Turkey will now be able to remotely control its electricity grid in the event of major disasters, including terror attacks and earthquakes, with a new mobile Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system developed by the Turkish energy company Enerjisa.
Murat Pinar, CEO of Enerjisa Energy, told Anadolu Agency that the system aims at eliminating technological blindness in times of disaster. "We have seen once again how vital sustainable energy supply is for critical infrastructure systems such as health, telecommunications, transportation and security during catastrophic periods," he said.
The automation software Mobile SCADA Emergency Command and Control Center will immediately start up and replace built-in SCADA centers, to provide more than 21 million Enerjisa customers with uninterrupted power. The new system designed by Enerjisa Distribution Company was developed to prevent power outages during natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, storms and catastrophes like epidemics, chemical, nuclear or terrorist attacks, during which access to built-in SCADA systems could be blocked.
The system is setting an example for other strategic infrastructure service providers, as the system incorporated in a bus can access and control one or all of the electricity grids of Turkey’s electricity distributors including Enerjisa, Baskent EDAS, AYEDAS and Toroslar EDAS. The bus has control and operator rooms equipped with touch control panels, security cameras, as well as solar energy panels and a generator to generate the power required by the system.
It also has air conditioners that cool the integrated devices and provide safe ventilation in addition to a toilet, a rest area and a kitchen for long-term stays.
Pinar said that being able to command and control electricity distribution remotely, regardless of location "is revolutionary for infrastructure systems and is testament to the intensive R&D studies that took place to ensure the security of the critical infrastructure."
Stressing evolving and diversifying risks for energy security, Pinar said it was difficult to predict the disasters but affirmed that "we should know what to do when it comes."
Enerjisa distributes electricity in three different regions in Turkey, including the Asian part of Istanbul, Ankara, Bartin, Cankiri, Karabuk, Kastamonu, Kirikkale, Zonguldak, Adana, Osmaniye, Gaziantep, Mersin, Kilis and Hatay.
Source: Anadolu Agency
Turkey has made great strides in recent years in transforming its energy system with the widespread use of local resources for sustainable growth and reducing its current account deficit. As a result, efficiency has dominated Turkey’s energy agenda for years now.
The country's inclusive and comprehensive action plan for national energy efficiency aims for a 14% reduction in total primary energy demand by 2023, compared with 2017. Its implementation has been mostly successful, according to the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry's 2019 progress report. The action plan has also been backed by new targets and legislation.
It covers Turkey's entire energy sector, including supply, transmission and distribution and end-user. What makes the plan more comprehensive, compared with earlier strategies, is its emphasis on business models and financing of energy efficiency. This is an important step in turning Turkey’s large potential into actual investments. In the said plan, power emerges as a crucial sector, where more than half of all the 55 outlined actions addresses energy efficiency.
It is also the sector where much of the transformation has already been taking place. With the rapid decline in costs of renewables and favorable regulatory environment, deployment of renewable energy resources has gained unprecedented momentum in the sector. Currently, nearly half of Turkey’s electricity supply is sourced from renewables. In the generation mix, wind and solar energy will meet around 15% of total demand. It is now equally important to understand how this transformation can be accelerated with energy efficiency, in line with the action plan’s objectives for 2023 and beyond.
A recent study by the SHURA Energy Transition Center shows a viable way forward for businesses and policymakers to improve Turkey's energy efficiency. According to the study, there will be an electricity-saving potential of nearly 10% by 2030. This potential is estimated in comparison with the study’s baseline demand scenario that is developed based on Energy Ministry projections.
The baseline scenario projects a total electricity demand of 459 terawatt-hours (TWh) per year. In absolute terms, the 10% savings potential equals nearly 42 TWh of electricity demand by 2030, according to the SHURA scenario, which accounts for the deployment of energy-efficient technologies in the power sector. In this scenario, the electricity demand is estimated at 417 TWh per year by 2030.
The manufacturing industry and buildings constitute 45% and 32% of the estimated savings potential, respectively. The remaining 22% comes from other uses, such as street lighting and the electricity distribution system. Few technologies account for the lion’s share of electricity savings. More efficient lighting in buildings and the industry (including street lighting) represents 38% of the total potential by saving 16 TWh electricity per year. This equals the current electricity demand of nearly 7 million households in Turkey.
Industrial motor systems rank second with a total savings potential of 9 TWh per year, accounting for one-fifth of the total saving potential. Household appliances and office equipment save another 5 TWh per year. Some options are yet to be deployed such as smart homes, where electricity demand and supply are efficiently managed with digital applications.
Understanding the economics of energy efficiency is crucial. In the coming decade, around $54 billion (TL 420 billion) needs to be invested in the technology portfolio of the SHURA scenario. This total is four times higher than the estimated investments in the baseline, thus indicating the significant efforts needed to save an additional 10% electricity by 2030.
It is split into $30 billion for energy-efficient technologies, $13 billion for electrification and $11 billion for distributed energy including cogeneration systems. This compares with around $10 billion that was invested in energy efficiency in the past two decades in Turkey.
By 2030, for each $1 spent on energy efficiency, there are net benefits of $1.2-$1.5. More than 80% of the total electricity savings cost less than the projected electricity tariff by 2030, meaning they result in a net benefit. Few options such as smart homes and very efficient household equipment would require additional support to ensure a business case.
Technology solutions offer the way forward for one side of the question about how power system transformation can be accelerated. The other side is concerned with making this technology shift happen. There are five priority areas:
– Enhancing the existing energy efficiency regulatory framework that includes standards, certification, energy audits and energy management systems,
– Designing and implementing market-based policy mechanisms, such as energy efficiency obligations and energy efficiency auctions, for rapid, cost-effective actions and support these through energy efficiency networks,
– Better integration of the demand side and distribution grids through business models for demand-side management,
– Development and implementation of innovative finance mechanisms and redefining energy efficiency under this mechanism,
– Development of measures to improve the power sector's system-wide efficiency, empower consumers and integrate distributed energy resources.
As Turkey utilizes these opportunities, there will also be social, environmental and economic benefits of improving energy efficiency. The investments ahead of 2030 will play a big role in reducing Turkey's dependence on fossil fuel imports. The potential savings will reduce the demand for electricity generated from imported natural gas by almost half compared with the baseline.
The increase in investments and the domestic production of energy-efficient technologies will be reflected as new opportunities for employment. Procuring necessary technologies and services for an industry with more renewable energy shares and increasing energy efficiency will improve current employment levels.
Providing a much cleaner source of energy at lower costs and with fewer emissions will also support the country's export potential. In addition to economic benefits, energy efficiency will also contribute greatly to the reduction of air pollutant emissions, to which a high proportion of Turkey's population is currently exposed.
The most important step for Turkey will be to plan for this transformation by prioritizing local energy efficiency and renewable energy sources and extend the 2023 goals for long-term sustainable growth.
Source: Daily Sabah
Global efforts to reduce wasted energy have faced a major setback in 2020, sidelining a relatively simple way of slashing emissions and hitting climate goals.
That’s the conclusion from an International Energy Agency report, which recorded the weakest improvement in efficiency since 2010, as investments into technologies that can cut emissions have slowed.
The report highlights a challenge for policymakers looking to improve how the world consumes energy across almost every part of life. Even though emissions are set to drop in 2020, stuttering progress on energy efficiency could have long-term consequences for the climate far greater than this year’s temporary emissions relief. Improving the way the world heats and cool its buildings as well as powers its cars over the next 20 years would see a drop of about half the energy-related pollution needed to ensure the countries hit climate targets set out in the Paris Agreement, the IEA said.
“Together with renewables, energy efficiency is one of the mainstays of global efforts to reach energy and climate goals,” Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director said in a statement. “I’m very concerned that improvements in global energy efficiency are now at their slowest rate in a decade.”
The IEA expects energy intensity, defined as energy produced per dollar of economic activity, to improve by 0.8% this year, about half the rate of the previous two years. Investments in energy efficiency are set to fall 9% this year. Increased sales of electric cars, which are much more efficient than their internal combustion engine cousins but a tiny fraction of total sales, were the only positive for the auto industry. Sales of new, more efficient ICE cars were down.
With lower power prices, there’s less incentive for industrial and commercial building operators to invest in measures to increase efficiency, which require upfront investment but end up saving more money in the long term through reduced energy bills. Governments will need to step up efforts to boost energy efficiency, the IEA said. So far, most of the effort is being made in Europe, which made up 86% of announced stimulus for efficiency globally.
Source: Bloomberg
World governments need to reduce fossil fuel production by 6% every year over the next decade to reach a 1.5°C pathway and limit catastrophic warming, according to new research.
Global fossil fuel production is projected to be over 120% more than what is required for alignment with the 1.5°C warming target of the Paris Agreement, according to a major report published today (2 December) by the UN Environment Programme and other major research groups.
“This report shines a light on how government action, in many cases, risks locking us into fossil-fuelled pathways,” said Måns Nilsson, executive director of the Stockholm Environment Institute, which contributed to the research. “It’s time to imagine, and plan for, a better future.”
UNEP’s Production Gap Report, first launched in 2019, measures the gap between the Paris Agreement goals and countries’ planned production of fossil fuels. This year’s report also looks at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and how recovery measures could promote a green transition.
To be aligned with the Paris objectives, production of coal, oil and gas would need to decrease by 11%, 4% and 3% respectively, but the report estimates production for each of these will grow by 2% instead until 2030.
“This year’s devastating forest fires, floods, and droughts and other unfolding extreme weather events serve as powerful reminders for why we must succeed in tackling the climate crisis,” said Inger Andersen, executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme. “As we seek to reboot economies following the COVID-19 pandemic, investing in low-carbon energy and infrastructure will be good for jobs, for economies, for health, and for clean air,” she added.
COVID-19 is expected to reduce fossil fuel production by up to 7%. Even though the slowdown is expected to be temporary, it could also mark a potential turning point in fossil fuel production, UNEP hopes. This year, renewables overtook fossil fuels for the first time in EU power generation, marking a “symbolic moment” in the transition of Europe’s electricity sector, analysts said.
The plunge of oil prices this year has shown the vulnerability of fossil-fuel-dependent regions and communities, according to Ivetta Gerasimchuk, from the International Institute for Sustainable Development in Canada.
“Governments should direct recovery funds towards economic diversification and a transition to clean energy that offers better long-term economic and employment potential,” said Gerasimchuk, who is one of the lead authors of the report. “This may be one of the most challenging undertakings of the 21st century, but it’s necessary and achievable,” she added.
In 2019, G20 countries spent $130bn on fossil fuel subsidies, not including the UK, Turkey and Saudi Arabia. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the G20 have committed $234.73 billion to fossil fuels, compared to $151.29 billion for clean energy, according to The Energy Policy Tracker.
Recovery funds in the EU are also available to fossil fuels like natural gas, despite objections from environmental NGOs and policymakers in the centre-left. Europe is the largest global importer of gas, according to the World Energy Outlook 2019 and could influence global production by reducing its own demand for fossil fuels.
The report outlines six areas of action for governments to wind down fossil fuels in recovery plans, including reducing government support for fossil fuels, increasing support for just transitions, improved transparency and global cooperation. “The research is abundantly clear that we face severe climate disruption if countries continue to produce fossil fuels at current levels, let alone at their planned increases,” said Michael Lazarus, a lead author on the report and the director of Stockholm Environment Institute’s US Center.
Source: EURACTIV
German energy company RWE has signed a contract with DEME Offshore for the transport and installation of a new foundation technology at the 342MW Kaskasi offshore wind farm. For the first time ever in the renewables industry, special collars will be installed around the monopile foundation at seabed level. The collars were developed by German civil engineering firm JBO and manufactured by Bladt Industries.
The ‘collared monopile’ is designed based on an RWE patent. The new technology will provide additional support for lateral loading, increase the bearing capacity and improve the structural integrity of the entire foundation – especially in difficult ground.
The steel collars will be installed around three of the 38 monopile foundations for which DEME will deploy the versatile jack-up vessel NEPTUNE. The collar will be installed at seabed level in water depths of up to 25 meters. The Kaskasi offshore wind farm is located in the German North Sea, 35 kilometres north of the island of Heligoland.
Construction is expected to start in the third quarter of 2021 for commercial operation of the plant to start in 2022. The wind farm will consist of a total of 38 wind turbines. Each turbine will have a capacity of up to 9MW.
The project, RWE’s sixth wind farm off the German coast, will generate enough energy to power 400,000 homes. To install the wind turbines, RWE will use the “vibro pile driving” installation method, which is an efficient alternative to the conventional method of hammering monopiles into the seabed. This improved installation method could reduce installation time and noise emissions during construction.
Sven Utermohlen, chief operating officer Wind Offshore Global at RWE Renewables, says: “At our Kaskasi offshore wind farm we use innovative technologies that will set standards throughout the offshore industry.
“The collared monopile, a patented solution developed in-house, will help to increase stability in difficult ground. Furthermore, Kaskasi will be the first commercial offshore wind farm in the world to use an improved installation method to drive all monopile foundations to target penetration. The vibro pile driving technique will reduce both installation time as well as noise emissions for marine life…”
Source: Power Engineering International
Energy storage batteries, electric vehicles, smart chargers and smart meters are being made available to residents and businesses on the Scottish island of Orkney as part of a new low carbon project.
The initiative is designed to showcase energy flexibility and pave the way for other regions in the UK to adopt a localised, integrated approach to energy systems. The services are being provided by ReFLEX Orkney, a £28.5 million energy consortium part funded by UK Research and Innovation through the government’s Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund and match-funded by private investment.
The project consortium includes the European Marine Energy Centre, which has been based in Orkney for many years, Community Energy Scotland and Heriot-Watt University. Orkney lies off the north of Scotland and already generates all of its annual electricity demand from renewables.
The project now wants to help the community take full advantage of the renewable energy on the island and demonstrate how to reduce carbon, abate climate change, and protect wellbeing, livelihoods and the ecosystem.
Technologies like batteries, electric vehicles, smart chargers and smart meters are being made available via lease and other financing to help islanders access clean energy without large upfront costs. ReFLEX has also introduced new 100% renewable electricity tariffs for Orkney residents and is also creating initiatives around electric buses and the integration of green hydrogen for storage and transport.
ReFLEX Orkney managing director Gareth Davies said: “We are pioneering an integrated, affordable, low-carbon energy system in Orkney which can then be used as a blueprint for other locations.
“A key aim for ReFLEX is to encourage early adoption of these technologies, as well as inspiring community participation in the drive to decarbonise Orkney.
He said that by becoming a member of ReFLEX, “the community can help us shape it and demonstrate how communities can create smart local energy systems”.
In return we will help the community access affordable low carbon technologies and services, and better understand and manage their energy use.
“This is very timely as the UK government has just announced an end of the sale of diesel and petrol cars by 2030 as part of an ambitious plan for green industrial revolution, and yet again Orkney is ahead of the curve, ready to demonstrate to the nation how it can be done.”
Source: Smart Energy Internatıonal
Energy Technology Perspectives 2020 Dataset
International Energy Agency’s dataset includes projections at the global level for the Sustainable Development Scenario (SDS) based on detailed modelling of the energy sector using the ETP Model. The focus of the Dataset is to provide insights into sub-sectoral trends beyond the data and figures published in the report, given the focus of the report on technology opportunities in heavy industries and long-distance transport in particular.
Please click here to read the full report.
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