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US pledges $43 million to carbon capture technologies

 960 640 Stuart O'Brien
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The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) has announced up to $43 million in funding to develop carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies.

The goal is to enable power generators to be responsive to grid conditions in a high variable renewable energy (VRE) penetration environment. 

The FLExible Carbon Capture and Storage (FLECCS) program seeks to develop technologies that address difficulties in decarbonisation of electricity systems, focusing specifically on complications in CCS design, operations, and commercialization potential with the increasing penetration of high VRE sources such as wind and solar power. 

“Flexible CCS technology has the potential to achieve unprecedented carbon capture that will revolutionize the market,” said Deputy Secretary Dan Brouillette. “The FLECCS program will quickly advance our carbon capture technology to bring us closer to flexible, low-cost, net-zero carbon electricity systems.”

FLECCS projects will develop retrofits to existing power generators as well as novel systems with carbon-containing fuel input and electricity output. 

The program will have two phases. Phase 1 will focus on designing and optimizing CCS processes that enable flexibility on a high-VRE grid. Phase 2 will focus on building components, unit operations, and small prototype systems to reduce the technical risks and costs associated with CCS systems.

Projects will be selected to move from Phase 1 to Phase 2 at the conclusion of the initial funding period, based on the output and capacity expansion analysis of the projects.

A portion of the funding will be made specifically available for qualifying small business applicants under ARPA-E’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. 

To learn more about ARPA-E’s FLECCS program, click here.

Renewables to represent 30% of US total installed capacity by 2030

 960 640 Stuart O'Brien
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The contribution of renewable power to total installed capacity in the US is expected to double from 15% in 2018 to 30% by 2030, reaching a total of 442.8 gigawatt (GW).

According to the latest numbers from GlobalData, that’s equivalent to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.3%, attributed to more states adopting and updating renewable energy policies, as well as imposed emission taxes increasing the cost of fossil fuel power generation.

Energy utilities in the US are also in favour of switching to renewable power as they must comply with the state renewable energy targets. 

GlobalData’s latest report, ‘US Power Market Outlook to 2030, Update 2019 – Market Trends, Regulations and Competitive Landscape’, reveals that the share of coal-based capacity will decline from 27.2% in 2018 to 13.5% in 2030 as it is replaced by renewable energy, storage projects and stable gas-based generation in the near future. 

Arkapal Sil, Power Industry Analyst at GlobalData, said: “During 2019-2030, offshore wind capacity is set to see the largest growth rate among renewables reaching 11.7GW from 60 megawatt (MW) at a 62% CAGR, while solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity is expected to reach 220GW from 75.3GW, growing at a 10% CAGR.”

The onshore wind segment, which registered a growth of 22% CAGR during 2000-2018 (reaching 96.3GW), will witness a steady growth of 5% CAGR over the forecast period to reach 185.5GW in 2030 and account for 12% of overall generation mix compared to 8% in 2018. 

Sil added: “Biopower, geothermal and solar thermal segments are expected to jointly grow at an average of 3% CAGR over the forecast period. Increased renewable capacity addition will open up new markets for wind turbines, modules for solar plants and associated equipment required for transmitting the generated power to the grid.”

Renewable capacity expansion will necessitate grid modernization in order to manage a high volume of renewable energy with inherent variability. This, in-turn, will involve huge investment in grid infrastructure and open up new markets for energy storage systems to enable a steady supply of power when adequate renewable energy is unavailable. GlobalData estimates that the battery storage market in the US is expected to reach around $5bn in 2030. 

Sil concluded: “The increased cost of nuclear power due to higher safety standards will result in a slight decline in the nuclear capacity during the forecast period. As a result, gas-based power will dominate the generation mix, accounting for 41% of installed capacity, and catering to the country’s base-load power requirement in 2030.”

Huge energy storage site planned in Utah

 960 640 Stuart O'Brien
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A plan to launch an Advanced Clean Energy Storage (ACES) project in central Utah has been unveiled by Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) and Magnum Development.

The ACES initiative, the largest project of its kind, will develop 1,000 megawatts of 100 percent clean energy storage, thereby deploying technologies and strategies essential to a decarbonised future for the power grid of the Western United States.

Carnegie Mellon University researchers found that carbon emissions from the U.S. power sector have dropped 30 percent since 2005 (www.emissionsindex.org), because of a combination of natural gas and renewable power replacing retiring coal-fired power plants.

MHPS claims it has been instrumental in the transition and last year became the global market share leader for heavy duty gas turbines. As a next step in decarbonisation, MHPS has developed gas turbine technology that enables a mixture of renewable hydrogen and natural gas to produce power with even lower carbon emissions. 

The MHPS technology roadmap aims to use 100 percent renewable hydrogen as a fuel source, which will allow gas turbines to produce electricity with zero carbon emissions.

Magnum Development owns and controls the only known “Gulf Coast” style domal-quality salt formation in the western United States. With five salt caverns already in operation for liquid fuels storage, Magnum is continuing to develop Compressed Air Energy Storage and renewable hydrogen storage options. Strategically located adjacent to the Intermountain Power Project, the Magnum site is positioned to integrate with the western U.S. power grid utilising existing infrastructure.

In many parts of the western United States, there are times of day when demand for electricity is lower than the production of renewable power. This leads to curtailment of renewable generation and negative electricity pricing. As such, continued deployment of renewables will require that excess power be stored for later use. To serve the needs of the entire western United States, many gigawatt-hours of storage capacity are required.

Initially developing enough energy storage to completely serve the needs of 150,000 households for an entire year, the ACES initiative will deploy four types of clean energy storage at utility scale. These energy storage technologies include:

  • Renewable hydrogen
  • Compressed Air Energy Storage
  • Large scale flow batteries
  • Solid oxide fuel cells

“For 20 years, we’ve been reducing carbon emissions of the U.S. power grid using natural gas in combination with renewable power to replace retiring coal-fired power generation. In California and other states in the western United States, which will soon have retired all of their coal-fired power generation, we need the next step in decarbonisation. Mixing natural gas and storage, and eventually using 100 percent renewable storage, is that next step. The technologies we are deploying will store electricity on time scales from seconds to seasons of the year,” said Paul Browning, President and CEO of MHPS Americas. 

“For example, when we add gas turbines powered with renewable hydrogen to a hydrogen storage salt-dome, we have a solution that stores and generates electricity with zero carbon emissions.”

“Central Utah is the ideal location for this project, and Utah is a business friendly state for projects like this. Magnum’s site adjacent to the Intermountain Power Project is positioned to take full advantage of existing regional electricity grid connections, fully developed transportation infrastructure, ample solar and wind development capacity, a skilled workforce currently transitioning away from coal, and, of course, the unique salt dome opportunity,” said Craig Broussard, CEO of Magnum. 

“Magnum and MHPS are great partners. Magnum has the below-ground technologies necessary to store energy at utility scale, while MHPS has the above-ground technologies such as hydrogen-fired gas turbines, compressed air storage, solid oxide fuel cells and battery storage technology, to supply electricity at grid scale. With the ACES initiative, we will dramatically accelerate the vision of a western renewable energy hub that we launched over a decade ago.”

“The unmatched investment and innovation brought forward by MHPS and Magnum Development to rural Utah again demonstrates the power of the forward-looking energy policy I have advanced throughout my administration. Utah continues to set the standard among states for driving next generation solutions to market,” said Gov. Herbert. “I’m proud that Millard County’s skilled workforce, strategic energy infrastructure and unique geological salt domes have put Utah on the map as the epicenter of utility-scale storage for the Western United States.”

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

Energy management market hit $113bn by 2023

 960 640 Stuart O'Brien
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The energy management system market is expected to reach $113,476.9 million by 2023, according to a new report by P&S Intelligence.

Stringent government policies and regulations, favorable government support in the form of incentives, volatility of electricity prices, and rising adoption of EMS in building automation are the major factors driving market growth.

Based on offering, the Service category is expected to continue holding the larger share in the energy management system market in the coming years, owing to the growing need for the proper implementation and integration of the equipment associated with EMS in commercial and residential buildings, globally.

P&S says increasing demand of building owners to exercise total control over the EMS and monitor the energy demand of their premises and rising awareness regarding energy management are the key factors driving the growth of the Service category in the market.

Based on component, Software contributed the largest revenue, of around 24%, to the energy management system market in 2017, as P&S cites end users increasingly purchasing software to reduce energy costs, with market players are offering various kinds of software to track and reduce energy use in an efficient manner.

Globally, North America is expected to hold the largest share in the energy management system market during the forecast period. Rising energy costs and increasing initiatives by the government and various industrialists to reduce carbon footprint are expected to surge the demand for EMS solutions in the North American region.

According to a study by Parks Associates, in 2017, about 35% of the US home owners were willing to bundle HVAC maintenance services with their electricity services and approximately 25% were willing to bundle internet services with their electricity services, which, if implemented, would further support the adoption of the EMS in the region.