Helping the Powerless
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THE EUROPEAN WIND INDUSTRY MAGAZINE September 2010 Volume 29/No 4 INTERVIEW MÁIREMÁIRE Helping the powerless GEOGHEGAN-QUINN EU Research Commissioner Small wind turbines and what they can do REACTORS MINING FRONT END BACK END RENEWABLE ENERGIES & SERVICES Wind power Designed for offshore AREVA is fast becoming a global reference in renewable energies with a rich portfolio of four technologies: wind, bioenergy, solar, hydrogen and energy storage solutions. Copyright : AREVA Multibrid : AREVA Copyright - iStock : - June 2010 Design and production In wind, AREVA designs, manufactures, assembles and commissions 5 MW high-output turbines specifically for the offshore market. Proven know-how in rotor blade design and manufacturing enables fast ramp-up of this key component. 250 AREVA M5000 turbines have been selected for use in European offshore wind parks. Most recently, the group installed and commissioned Alpha Ventus, Germany’s first offshore wind park. Energy is our future, don’t waste it! - © AREVA RENEWABLES Tour AREVA 1, place Jean Millier 92084 Paris La Défense cedex - France Phone: 33 (0)1 34 96 30 00 Fax: 33 (0)1 34 96 34 47 www.areva.com | contents | THE EUROPEAN WIND INDUSTRY MAGAZINE September 2010 Volume 29/No 4 letter from the editor 5 Small is still beautiful brussels briefi ng 6 The latest EU news interview 11 Philip Lowe, Director-General for Energy at the European Commission wind news 15 interview 18 Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, EU Research Commissioner mini focus 20 Global Wind Day 2010: more than just clowning around Hard Rain exhibition: picturing the worst wind bites & wind dates 29 focus 30 Small wind energy’s steady climb Bringing power to the people: trip to Nicaragua Neil Jeffery, CEO of Renewable World wind energy basics 45 What is offshore wind energy? technology corner 46 HVDC: The future for far offshore connections country focus 49 A closer look at Ukraine zoom on grids 51 Examining the backbone of Europe’s energy future EWEA news 52 EWEA welcomes new members 55 the last word 58 Wind Directions is published fi ve times a year. Kyle Damon, primary school teacher The contents do not necessarily refl ect the views and policy of EWEA. Publisher: Christian Kjaer Editor: Sarah Azau Writers: Sarah Azau, Chris Rose, Crispin Aubrey, Elke Zander, Zoë Casey Design & production: www.inextremis.be Cover photo: Asofenix/Seth Hays Cert no. SGS-COC-006375 WIND DIRECTIONS | September 2010 3 DESIGNED TO PERFORM. GAMMA GENERATION– THE 2.5 MW EFFICIENCY CLASS. | | N80/2500 N90/2500 N100/2500 Setting the standard for reliability, profi tability and safety. Nordex SE, Bornbarch 2, 22848 Norderstedt, Germany www.nordex-online.com/effi ciencyclass Phone +49 40 30030 -1000, Fax +49 40 30030 -1101 B_91_426_AZ_gamma_210x297.weiss.indd 1 22.03.2010 16:24:50 Uhr | letter from the editor | By Sarah Azau Small is still beautiful Editor he European wind industry has always Wind energy all over the world Tthought big. The pioneers in Denmark in the Wind energy, big and small, is truly a early 1980s were working on a technology for worldwide phenomenon, and the 2010 Global which there was little support or interest at the Wind Day showed this perfectly, with 220 time. But they had a vision. And over the years, events – from wind farm open days to shows, the industry grew bigger and bigger, spreading workshops, parties and competitions - taking to Spain and Germany, then to other coun- place in around 30 countries, including many tries, and these days we are the leaders of the which had never taken part before, such as pack: installing more new capacity in Europe Venezuela, Canada, Brazil and Mongolia. Here in 2008 and 2009 than any other power- in Brussels, the 29.5m wind turbine blade generating technology. EWEA set up next to the main buildings of As the industry has matured, the turbines too the European Commission and the European have shot up from babies to giants: from small Council was a real talking point. machines of several kilowatts, the industry is From 13 to 25 September, another area of now installing 6 MW turbines nearly 200 metres Brussels will become a wind energy focus as high, and is likely to go even bigger at sea. The part of EWEA’s ‘Breath of Fresh Air’ campaign. growth is a sign of the strength and potential of On the Place du Luxembourg in the EU area, this carbon free technology. EWEA is putting up a banner made up of images from Mark Edwards’ harrowing Hard Rain Helping the powerless exhibition depicting the brutal reality of global Yet thinking big makes no sense if we forget the warming, and explaining how zero carbon wind advantages of what is small. 1.6 billion people energy is already helping tackle climate change. around the world have no access to electricity, We take an in-depth look at the Global Wind Day and small wind turbines can provide clean, sus- and the ‘Breath of Fresh Air’ campaign on p.21. tainable electricity that transforms the lives of The many citizens who came and marvelled isolated rural communities. In this issue of Wind at the wind farms opened to the public for Directions, we explore small wind: the technol- Global Wind Day, and the villagers in Nicaragua ogy, its development and, above all, its benefi ts. buying their fi rst ever electric light bulbs, would On p.35, we visit one such community in have been somewhat disappointed to discover Nicaragua that now has electric light and a water that the turbines weren’t connected to pump thanks to a 1kW turbine set up by EWEA’s anything. Wind energy technology, big or small, partners, Renewable World. We fi nd out how it makes no sense without a reliable power grid has changed the villagers’ existences so far, transporting the electricity produced from A and the business opportunities it could open up to B. Europe’s old and outdated grid needs in the future. EWEA is proud to have made the urgent upgrading and extending, and the many donation to Renewable World that allowed the issues surrounding the grids question will be turbine to be put up, and will continue to fund at the heart of the GRIDS 2010 event on 23- them through our events such as the upcoming 24 November in Berlin. More information on GRIDS 2010 conference this November. p.52 and on www.ewea.org/grids2010. ■ WIND DIRECTIONS | September 2010 5 | brussels briefi ng | EWEA members exclusive: NREAPs Cheap and summaries online emissions ll EU countries have to come up power grid issues, administrative allowances are Awith a plan detailing how they intend procedures and support mechanisms, to meet their 2020 renewable energy and will be analysing the annual delaying switch targets and hand it in to the European wind power installations proposed by Commission. each country. to renewable These ‘National Renewable Energy If you are a member of EWEA, you can Actions Plans’ or NREAPs are being see the NREAP page by logging into the energy posted on EWEA’s members’ lounge as members’ lounge on www.ewea.org and and when they are made public. clicking on ‘Obtain key information’. he EU’s greenhouse gas emis- EWEA is also providing a summary For more information on membership of EWEA, contact Tsion reduction targets must be of how each NREAP relates to Christi Newman at [email protected]. increased to 30% by 2020 to stop the Emissions Trading System (ETS) from failing, argues EWEA. The ETS involves capping carbon Thousands of potential new emissions and making companies pay to emit more than that level. renewable energy jobs But if emissions are already below that level because of the economic p to 22,000 new jobs could be created crisis, the ETS and the price of car- Uif the EU’s 2009 Renewable Energy bon collapse, as nobody needs extra Directive were implemented in the non-EU emissions rights. countries known as the ‘Energy Community’.1 Today the carbon price is low, but That’s according to a new study which, hasn’t yet collapsed, mainly be- using the same methodology as the EU, put cause the power sector is stocking the countries’ hypothetical 2020 renewable their allowances (EUAs) in anticipa- energy targets at 24%. The countries had tion of the time after 2012 when 17% renewable energy in 2005. the cap will continue to be lowered. Savings in CO2 emissions in the heat However, the power sector passes and electricity sector would be 12.5%- 100% of the EUA costs to consum- 21% depending on factors such as ers, who get no emission reductions electricity demand. in return. More information: www.energy-community.org “To ensure the ETS works as intended – to make polluters pay and help tackle climate change, 1 Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Former the target needs to be increased Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and UNMIK – and the candidate Contracting Parties to 30% reductions in greenhouse Photo: EWEA of Moldova, Turkey and Ukraine. gas emissions by 2020”, says Rémi Gruet, EWEA’s Regulatory Affairs Advisor. “This would cost consum- ers just 15% more, according to the Use of renewables increases while European Commission.” A European Commission other fuels drop in 2009 Communication broached the 30% question earlier this year; dis- n 2009, renewable energy provided 19% worldwide fi nancial and economic crisis cussions will continue at the EU Iof electricity in the ENTSO-E area (34 that started in 2008 - and generation environment ministers’ meeting in countries, including the EU-27), according from renewables was the only type to October. to a report from the EU grid operators’ go up.