Category: Exclusive Articles

Are we about to experience a DC boom with the growth of solar plus storage?

In case you missed it, Bloomberg New Energy Finance just revised its already bullish estimates for the growth in storage deployments upward – again, predicting a 122-fold boom in the installation of stationary energy storage over the next two decades. For its part, solar continues its high double-digit growth, making it the fastest-growing form of… Read more »

Mobile and modular hybrid solutions can help unlock the potential of renewables in developing markets

A particular irony in the process of adopting renewable technologies is that the locations, which are most suited to the introduction of solar and wind energy sources, are those which face the greatest barriers to implementation. Many of these are developing nations in regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and the South Pacific. While… Read more »

No getting away for solar thieves

With innovative GPS/GSM-based security systems for solar panels and solar parks, viamon has made a name for itself globally for protecting solar parks around the world from theft. PES invited, engineer, founder and managing director Oliver Strecke, to give us his insight into the company’s technology and the expanding market. PES: Welcome back to PES… Read more »

A plethora of batteries

PES met up with Stacey Delzeit, Sr Applications Engineer at Trojan, which as you know is a world-famous name in batteries. Despite making batteries for almost 100 years, R&D continues to produce new, exciting and innovative products, which provide great flexibility to the end user. There are still more markets to conquer and they relish… Read more »

Technological innovation and increasing investments drive the solar tracker market

Global energy consumption is steadily increasing, with an average increase in energy demand twice the year before. The demand was primarily met by fossil fuels, followed by renewable energy sources. In the year 2018, renewables accounted for more than 25% of global electricity supply capacity and this share is expected to increase significantly in the… Read more »

A decade of growth and innovation

Solar photovoltaic systems, once an emerging technology, are rapidly moving towards becoming a mainstream source of electricity throughout the world. However, less than a decade ago the solar industry was undergoing a difficult period of transition, with the price of PV panels decreasing globally, driven partly by an increase in competition from China. Many solar… Read more »

PRYSMIAN SUPPORTS FRENCH OFFSHORE WIND FARMS WITH THE BEST “MADE IN FRANCE” CABLE TECHNOLOGY

EDF RENEWABLES’ REPRESENTATIVES VISITED PRYSMIAN’S FRENCH CENTRES OF EXCELLENCE IN MONTEREAU AND GRON, WHERE CABLES CORES FOR THE FIRST OFFSHORE WIND FARM IN FRANCE WILL BE PRODUCED Milan, 18 July 2019 – Prysmian Group, world leader in the energy and telecom cable systems industry, will provide the best cable technologies “Made in France” for the… Read more »

Clean energy economy: new US partnership commitment

Global photovoltaic materials supplier DSM and prominent North American solar panel manufacturer Silfab Solar recently joined forces to bring high power modules using back-contact technology to the US market. On July 17, DSM and Silfab held an event in Bellingham, WA to mark the expansion of the facility there and celebrate the companies’ mutual commitment… Read more »

From the traditional to a futuristic digital business

Morten Huseby, CEO at Wirescan, shares his enthusiasm for their new digital service with PES. The company is set to launch its Wirescan Digital platform and Wirescan GO!. These are exciting times and the beginning of a new era for this dynamic, forward thinking company. PES: Hi Morten, welcome to PES Wind magazine, it’s good… Read more »

Why flexibility from onshore distributed energy resources is key to the success of offshore wind

Alan Gooding, director and co-founder of Smarter Grid Solutions, explains that the secret to harnessing offshore wind lies back on dry land. The growth of offshore wind power is nothing short of astounding. The UK’s capacity already sits at 8GW, with 2GW added during 2018 alone, and energy minister Claire Perry wants that total to… Read more »

Taking grid connection to the next level

A quick and easy AC solution, or a highly sophisticated connection using DC technology? The best transmission solution for offshore wind parks depends on both distance and output. But cost is key: for both technologies, Siemens is putting all its development efforts into downsizing and standardization, in order to minimize installation and operational costs. It… Read more »

Top software for service providers

If you are a service provider within the wind industry, you do definitely have a lot of equipment that needs to be inspected regularly. This could be PPE equipment, hand tools, measuring instruments, hydraulic tools, torque wrenches, lifting gear, rescue equipment and much more. In addition, there are all the training certificates that your employees… Read more »

Knowledge is power – can a false sense of security put workers at risk?

For those working in the wind sector, the risks of arc flash incidents have always been better understood than in many other industries. Working with extremely high voltages and large currents on a daily basis, means that knowledge across the sector is noticeably higher compared with similar industries that are also at risk of the… Read more »

From small fishing port to international offshore wind hub

The Port of Grenaa has grown from a small fishing port to an international hub, with the capacity and know-how to serve the offshore wind market. The pre-assembly facilities, the ease of access and experience, makes it the ideal port to access Denmark, Sweden and Northern Europe. Theis Gisselbæk, the CCO, gives PES an insight… Read more »

Automated production solutions for offshore wind tower and foundation manufacturing

Meeting today’s demands As the sizes of wind turbines grow, towers need to be built bigger and made out of heavier structures. This means increasing heights, diameters and plate thicknesses, which naturally brings more challenges and a headache for the production line. In order to get the most out of the offshore winds, it is… Read more »

Cost control along with enhanced safety and productivity

Ben Webster, Sales & Tendering Manager at Osbit, dropped into PES to tell us about their engineering challenges and solutions, which are driven by efficiency and tailored to the requirements of the customers in the offshore wind sector, in particular, but not exclusively. Health and safety awareness is a top priority throughout every project. PES:… Read more »

Offshore wind India: before you look up at the turbines, look down at the ground risks

Offshore wind will be one of the main pillars of India’s energy transition, as was proven in June 2018 when the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) set national targets for offshore wind power of 5GW by 2022 and 30GW by 2030. The first 1GW tender, expected to be launched off Gujarat later this… Read more »

From data to profits

The use of digital technologies such as cloud computing, big data management and predictive analytics are changing the status quo of the energy market. An increasing number of wind farm operators are starting to implement these techniques, so as to control their costs. But, if the implementation of predictive maintenance is one of your digital… Read more »

No strings attached

Wireless technology brings the industry together Wireless technology has transformed the way we live. Every day, people depend on wireless systems to communicate at work, at home and when on the move. In fact, with advances in technology, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if in a few decades from now, we were all living… Read more »

The next decade of the global offshore wind market

Offshore wind market is reliant on key global markets The offshore wind power industry continues to grow at a steady pace. It is expanding to new markets as cost reductions in the technology and demand for renewable energy become increasingly attractive to governments, power utilities, and other stakeholders. While the onshore wind market is larger… Read more »

The necessity of maintaining a healthy drivetrain inspection programme

The drivetrain of a wind turbine generator is an expensive but important component of the energy generating system. It’s composed of the main bearing, main shaft, gearbox, brake, generator shaft, and generator. The multi-physical complexity of this arrangement and the expense involved in downtime and maintenance due to failure, ensures that it is both recommended… Read more »

Temporary, customised configurations for client needs and crew comfort

Offshore wind farms are growing both in size and number. The engineers and technicians can be at sea for long periods of time and their living conditions and comfort are top priority. Crew conditions contribute to the smooth execution and completion of projects. So, it was a pleasure for PES to catch up with Craig… Read more »

Increasing sustainability through energy efficiency

The offshore wind installation industry, is faced with the challenge of investing in next generation installation equipment, for the installation of wind turbines that are still on the drawing board. This brings a lot of uncertainties. What we know for sure is that in the past the growth rate of turbine size and weight consistently… Read more »

Renewable energy and the Internet of Things

According to the World Economic Forum, the Internet of Things (IoT) which focuses on the extension of internet connectivity to everyday physical devices will be the driver of the fourth industrial revolution1. The Internet of Things represents a new reality, the data collected from internet devices can be used to enhance efficiency, develop new services,… Read more »

Testing and validation of large wind turbine blades

Abstract: The continuing increase in rotor diameters is pushing the structural load-carrying capabilities of turbine blades to the limit. In order to ensure reliability and structural integrity, representative testing and validation methods are now more important than ever before. Development in wind turbine blades Wind turbine manufacturers are continuing to increase rotor diameters with the… Read more »

Let the show begin!

+ 3000 Attendees + 150 Speakers + 3 Conference Steams + 160 Exhibitors + 40 Countries + 4 Knowledge Theatres Global Offshore Wind 2019 is coming up this month and PES are excited to bring you an overview of what you can expect to experience at this great event. The UK is the most exciting… Read more »

Superhero protection for the future of turbines, reducing impact damage

Andrew Wickham, Managing Director at Buoyant works, has been involved in impact protection design, engineering and manufacture for the past 25 years. Developing and creating brands such as Hippo Marine and Manuplas, both long standing manufacturers of fendering, booms, buoys and other impact absorbing structures, has pioneered a new design. WindShield is a long-term protection… Read more »

The value of testing coating systems for offshore wind structures

Offshore wind structures are exposed to an extremely corrosive environment. As a result, corrosion rates of steel are high, >0.5 mm/year, and coating systems must perform extremely well. Jo van Montfort from Bjond, gives PES his professional viewpoint on some of the pitfalls of the current certification processes and outcomes. This means all stakeholders involved… Read more »

A mobile concept

We all know how important, yet difficult it can be to keep solar panels clean. Various improvements have been made over the years and now PV Cleaning has made a significant improvement with a new mobile brush concept. PES brings you their range of easily adaptable solutions. Heavy dirt build-up on photovoltaic cells can reduce… Read more »

Smart façades – a sunny future

Since our jump into the façade market, we’ve encountered multiple technology-combinations on façades, which make a lot of sense and left us scratching our heads, thinking, why hasn’t this been done before? The answer turns out to be deceptively simple: PV hasn’t really been a building element until now. Seeing other companies use our products… Read more »

100% renewable energy is possible today

Andrea Schartner, Head of Communications at Fronius International Business Unit Solar Energy, gives PES an update on the progress of their 24 hours of sun vision. Smart solutions such as continuously adjustable regulation and their award winning Ohmpilot are edging them nearer to this goal. PES: Hi Andrea, it’s a pleasure to welcome you to… Read more »