced that 4 million


homes across the UK will be powered by the sun within eight years] representing 22 gigawatt (GW) of installed solar power capacity by 2020.The 72MW(DC) Shotwick Solar Farm is currently claimed to be the largest in the UK. UK solar PV installed capacity at the end of 2017 has


been estimated at 12.8 GW, representing a 3.4% share of total electricity generation.[4] The all-time peak generation from photovoltaics was 9.34 GW on 14th May, 2018. The UK's annual insolation is in the range of 750–1,100


kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²). London receives 0.52 and 4.74 kWh/m² per day in December and July, respectively. While the sunniest parts of the UK receive much less


solar radiation than the sunniest parts of Europe, the country's insolation in the south is comparable with that of central European countries, including Germany, which generates about 7% of its electricity from solar power. Additionally, the UK's higher wind speeds cool PV modules, leading to higher efficiencies than could be expected at these levels of insolation. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC)


currently assumes an average capacity factor of 9.7% for solar photovoltaics in the UK.


Sewage heat recovery technology developed by SHARC Energy Systems is being


integrated into ENGIE’s heat network portfolio in the UK and Ireland. The move is a reflection of an announcement by ENGIE UK & Ireland earlier in 2018 to identify more innovative solutions for the recovery of heat from wastewater/sewage. SHARC was one of the successful bidders and has already begun discussions with ENGIE


about projects and opportunities within ENGIE’s asset portfolio.Russ Burton, SHARC Energy chief operating officer. The move reflects a growing energy awareness in the UK which has focussed on renewable energy sources. The UK’s National Infrastructure Commission has issued an assessment report which stated


that “the UK must take decisive action to have world-class infrastructure” and carries a core principle that half of the UK’s power will be provided by renewables by 2030. Alongside the NIC report, a recently-published UNESCO report, Waste Water: The Untapped


Resource, shows how the macro market surrounding sewage heat recovery solutions is developing and how the value of this resource can be harnessed for the benefit of future generations. Wastewater is a constant and inexhaustible resource which can carry ~25% of a building’s


daily energy consumption and in most cases, is being allowed to go to waste into the UK’s sewer systems, says SHARC. When discharged from buildings, wastewater is higher in temperature than other


regenerative energy sources, such as well water or geo-exchange, reaching an average temperature of 21°C at the point of discharge. Across North America and the EU alone, there is over 330 billion litres (87 billion US gallons)


of wastewater discharged through the sewer systems each day. This wastewater has the potential to replace 1.5 billion MWh of the natural gas consumption used to provide space heating and domestic hot water every year, reports SHARC Energy Systems.


14 NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2018 UK POwER NEwS


partners, is bringing together public and private sector organisations that have the potential to provide flexible power with solutions providers that can help them


London project forms part of the Mayor’s plan to make the capital a ‘zero carbon’ city. The authority, plus project


A new scheme has been launched to unlock a gigawatt of peak flexible power resource in the city of London by 2050. The GLA-backed Flex


UK Power Networks’ plans to procure flexibility to help balance its network, so businesses that come for- ward may find themselves with a contracted source of revenue sooner rather than later.


A number of projects are in line to be taken forward via an initial ‘sprint challenge’ next year – but Flex London is calling for more people to come forward before the begiining of 2019. The project is aligned with


energy users with flex solutions providers, the aim is to bring together end-users with similar needs that may benefit from shared resources, such as EV charg- ing infrastructure or battery storage. That approach could lead to


new business models – shared-storage-as-a-service between two hospitals for example – delivers flexibility which otherwise might not stack up for individual organi- sations. Those involved so far include Centrica, Islington and Merton councils, South Western Railway, Premier Inn, Liberty Global and Go Ahead London.


SHARC Energy Systems’ tech to be integrated into ENGIE’s heat networks


together some of those end- user organisations with solutions providers. As well as matchmaking


Through mapping and research work undertaken by The Carbon Trust and aggre- gator Open Energi, the Flex London project found that even companies with a high potential for flexibility were not making the most of it. Flex London brought


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