The cost of backing up solar generation and integrating it into the energy system is “negligible”, a report commissioned by the Solar Trade Association has found. At just £1.30/MWh it represents less than 2 per cent of the current cost of solar generation. Tripling the volume of installed capacity in the UK to 40GW – enough to meet 10 per cent of the country’s annual electricity demand – would only raise the cost of managing variability to £6.80/MWh. The majority of this cost would go towards backup generation secured via the capacity market. In the central scenario – whereby 40GW of solar is installed by 2030 – this would reach £4.5/MWh. The report estimated the current cost at £2.5/MWh based on the amount paid by National Grid for the Supplemental Balancing Reserve. Then there is the cost of short-term balancing within the 30 minute blocks in which energy is sold. The extra generation required as backup for solar would have the “useful side effect” of reducing the cash out price in the balancing mechanism. This would mean by 2030 the cost of balancing would actually be £-0.70/MWh. Finally, there is the cost of the “timeliness of delivery”. As much of it is generated during peak summer afternoon periods, solar power is currently worth on average £1.20/MWh more than the baseload price. However, by 2030 “so much power is delivered at these times” that it would typically be worth £3/MWh less. Combining these three costs gives you the £6.80/MWh total. The analysis by Aurora Energy Research does not include the costs of reinforcing distribution and transmission networks, although developers already bear some of these costs themselves. Source: Aurora Energy Research The central scenario assumes that installed wind capacity will stay static at the current level of 16GW. However, in an alternative scenario in which 45GW is installed by 2030, the cost of managing intermittency would fall by around a quarter to £5.1MWh. “This demonstrates the benefit of a diverse renewables portfolio, as solar and wind deliver their output at different times,” the report said. It also assumes that the government will press ahead with new nuclear, with Hinkley Point C completed in 2027 and subsequent projects delivered two years behind schedule. Nuclear is generally inflexible and designed to run for more 90 per cent of the time: “While some forms of nuclear technology can technically ramp down at short notice, the reality is they are extremely reluctant to do so.” If instead, no nuclear was built and combined cycle gas turbines were installed to provide backup capacity, the cost of solar intermittency would fall to a mere £3.1/MWh, “more than halving the cost”. The most striking improvement, however, would come with the large scale deployment of battery storage. “The prospects for grid-scale energy storage have recently become significantly more promising,” the report said.  “This has been driven primarily by substantial decreases in the cost of lithium ion batteries, to the point where the investment case for batteries for a wide range of applications is likely to be viable in the next five years.” Aurora estimated that if battery costs fall to £100/kWh by the early 2020s, as current trends suggest, then installed capacity could reach as much as 8GW by 2030. If this did happen, the cost of intermittency for solar generation would be £-3.7/MWh, meaning it would actually have a net benefit for the energy system. “Batteries and solar are a complementary combination, with batteries improving the capture prices of solar, and solar creating a generation profile whereby batteries can profitably store and then deliver to the market as needed,” it added. Chief executive of the Solar Trade Association Paul Barwell said: “Solar is an enabling technology which brings down the cost of integrating wind and battery systems.” “We are on the cusp of an incredibly exciting technological transformation in the power system that the new [Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy] has an exceptional opportunity to drive forwards.” “This welcome research puts numbers and maths behind the variability of solar power,” said chair of the Energy and Climate Change Committee Angus MacNeil. “It gives a concrete understanding of what solar has to offer compared to other technologies. Combined with reducing capital costs solar is going to be as cheap as source of power as you’ll find anywhere.” Chair of the Energy Transitions Commission Lord Turner said: [The report] confirms what an increasing number of analyses are now telling us – that we can build electricity systems with high shares of renewables such as solar and wind, using lower cost batteries, other storage technologies and demand management to deal effectively with intermittent supply. “We should not be holding back from further renewables investment out of fear that we can’t keep the lights on.” Source link

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APHC and City & Guilds offer free technical workshops Published:  19 August, 2016 Throughout October 2016, The Association of Plumbing & Heating Contractors (APHC) in collaboration with City & Guilds will be hosting a series of free technical workshops across England and Wales. These morning sessions will be offering plumbing and heating installers the opportunity to shape their industry and give their views on the following important topics: New Water Supplies, Water Efficiency Calculations and meeting the requirements of Part G of Building Regulations More developers are asking for this information to meet Building Regulations requirements. With the Water Efficiency Calculator no longer used and standard modelling available, attending this session will allow installers to ensure that they are up to date to meet this demand. The New Plumbing Apprenticeship In March 2016, APHC held workshops which gave plumbing and heating installers the chance to express their views on the new Apprenticeship Standard. This latest free session is their chance to tell APHC what they have got to say about the technical content involved in the learning material, as well as providing them with an exclusive opportunity to look at the assessment methodologies. This October, the technical workshops will be held across the following dates and locations: 13 October – Dartford 19 October – Solihull 20 October – Wakefield 25 October – Taunton 26 October – Newport. For more information or to book a place, email marketing@aphc.co.uk or call 0121 711 5030. Source link

A brand new concept in solar PV test instrumentation combines accurate I-V curve analysis with essential electrical testing for the fast and effective commissioning, O&M and diagnostic testing of all types of solar PV installations. Using simple push button operation, the new multi-function PV200 from Seaward carries out all the electrical tests required by IEC 62446:2016, including open circuit voltage, short circuit current, maximum power point voltage, current and power, and insulation resistance. Uniquely, alongside the electrical tests, the PV200 also performs I-V curve measurements in accordance with IEC 61829:2015 to determine if the measured curve deviates from the expected profile, highlighting the need for further analysis or fault finding. The fill factor can also be assessed. For full detailed analysis, measured data can be transferred instantly from the test instrument to an accompanying PVMobile Android App using wireless NFC connectivity to create high definition colour displays of the I-V and power curves for individual PV modules or strings. In this way, the accurate visual comparison of curve shapes can be used for the immediate identification of common problems such as shading, defective cells or poor electrical connections. Data can also be sent instantly and globally from the test site using the PVMobile app allowing data to be quickly available anywhere, for reference or further analysis and investigation if required. Special wireless Solarlink connectivity between the PV200 and the Solar Survey 200R meter also enables real-time irradiance to be displayed and measured at the same time as electrical testing is being undertaken. Irradiance and temperature data transferred to PVMobile can be used to convert measured electrical data to STC for direct comparison with manufacturers’ published data stored in the PVMobile database. Complete I-V curve and electrical test data can be stored in the PV200’s large onboard memory and downloaded to a PC in CSV format via USB connection for full traceability of system data and test records. When used with the optional SolarCert Elements 2 software program, downloaded data can be quickly and easily organised using a layered tree structure showing string, combiner box and inverter. In addition, professional inspection and test reports can be produced, including IEC 62446 measurements and I-V curve plots. The lightweight and battery powered PV200 is available in a range of kit options to meet your testing requirements.  More details at http://www.seawardsolar.com/PV200 Source link

Ofwat is becoming “a fundamentally more pro-market” regulator, according to its chief executive Cathryn Ross. Ofwat chief executive Cathryn Ross Speaking at Utility Week Live in Birmingham today (Tuesday May 17), Ross noted that Ofwat, like the water sector as a whole, is undergoing a transformation. She said the old way of regulating has been delivering diminishing marginal returns: “Just cranking the handle on the old regulatory model is not going to deliver transformational efficiencies, and in fact it isn’t even going to deliver the same efficiencies that we’ve been used to.” Ross said the regulator is adopting a new model instead, moving away from an approach “that was rather administrative, very much one size fits all, rather intrusive” and towards one which is “much more framework based, more proportionate and targeted, and fundamentally more pro-market”. She said markets are of value to the water sector because “they create options, they enable choices, and those choices reveal information.” She added that such information could reveal to others “the value they can add and the opportunities they can realise.” “We see scope for new models, with companies potentially choosing third party solutions that include designing, building, owning and potentially also operating new infrastructure,” Ross concluded. As well as the creation of a retail market for non-household customers, due to open in April 2017, and the possibility of a domestic retail market, Ofwat is looking at creating markets on the wholesale side of the value chain, in water trading, sludge and infrastructure provision. These reforms were laid out in the Water 2020 consultation document last year, and Ofwat is due to publish a document outlining its next steps next week.  Source link

Browser does not support script. Contact us The Royal Society of Architects in Wales (RSAW) announced today that six buildings have been shortlisted for the RSAW Welsh Architecture Awards – the first stage of the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) Awards 2016.  From the 10 entries submitted, the six shortlisted buildings in Wales this year are: Cardiff and Vale College, by BDP Welsh National Sailing Academy, Pwllheli, by Ellis Williams Architects Llandegfedd Visitor Centre and Watersports Centre, Hall + Bednarczyk Architects Cardigan Castle by Purcell Pump House, Barry, by Ellis Williams Architects Burry Port Community Primary School, by Architype (with Property Design, Carmarthenshire County Council) All shortlisted buildings will be visited by the regional jury, comprising two architects and a non-architect ‘lay assessor’, in the coming weeks, with the winning buildings announced on 28 April. Winners of Welsh Architecture Awards will be considered for a RIBA National Award, which will be announced in June. The shortlist for the RIBA Stirling Prize for the best building of the year will be drawn from the RIBA National Award-winning buildings later in the year. ENDS Notes 1. For further information and access to high resolution images please contact David Rossington or Mary Wrenn at RSAW tel 029 20 228987 or email rsaw@riba.org 2. RIBA Awards have run continuously since 1966 and are judged and presented locally. No matter the shape, size, budget or location, RIBA Award-winning schemes set the standard for great architecture all across the country. RIBA Awards are for buildings in the UK by RIBA Chartered Architects and RIBA International Fellows. 3. The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) champions better buildings, communities and the environment through architecture and our members. The Royal Society of Architects in Wales is the Wales Region of the RIBA and represents around 700 Chartered Architects in Wales. See www.architecture.com/wales for further information.   Posted on Monday 21st March 2016 Source link