Speakers include Mohan Krishnan from HP, Bernie Trundel from HP, Russell Perry from Emerson Network Power, Kenneth Bodahl from Eltek Valere, Anil Trehan from Andrew Wireless, Lars Bondelind from Huawei and Academus Tian from ZTE.

To avail yourself of the 15% discount as a GETIT invitee, please put in the code 0910 when registering for the workshop.

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ENERGIZE YOUR DAY; POWER THEIR FUTURE!!!!

For once, guiltlessly drink caffeine for a day! Both Stanford Coupa Locations, ALL DAY! Simply order a Latte or Cappuccino this Wednesday! Globally 1.6 Billion people lack access to electricity and 2.4 billion people spend 6-9 hours gathering fuel such as wood for cooking.  Lack of modern forms of energy keep people from escaping poverty.

Bright Green Energy provides the technology, training, and initial funds to support local female entrepreneurs to start their own eco-ventures. These women then become solar technicians, solar accessory manufacturers, as well as sales and marketing agents into their customer base.

Heads up! Fundraiser on Univ. Ave location will be June 10th!

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• $5m Port Kembla wave generator wrecked
• Port Kembla wave generator lies on sea floor
• Huge swell sinks wave energy generator
• Barge’swatery grave (UPDATE!)

While this is a setback, it is part of our engineering journey – learning how to build for environments whose force of nature is hard to predict. Engineering experience is our best guide. We’ve seen this in clean tech projects through out the last decade. Where engineering hubris was slammed in the team’s face as they watch their project eviscerated by the forces of nature. Oceanlinx “had more than double the required mooring lines in place to ensure its safe operation.” But, as we now know, what we refer to as “requirements” changes in the face of experience.

Is this an “energy dream sunk?” No. It is an engineering experience we need to live through, learn from, and then move forward. Oceanlinx’s concept for power generation is enticing. The prototypes are proving the technology (check the videos listed here: Oceanlinx’s media gallery).  Oceanic engineering is hard. How hard? use this PG&E RFI Summary on the responses to their Wave Energy Converters (WECs). Start checking out the companies (peers to Oceanlinx). What is interesting is that few to none are at the stage of Oceanlinx. Hopefully, we’ll see a Mk3PC-2 built and deployed …. soon.

[[Show as slideshow]]

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Artificial islands are not new. In fact, we know how to build industrial strength islands which can withstand the onslaught of the oceans and mother nature. We done this from factories i Alaska, to airports in Asia, to facilities in the Gulf of Mexico, to the residence off Dubai. The principle is sound, it is now a factor to see if the economics work.

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Much of the Green ICT focus has been around compliance to environmental regulations regarding use of toxic chemicals in products, re-usability/recycling and on energy efficiency since many of its members are manufacturers. TIA has the EIA track online where subscribers can be kept informed of environmental legislation and policies that impact their bottom line. They also have an impressive lineup of lawyers who help give legal analysis and perspectives in these documents online. It was clearly pointed out that issues are different for companies that are just interested in compliance and for those who are on the cutting edge of leadership in the industry going over and above the minimum legal requirements.

It was here were things got interesting. The speaker from Juniper shared statistics that showed that customer demand for energy efficiency is strong in Asia and Europe (almost 70%) whereas in the US only 4.5% of customers demand for “green equipment”. I found this to be very startling as “green” has become synonymous with saving OPEX that it would be obvious. Perhaps it is the higher cost of electricity and use of diesel generators such as in Asia that make the business case for green more obvious leading to greater pressure being put on vendors for energy efficiency. In Europe, the European Union Directives have been clearly driving “green” as a vendor selection criteria. In the US, incentives are low and customers are also reluctant to pay for “green” innovation.One speaker suggested that when the rules of economy fail, then policy should play a greater role.  In the US, the new National Broadband Plan does now have a section on environment and energy efficiency- this could shift directions here in the US- worth keeping an eye out for these provisions. Now is the time to be engaged with federal and state regulators and keep informed.

Another interesting issue that brought some heated discussion was over standards. Since there are no clear uniform standards to compare energy efficiency of equipment, telecom companies are beginning to set up their own standards and scorecards which vendors have to comply with. Verizon for example, is experiencing about $2M in savings by insisting on their own scorecard metrics and have no incentive to wait for common industry standards. Whilst there have been some efforts to consolidate standards across industry, there seems to be dispute over choice of forum (ATIS, ITU versus other fora) and their speed in delivering common standards. To avoid inefficiencies, however, in the long run there is an urgency for some consolidation and cooperation. In the interim, what we will face is more “Greenwashing” and confusion over how to compare these various energy efficiency claims.

The session ended with some interesting perspectives over new business opportunities and some discussion helping to put “smart grid” into perspective. Overall it was an interesting day and the videos of the sessions will soon be posted online on the TIA website.

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Douglas Creevey, Chief Technical Officer for Digicel, said: ‘As oil becomes more scarce and expensive, renewable energy will be used more and more to power telecommunications networks anywhere that grid power is not available. Using alternative power solutions, such as harnessing wind and solar energy, will help lower our operational expenditure and reduce our environmental impact ,giving people in the more remote islands of Vanuatu access to communications for the first time ’.

Since then, Digicel Vanavatu as announced the completion of  the second phase if this investment, using wind and solar hybrid power solutions for 25 base stations.  Digicel Vanuatu “now carries more than 60% of its network traffic on base stations powered by renewable energy sources.” This is a great success, detailed in this Digicel report: Green Power for Mobile Programme Digicel Vanuatu:  Commercial Roll-out of Green Power Technical Case Study.

The Vanuatu experience demonstrated that:

• A commercial scale implementation of green power solutions is viable for replacement of diesel generators at a significant proportion of Digicel Vanuatu’s off-grid sites
• Mobile operators venturing into green power solutions for their networks must be supported by expertise and resources experienced in this specific application of renewable power and telecoms. The GSMAoffers technical assistance services through its Green Power for Mobile (GPM) programme to provide operators with the skills and understanding to implement green power solutions. See Section 9: GSMA Technical Assistance for Operators for details
• Implementation of new build green power solutions requires no special alteration to the basic project planning methodology provided that domain expertise and green power roll-out methodology are included from the outset. Retro-fitting green-power to existing sites is considerably more complex than implementation on new build sites
• Low site power load is critical to the financial and technical viability of renewable energy resources. Intelligent selection of sites, telecoms equipment and cooling methods can significantly optimise site power consumption
• Green power deployments should have remote monitoring telemetry in order to allow operators tomonitor site power conditions and performance
• There has been a significant reduction in the regularity of fuel deliveries to the green powered sites, implying that over the long-term a sizeable OPEX reduction will be successfully proven

Based on the data from the GSMA Development Fund’s commercial scale roll out on Vanuatu, Digicell is moving to the next phase, remote microwave relays on Papua New Guinea.

Eltek Valere published an informative press update for GMS World 2010: Leading South Pacific Carrier Powers Wireless Network: Digicel Pacific optimizes remote network site power by combining diesel generator sets with solar powered DC power plant. The core details from the press packet is here:

Digicel Pacific implemented a 35-tower high capacity microwave backbone and base station network to provide more bandwidth for its mobile phone customers on the island. But the rugged terrain of PNG, one of the least explored areas in the world, meant that many of those sites were in areas not served by grid power.

Initially, Digicel Pacific deployed battery-powered network equipment with diesel generators to charge the batteries. These generators ran continuously but only at an efficiency of only 20 percent of load and were fed by monthly helicopter fuel runs, translating to a cost of US$6 per kWh.

With the hybrid-solar solution, Digicel installed photovoltaic cells in addition to the generators and was able to reduce generator hours to four per day and boost efficiency to 80%-90% of load which reduced costs to about US$1 per kWh.

An integral part of the solution was an Eltek Valere DC power system that converted both solar and generator power into 48V DC for the load. The Eltek Valere solution is composed of the Flatpack2 HE Solar Charger and the Flatpack2 rectifier. The Smartpack Controller manages the entire system, monitoring battery power levels and input voltage levels from the solar system and switching between the solar system and the diesel gen-set. The Smartpack features also include advance battery monitoring routines, as well as gen-set optimization programs and considerable data logging options.

“Digicel Pacific faced a unique challenge in building a network across a country with topography as difficult as Papua New Guinea,” said Kenneth Bodahl, Managing Director of Asia Pacific for Eltek Valere. “Rather than fight the environment, we were able to provide them with a flexible power solution that enabled them to both expand their network while cutting costs dramatically.”

The Flatpack2 HE Solar Charger connects to four to six solar panels and converts the solar power into controlled 48VDC for supply to telecom equipment. The solar charger is based on Eltek Valere’s industry-leading High Efficiency (HE) technology, which delivers more than 96% AC-DC power conversion efficiency.

While it is true that Eltek Valere is publicizing a sale, what is interesting is the details of the systems selected. The equipment selected are not the normal rectifiers/inverters used in home or building solar installations. The Flatpack2 48/1500 HE Solar is specifically designed to fit with a telecommunications site’s power system. This is not a “hacked in” solution, but a system with everything a telecom company is looking for in commercial grade. It is a nice indicator to the detail Digicel Pacific are putting into the equipment selection for this next phase.

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The Statkraft prototype plant is built at the paper pulp manufacturer Sodra Cell Tofte’s plant at Hurum in Buskerud, Norway. The location will provide the osmotic plant with a good supply of fresh water and seawater, along with access to the established infrastructure.

The location, the video, and the test point to Osmotic Power being a interesting co-generation tool in a wide range of manufacturing plants. As per the siting of Statkraft’s prototype, manufacturing tends to be located at the juncture of fresh and salt water. It is logical that the “first market” for Osmotic Power is in existing facilities with an established plant operations.

Is this real? Apparently. Lyng Composite is building the membrane technology for the project. If you look around at other membrane oriented plants and technologies, you will see that the technology and facilities is well understood. This is just a matter of doing the initial prototype engineering and then working the scaling figures to see if it economical (i.e. at what point do you recoup your capital investment).

As a follow-on, check out this news report from DW. It has good footage of the prototype plant.

Other Reading:

• Energy From Sea Water? Consider IBM Intrigued

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This model was a counter incentive to more solar installations in the the state. Home owner’s were not motivated to invest in site generated power (solar and wind) nor continue with maximized efficiencies to put more power into the grid. AB 920 changed this model. 2010/2011 are the transition years where the home owner gets paid at the year end “true-up” period (true-up allows for the averaging of the year’s power productions – compensating for day light hours and other seasonal impact).  Now a home owner will get paid for the excess power sent into the grid.  Feed-in tariffs are now real in California.

For those who are interested, I’ve transcribed the letter.

January 29, 2010

Subject: Assembly Bill 920 and Your New PG&E Net Energy Metering (NEM) Options

Dear Laina Greene:

PG&E would like to let you know about a Net Energy Metering (NEM) program enhancement that goes into effect this year. Late in 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger approved a new program feature (Assembly Bill 920 – Huffman – Solar and Wind Generation) that provides a new compensation option to your basic NEM program.

If you provide more energy to PG&E’s electric system (PG&E grid) than you receive on a 12 month basis, you will be identified as a “net generator.” As a result, you will have the ability to receive a once-per-year compensation for the excess electricity you supply to the PG&E grid. Starting in 2011, this compensation will be calculated at the time of your normally scheduled, annual true-up.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) still has to determine the details before the new enhancements to the NEM program are fully implemented. In the meantime, you will automatically be enrolled in the new program and the 12-month period that determines your eligibility for compensation will start on your regular 2010 true-up date. For example:

1. If you qualify as a net generator at the end of your 12 month true-up period starting in 2010 (and ending in 2011), you will qualify or compensation for your net excess electricity. PG&E will automatically notify you at that tie of your compensation options.
2. If you do not qualify as a net generator at the end of your 12 month true-up period, you will not be eligible for compensation for that period and there will be no change from the current NEM program. If you should become a net generator in a subsequent 12-month true-up, PG&E will then notify you of your compensation choices.

If you would like to move up the 2010 start date of your 12 month true-up period, you may elect to do so by providing the information requested below and submitting it to PG&E at

NEM Compensation Program

PC Box 770000

MC B12CSan Francisco, CA 94177

If you do not choose to move up your upcoming 2010 true-up date, PG&E will perform a true-up of your account once we receive your request. However, your surplus electricity, if you have any associated with the previous true-up period, will be zeroed out.

In summary, you do not need to take any action to be eligible for the new program, and PG&E will automatically notify you of your compensation options if you qualify as a net generator. You may want to periodically check for updates on the new features at our solar energy website (http://www.pge.com/solar), or feel free to call our Solar Customer Service Center at 1-877-743-4112.

We appreciate your ongoing business and will continue to inform you of any significant updates or changes to the NEM program as they occur.

Sincerely,

Felecia K Lokey

Senior Director

Customer Engagement

Pacific Gas and Electric Company

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See Jeff’s full article (here):

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• Assess Solar Powered Irrigation in Africa
• Solar-powered irrigation systems improve diet and income in rural sub-Saharan Africa, Stanford study finds
• Solar-powered irrigation systems improve diet and income in rural sub-Saharan Africa, FSE study finds

While this study was funded via a grant from the Environmental Venture Projects (EVP), its work is the type needed to provide data for all the Social Business Model efforts. It data help others figure out how to scale to other places around the world.

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