As solar develops, customer behaviour and demands are changing, so we thought it was timely to catch up with Eturnity’s CEO, Matthias Wiget, to get his take on things. What factors are driving the market and what tools and solutions can help, particularly in terms of technology? PES: Welcome back to PES Matthias. It’s lovely… Read more »
As the market for PV grows and production ramps up with it, keeping productivity levels high is important, yet not without its challenges. PES discussed the common issues and how they can best be overcome, with Jyry Hyvärinen, Sales Manager at Endeas. PES: A very warm welcome to PES Jyry, it’s lovely to speak with… Read more »
With the economics of solar power looking increasingly favourable, there is a rush to invest and expand. PES was delighted to have a conversation with Kees Hoogendijk, Managing Director, EKO Instruments Europe. We discussed how sensor technology could help improve ROI and mitigate any potential imbalance in the supply and demand of experienced or qualified… Read more »
With solar measurement forming an important part of the data landscape, and particularly so as power plants increase in size and output, PES was keen to learn from Roman Affolter, Technical Head of Meteorological Services, CSP Services about the latest bankable solar resource assessments for high-quality regional irradiance mapping. PES: It’s lovely to welcome you… Read more »
Since speaking to Steve Davies, EMEA PV Market Manager at DuPont Teijin Films and Alessandro Anderlini, Business Manager responsible for the EMEA markets in Coveme’s PV Solar and Specialty Films Divisions last year, how are the issues around sustainability and reliability of products being addressed and what more can we expect in 2022 and beyond?… Read more »
Optimizing the performance of solar panels often comes down to ensuring their cleanliness. The level and type of soiling, the local weather and the surroundings of your plant can lead to soiling problems and the subsenquent energy output drop due to the reduced light transmission. So, ensuring your modules are clean while protecting them with… Read more »
Intersolar Europe 2022, the world’s leading exhibition for the solar industry, will take place from May 11 to 13, 2022, at Messe München. Its focus on photovoltaics, solar thermal technologies and solar power plants couldn’t come at a better time. Under the motto ‘connecting solar business’, manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, service providers, project planners and developers… Read more »
Can the Internet of Things (IoT) help provide preventative maintenance to allow for the timely replacement of faulty modules and enhance the efficiency and performance of long-term power production? PES looks at how this technology can help improve return on investment. Inverter outages at commercial and utility-scale solar installations are the cause of 81% of… Read more »
Despite the promising market outlook for solar energy due to the increasing global demand for alternative energy, PV manufacturers face numerous challenges. They must strive to lower their production costs while enhancing the efficiency and quality of their solutions. To keep ahead of the stiff competition, market players are poised to adapt their technology to… Read more »
Photovoltaic energy is a crucial element of energy transition. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) solar power is on track to set a record for new global deployments from 2022, with an average of 125 GW of new capacity planned globally between 2021 and 2025. Photovoltaics is on its way to becoming the leading… Read more »
With the wind being an unpredictable beast, optimising the performance of turbines and reacting quickly to changes in conditions involves a huge amount of data gathering and analysis. Sereema takes a look at how digital technology is being used to enable quick decision making with everyone in sync. As the wind industry market grows in… Read more »
As wind farms move further offshore, how can they be protected from corrosion while keeping costs down and maintenance time to a minimum? To find out what solutions might be available to help solve this conundrum and get an overview of where the market may be heading next, we spent time talking to Laura Hall,… Read more »
Lidar technology has come a long way since NASA first used it during 1971’s Apollo 15 mission to the moon. Modern lidar systems have applications across many industries, and they are being used extensively by the wind power industry for both current and emerging onshore and offshore applications. Matthieu Boquet, Head of Market and Offering,… Read more »
PES was delighted to have the chance to speak with Mahmoud Hamada, PhD, MBA, Managing Director of SAMAWATT, to find out how machine learning algorithms can help reduce grid imbalance penalties. With government subsidies covering these penalties no longer an option, how can small and medium-sized renewable energy farms without the necessary market trading expertise,… Read more »
While traditional turbine inspection methods can be slow and error-prone, advancements in Artificial Intelligence technology may hold the answer to finding defects faster. A solution that will only grow in importance as wind farms themselves grow and offshore locations become increasingly hard to reach. PES was keen to find out more about the possibilities of… Read more »
Everyone has now woken up to the benefits of automation, integration and digitization in the wind industry, but what’s the next phase and how can we continue to support the global market consolidation with technology? We asked Onyx Insight’s Product Owner Jon Hodson and Joshua Greenslade, Machine Learning Engineer to share their thoughts. PES: Welcome… Read more »
The weather plays an important role in the operation and maintenance of wind farms, helping to determine output, scheduling maintenance and predicting potential downtime. Accurate forecasting is therefore essential for forward planning. But what about hindsight forecasting? Can looking back over the history of weather patterns help us make wise assumptions for the future too?… Read more »
The high prices paid for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management leases in the recent New York Bight Auction have drawn attention to the high stakes involved in developing offshore wind projects. The highest winning bid was more than a billion dollars for lease area OCS-A 0539 paid by Bight Wind Holdings, a partnership between… Read more »
Spotting the onset of damage to turbine blades quickly allows for fast decision-making in a wind farm’s maintenance planning efforts. Using sensor technology to remotely monitor turbines can help avoid severe damage and reduce the need for turbine shutdowns that pause energy production and revenue generation. Having heard about a new solution from MISTRAS Group,… Read more »
Heavy plates for offshore wind towers have to withstand enormous forces, with manufacturers of wind tower steel foundations relying on the latest milling technology to maximise robustness, durability and performance. PES takes a look at the latest processes and solutions available. The use of wind power off the coasts in the form of offshore wind… Read more »
With renewable energy a constantly advancing market, the need for more efficient wind farms and larger structures is also growing. The result is the next generation of wind turbine installations, weighing thousands of tonnes each. But how can these be transported from the production line to site safely while ensuring often very tight deadlines are… Read more »
In a first for PES Wind, we spent time speaking to Gregor Levold, Sales Director Offshore, Ship and Port Cranes at Liebherr, to find out how the company is helping with the heavy lifting involved in the industry. Recognising the huge potential in the wind energy market, how is the brand hoping to make an… Read more »
Ever since the erection of the first wind farms began in the 1980s, the impact of wind turbines on the flow, or the wake effect, has been a major focus, not only in the field of wind energy research but also with regard to industrial applications. The wake is referred to as the area downstream… Read more »
As large, unmanned, remote structures that are open to the elements, wind farms both on and offshore are often subject to performance related issues that need to be addressed to remain cost effective and maximise efficiency. With the market growing faster than it is possible for personnel recruitment to keep pace with, overcoming these challenges… Read more »
Throughout Europe, the requirement for larger capacity wind farms is growing dramatically. Total consumer energy demand has risen, and political commitment from governments is accelerating the transition toward renewable energy across the continent. To highlight some of these commitments across Europe, Germany has vowed to increase the proportion of renewable energy in total electricity consumption… Read more »
Ray Lewis, Market Segment Manager, Wind Energy at Diab, looks at the evolving product life cycles of core materials used in the manufacture of composite wind blades. How do market conditions and supply chain issues affect production decisions and what might the future look like as demand grows for zero carbon energy types? Following articles… Read more »
Flexibility and accessibility are key for wind farm operators when ensuring a successful and profitable operation. In recent weeks we have seen the world change once again, with renewable energy coming even more into focus. The result is likely to be a greater requirement to deliver energy to the European grids. Helicopters as a supplement… Read more »
Even a global pandemic couldn’t put Wind Energy Asia off its stride, as visitors flocked to the event in person and virtually to find out what was new and to network at the largest, most international wind energy exhibition and forum in Taiwan. At Wind Energy Asia, we are getting used to this: a mild… Read more »
‘The EU has set itself the goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2050. The European Green Deal was launched back in 2019, and despite the challenges Covid-19 and other unforeseen developments have brought in the meantime, this target is more solid than ever,’ says WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson. The EU has big plans for the expansion… Read more »
According to the International Energy Agency’s latest world outlook report, reaching the critical but formidable goal of net zero emissions by 2050 will require major efforts from across society, though it will also offer major advantages in terms of human health and economic development. Certainly, the inherent intermittency of renewable energy sources and the effect… Read more »
When wind turbines were first placed in the sea off the Danish island of Lolland in 1991, it was the start of a global journey which would see wind power as the backbone of a sustainable future. Fast forward 30 years and those 11 turbines off Vindeby have transformed into more than 160 offshore wind… Read more »
Over a year ago, an article about the Polish Bird Protection System (BPS) was published in PES Wind. Throughout this time, Bioseco has been improving its system, testing its effectiveness and expanding operations in Europe, working with global players. Now in 2022, the company offers upgraded versions of BPS, a system that reduces bird mortality… Read more »
Atlas Copco has been providing tensioning solutions for the wind industry since 2005. The initial tensioners were supplied to European manufacturers for the build of wind turbines within their facilities. As time progressed the range expanded to Asia and then the rest of the world. Due to the demand from the manufacturing plant progressing to… Read more »
At a time of fast and significant growth for the wind industry, how can businesses navigate the landscape and convince potential customers that what they offer is tangible? Is it time to call in the experts to help really get to grips with your business development, to cut through the noise and devise effective marketing… Read more »
As the wind industry battles the challenge to reduce its own impact on CO2 emissions in the making of greener energy, could flying cranes be a possible solution for transporting spare parts, tools and equipment for turbine service and maintenance? PES was fascinated to learn more about the possibilities of the technology from Co-founder and… Read more »
PES spoke with Mark Bakker, Field Application Engineer at Fluke, about the importance of trusted, safe and accurate measurement equipment for solar plants and how new troubleshooting and analysis technology makes it easier to capture the right data at the right time. PES: Hi Mark, it’s great to welcome you to PES and always good to… Read more »