power station workshop

Building a Virtual Power StationOne Day Workshop

By David LipschitzMy Power Station Technology

8th April 2013

Phone: 021 551 9935; 074 119 3246Email: [email protected]; skype: MyPowerStation

(c) My Power Station Technology (Pty) Ltd 2013Permission is given to copy parts of this presentation as long as the Author is referenced 1

mailto:[email protected]

Wildpoldsreid

• Make twice as much energy as you need• Clever Energy– How?• Work together

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzc77Lqkldk (aa1)

(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzc77Lqkldk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzc77Lqkldk

Wildpoldsreid

• A city wide learning centre that makes the citizens money and helps everyone understand the technology and its social impact

• Storage– Hydrogen (H) + CO2 = Methane CH4 & Oxygen


Work Smarter

• Smarter Grid• Distributed Storage• Active Participation• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=

5_J97qpF0I4 (aa2)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_J97qpF0I4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_J97qpF0I4

IntroductionSetting the context

Developing the framework for a Virtual Power StationSystems Thinking


Virtual Power Station

• Power Station (Plant): Producing electricity (and heat)

• Virtual: Simulated (not in one place)

• Power Station– Centralised

• Virtual Power Station– Decentralised; integrated; smart


© Orbital Renewable Energy 2009

Power Supply Today: A Few Power Plants For Many Users

Downsides:Use of un-renewable resources

Air pollution Ozone hole Global warming More natural disasters Health risks Loss of life qualityDependence on OPEC, governments and corporationsNuclear dangerNuclear wasteHigh costs for governments and end-users due to results of natures’ abuse

© Orbital Renewable Energy 2009

Power Supply Tomorrow: Many Private Power Producers

Benefits:Use of renewable resourcesNo air pollutionTurn around of global warming Healing of the planet Creating a future No health risks Enhancement of life quality No dependence on OPEC, governments & corporationsNo nuclear dangerNo nuclear waste

Affordable, healthy and environmentally friendly energy for everybody, everywhere

My Power Station• My Power Station helps you power your life,

internally and externally• Software, Energy, Power• Internal Energy– What keeps us going internally– Sport, Exercise, Learning, Health, Family– Power comes from sharing, trusting and working

together• External Energy– External inputs to ourselves; Money, Work, Jobs


Eskom 49m Energy Saving Campaign


Why are you here?

• What would you like to get out of this workshop?

• Why?


Why I’m here

• I’d like you to leave here with the essential toolset to convince yourself and your board of directors and customers of the possibility of solving our electricity crisis– And reducing our cost of living• For ourselves• For our home, planet earth

– And making money and profits, sustainably• What electricity crisis?


We’re in trouble!!

• South Africa– No new base load power station build in the past

20 years– vs: China: >1 GW per week added to their grid!!!– China installed 18 GW of Wind in 2011; 40 GW

was installed worldwide. Zero in South Africa– By end of 2012, China had 75.5 GW of Wind

(growing 80% per annum since 2007)– In 2012 China produced more wind energy (100

TWh) than Nuclear (98 TWh)


We’re in trouble!!• Can you see where South Africa’s going?• New Coal Power Stations: only 10 GW– Electricity is already sold!!– 10.5 GW will be decommissioned in 2020’s


Electricity Build and Decommissioning


From White Paper on Renewable Energy, 2003

2008 Load Shedding

Spare Capacity

Money

• Existing or New?• Can’t we use existing money to finance our

new build?


News on 15th May 2012• “Work to begin on 68km R5.2 billion in Nov

2012 (R5,200,000,000) railway line to supply Majuba Power Station with 14 million tons of Coal per annum” (Actual Start March 2013?)– http

://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/work-on-r52bn-majuba-rail-line-to-begin-in-nov-eskom-2012-05-14

• R100 billion being spent on new coal mines• At least R2 Trillion on New Power Stations

– & R166 bn on The Grid (Eskom Transmission Plan)

• 5,000 x 1,200 kWh per month houses can be permanently “removed” from the grid per R1bn, so R2 Trillion is at least 10 million houses


http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/work-on-r52bn-majuba-rail-line-to-begin-in-nov-eskom-2012-05-14




What happened at Majuba?• Majuba built in 1980’s. Majuba coal mine had

certain geological deficiencies, so coal is trucked in from up to 68 km away.


Photo from Bloomberg

BRICSBrazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa

• Page 69: NPC Report (Nov 2011): “Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, South Korea and Russia will account for more than half of all global growth, growing by an average of 4.7% a year to 2025, by which time their share of global GDP will have grown from 36% to 45%.”

– My Comment: [It is time for South Africa and Africa to shed its association with its colonial masters, England, France, Germany, Portugal, Spain, and the USA, which are part of the dying Western Empire, and change to a much closer association with the Asian Tigers, BRICS (China (9.5%)), Indonesia, South Korea, and of-course the African Tigers: Ghana (13.5%) (2nd highest), Mozambique (7.2%), Ethiopia (7.5%), Nigeria (6.9%), Botswana (6.2%), South Africa (3.4%). 36 Africa countries growing faster than the RSA.

– Qatar (18.7%), India (7.8%), Russia (4.3%), Brazil (2.8%), Germany (2.7%), USA (1.5%), UK (1.1%), Portugal (-2-2%), Greece (-6%)]

– Growth rates in % are net growth after inflation.(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 19

China’s 12th 5-year plan tabled in 2011• “Has a striking change from the past”• “From– A focus on investment-driven, high energy and

low-cost manufacturing”

• “To– Low-carbon industries, new energy, next

generation information technology and high-end manufacturing

– China’s goal is to achieve 15% global share of these industries, compared with 3% now (in 2011)”


South Africa is still stuck here!Note that the Chinese quote comes from the NPC document! Page 69, NPC Plan 2020

Money will be borrowed

• Reason for the BRICS Development Bank!• The BRIC will lend money to the S!• The BRIC needs South Africa’s resources• A no-brainer for them• But the resource curse for us:

– The resource curse (Paradox of Plenty) refers to the paradox that countries and regions with an abundance of natural resources, specifically point-source non-renewable resources like minerals and fuels, tend to have less economic growth and worse development outcomes than countries with fewer natural resources.

– https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_curse


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_curse

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_curse

News on 28th March 2012; and 27th March 2013• President Jacob Zuma at the BRICS conference

seeking R1 trillion for the next 20 years infrastructure expansion program

• Other BRICS countries growing at 10% per annum after inflation; SA at 2%– 10% + 5% inflation = R450 billion this year!

• Does government need to borrow this R1 trillion with us citizens (and countryside) as surety?– 1 million new jobs; R1,000,000 debt per job!– 50 mil to 57 mil people by 2020: need 3.15 mil jobs!

• Is there a better way? Using VPS Ideas?(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 22

R1 bn = 5,000 houses (VPS & Jobs)

• What is R1 bn anyway?– Electrify 5,000 * 1,200 kWh per month houses– 5,000 Smart Electricity Meters– 5,000 inverters– 5,000 solar water heaters– 200,000 solar panels (Photovoltaic PV)– Circuit Breakers; Cable; Fuses; Grounding Rods– People• 250 installers per year for the PV

– 25,000 installers employed for at least 20 years for entire country

• Manufacturers; designers; support people; etc(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 23

AndOnly govt loan guarantees are required– Supported by the Trevor Manuel and National

Planning Commission (NPC Plan 2030)No subsidiesNo government borrowingNo new regulations, in fact deregulation is

requiredAnd best of all:– Electricity plus People plus Resources enables:• Clean Economic GROWTH -> more money for govt• Massive Employment


“Breaking the Code of History”• Eskom have said (email) that they “will

support private people working together to look like a big customer to Eskom.” This customer can be called a Virtual Power Station.

• For fast growth, an economy needs:• By David Murrin in “Breaking the Code of History” book

– Population Growth– Resources– Electricity– South Africa has the first two, but the 3rd is

stagnant (c) My Power Station Technology 2013 25

Our Environment: GDP• World GDP Growth


Our Environment: Wind


In 2011 Capacity Installed: China 18GW; Doubled every year 2005 to 2009;Total Installed Wind Capacity Worldwide in 2011: 41,000 MW!World Wide Wind Total Installed Capacity: 238,000 MW (238 GW)

Our Environment• Photovoltaic (PV) Production


VideoWe Live in Exponential Times

• 5 minutes• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=

lUMf7FWGdCw• This exponential growth depends on

exponential availability of inexpensive electricity– For reference: watch later


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUMf7FWGdCw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUMf7FWGdCw

The Virtual Power Station / Plant• "Virtual power plants represent an ‘Internet of Energy,’" says senior

analyst Peter Asmus of Pike Research. "These systems tap existing grid networks to tailor electricity supply and demand services for a customer. VPPs maximize value for both the end user and the distribution utility using a sophisticated set of software-based systems. They are dynamic, deliver value in real time, and can react quickly to changing customer load conditions.”– http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_power_plant

• Estimated growth $5.2 billion worldwide in 2010 to between $7.4 billion and $12.7 billion by 2015

• IT + ET = EI (Information Technology + Energy Tech = Energy Internet)– Thomas Friedman, in Hot, Flat and Crowded (pg 224 onwards)


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_power_plant




The Smart Grid

• vs The Dumb Grid– Doesn’t know what its customers are doing and

when they will need something– Uses historical information gathering

• The Grid interacts with its stakeholders– “knows” the future• Re customers• Re suppliers• Re pricing


Systems Thinking

• What exactly is a system? A system is a group of interacting, interrelated, and interdependent components that form a complex and unified whole– http://www.pegasuscom.com/systems-thinking.html

• We need to consider the big picture, not just parts of it


http://www.pegasuscom.com/systems-thinking.html



Video: A bigger System

• a: Amory Lovins: a new fire (first 5 mins of 27)– We can watch more later in the day if there is time– Video available on TED• http://www.ted.com/talks/

amory_lovins_a_50_year_plan_for_energy.html


http://www.ted.com/talks/amory_lovins_a_50_year_plan_for_energy.html

http://www.ted.com/talks/amory_lovins_a_50_year_plan_for_energy.html

What benefits do big electricity users get?


What benefits do big electricity users get?

• Member of Electricity Intensive User Group• High Level Meetings with Eskom• Involved in Daily Eskom Scheduling• Time of Use Tariffs• ESCO Rebates; Demand Response• Lower Electricity Charges• Ability to export energy to the grid (Mondi)• They are taken seriously by Eskom. They have

power (c) My Power Station Technology 2013 35

How can these benefits be made available to small / all electricity

users?


How can these benefits be made available to small / all electricity

users?

• Build a Virtual Power Station– a cluster of small users which looks like a big

customer to Eskom• The Nine Dots Model– Solving the “Reverse Feed Problem”– EV’s to “soak up” excess production and to

provide electricity at peak time


Virtual Power Station Videosb: conEdison Smart Grid 5 mins

http://youtu.be/QPWCCz_OTGU

c: GE 8 mins (perhaps later)http://youtu.be/ztw3aYLX4_U

d: Duke 4 minshttp://youtu.be/E1Jrdt1OV8s




http://youtu.be/ztw3aYLX4_U

http://youtu.be/ztw3aYLX4_U

http://youtu.be/E1Jrdt1OV8s

http://youtu.be/E1Jrdt1OV8s

End of Introduction

Beginning of Technologies


Our workshop

• Looking at electricity as the core missing enabler to get our economy moving

• What tools do we need?• What types of technologies are available?• How can benefits that big business get be

made available to small business?


Riaan Smit@ Wind Energy Conference, Cape Town, Tuesday 29th May 2012

• South Africa needs a

– “New Future Vision”• Riaan is Chief Engineer in National Planning at Eskom


Thinking Differently• Should we think differently?– Do we need cars? How many? What sort? Can

they be shared?– Do people need to go to work or can they

telework?– Should our systems stay centralised or can they be

decentralised?– How would we design the system if there was no

coal or nuclear energy?


Our problems• Everything going UP• Government taxing infrastructure instead of

growing the economy and getting money from taxation

• Infrastructure– Electricity; water; rates; fuel taxes; transport– E-tolls; carbon taxes; electricity levies– Exporting raw materials; importing finished goods• Bad balance of payments / rand depreciation / inflation


Petrol Price Increases since 2002


Petrol price at pump; Oil = Rand $ in January each year * Brent Crude Converted to litres

Buying and Producing ElectricityGraph in Rand per kwh ex VAT

(c) My Power Station Technology 2013

Government’s Problem

• Get’s large amounts of revenue from electricity generation

• Electricity makes a loss at peak time– Eg Ankerlig: R4 to R13 per kWh– Eg City of Cape Town Peak Demand: 72c (to R2.47)

per kWh + Demand Charge– Means all Eskom’s rebates are based on removing

peak load so that they can be more profitable– PV doesn’t fit into this! Or does it?


Ankerlig

• Near Atlantis• 9 x 150 MW Combined Cycle Turbines– Can use Diesel or gas; currently diesel

• 25,000 litres of diesel per minute– X 60 minutes * R12 per litre = R18 million per hour

• R18 million / 1,350,000 MW• = R13 per kWh!


Photo: ESBi Engineering

What knowledge do you have?

• Technical Terms• Quick Recap?


This is what a Renewable Energy System (without batteries) Looks Like …


PV Array

CombinerBox

Grid Tie Inverter DB BoardMains

Utility

[Schematic excludes Grounding Systems; DC & AC Disconnect; Fuses; etc.]

Start here …

The grid is the “battery” (backup)

Eskom say Grid Tie is unsafe because what if there is load shedding or if the grid is switched off?

Anti-Islanding

• Used when the grid supply is shut off:– “Since 1999, the standard for anti-islanding

protection in the United States has been UL 1741, harmonized with IEEE 1547. Any inverter which is listed to the UL 1741 standard may be connected to a utility grid without the need for additional anti-islanding equipment, anywhere in the United States or other countries where UL standards are accepted.”


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_inverter



This is what a Renewable Energy System (with batteries) Looks Like …


PV Array

CombinerBox

Solar Charge Controller Battery Bank

Inverter / Charger(Island System)

DB BoardMains

DB Board Backup Loads

Utility

[Schematic excludes Grounding Systems; DC & AC Disconnect; Fuses; etc.]

Start here …

Generator

Grid Tie Island Schematic


Battery Only System


Watch Battery System Installation Videohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LT1AF4ycAQY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LT1AF4ycAQY


Terminology• Grid Tie: an electrical system that is connected to the

government electricity grid• Reverse Feed / Embedded Generation: where someone

besides Eskom sells electricity to the Grid• Net Metering: where the consumer buys and sells

electricity at the same price• Feed In Tariff: where the Grid Operator / Utility pays the

“Embedded Generator” a higher rate to feed the grid• Time of Use Metering: where electricity is bought (and

sold) at different rates depending on grid demand (during off-peak, standard time, and peak-time, or in the future on a second by second basis)

• Inverter / Grid Tied Inverter: Changes DC to AC electricity• Island: allows a grid-tie inverter to operate during a power

failure, whilst isolating it from the grid(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 54

The Toolset


“Night” and Peak Demand

• Start with “the battery”, the most difficult component– Because Eskom doesn’t want us to export energy– They and the Cities allow “Parallel Feed” which is

essentially what Solar Water Heaters (and heat pumps) do, except that Solar Water Heaters remove peak demand. Same for Timers and Demand Response (DR).


“Night”

• What does it cost to build more generation (to oversupply) vs how to store and manage energy?– Ie over generation vs energy storage– This might change due to storage costs coming

down, carbon taxes, environmental legislation– http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2013/04/e

nergy-storage-series-why-we-need-it-and-why-we-dont


http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2013/04/energy-storage-series-why-we-need-it-and-why-we-dont



“Night”?• For Night and Cloudy Days customers will

need batteries, energy storage, and will need to import electricity from the Eskom / Munipalities, preferably at “off peak time”

• We need Behaviour Change (Toolset)• AND we need Energy Efficiency (Toolset)• Customers can save up to 77% of their

electricity requirement – and Eskom has incentives for

this


Toolset: EV – Nissan Leaf• Available for $200 a month in Austin, Texas on

rental• Battery pack should last 5 to 7 years in Austin• 4.7km per kWh at R1.50 per kWh or 31 cents

per km in Cape Town• 14 km per litre for 1.4 litre car at R12.73 per

litre or 91 cents per km• Nissan Leaf is 1/3rd of the cost to run.

Repayments are about the same per month.

(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 59EV = Electric Vehicle (there are also Hybrids)

Toolset: Pumped Storagea large scale battery


http://www.eskom.co.za/c/article/207/pumped-storage/

Pumped Storage Potential• Lesotho Highlands– 3GW Pumped Storage Potential• USAID Electricity Supply Industry of Lesotho General

Information for Potential Investors report in May 2008

• Palmiet / Steenbras Dam (near Cape Town)– 2 x 200 MW reversible Francis pump/turbines• Generator manufactured by Fuji of Japan• Turbine manufactured by Voith of Germany

– Construction started 1983– Commissioned 1988


Toolset: Battery• CSP (Concentrated Solar Power)• Solar Tower• Storage:– In Salt or Sulphur– Electricity produced in the normal way via steam

and turbines• From sun during the day, or molten salt at night• Needs external energy to keep the salt “wet” (liquid)

– Runs for 16 hours a day in Spain, eg 5am to 9pm, covering the morning and evening peaks in South Africa


Solar Towers


http://designbuildsource.com.au/worlds-largest-solar-towers-take-to-the-sunAbengoa and Brightsource’s Palen Solar Tower Project, California

http://designbuildsource.com.au/worlds-largest-solar-towers-take-to-the-sun


Solar Towers


http://designbuildsource.com.au/worlds-largest-solar-towers-take-to-the-sunAbengoa and Brightsource’s Palen Solar Tower Project, California



Toolset: Large Scale Batteries• XTremePower– eg 36 MW

• http://www.duke-energy.com/news/releases/2013012301.asp

• Flywheel• Ultra-capacitors• Global Key Players– Generalists: ABB, Alstom, GE, S&C Electric,

Schneider Electric, Siemens– Purists: A123, BYD, Panasonic, Toshiba, Xtreme

Power, ZBB Technologies, etc(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 65

http://zpryme.com/news-room/asian-grid-scale-energy-storage-market-364b-by-2020-zpryme-smart-grid-insights-reports.html

http://www.duke-energy.com/news/releases/2013012301.asp





Toolset: Water• Hydro– Large Scale and Micro-Hydro

• Tidal– Eg Siemens 1.2 MW for 1,500 households in

Northern Island• Wave• Ocean Currents– Benguela and Agulhas Currents flowing at up to

3m/s (10km/h), 24 hours a day, 7 days a week

(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 66Also: Desalination

Toolset: Biogas


e.g.: GE Jenbacher Gas Engines

Toolset: BioGasGE Jenbacher

• Landfill gas– 1 million tons of waste power 1MW plant for more

than 15 years– Waste from US city of 1 million can power 8MW

plant• Sewerage– Waste water from city of half a million powers

1MW plant; 100% of energy needed for the plant!• BioGas– 5000 cows can power 1 MW plant


Toolset: Local Storage

• “Municipal Energy Companies”– Dr Hermann Scheer in The Solar Economy– Every industrial business is also an energy business– Local integration• Local jobs & a stronger local economy

– Lower costs with decentralised systems– CHP: Combined Heat and Power, easier because of

local electricity production


Toolset: “Summer time”

• Windhoek 1 sun hour West of Durban. Could build Solar Tower and PV plants there to provide energy to Durban for the evening peak.

• World's largest solar towers being built: 2 at 250 MW each in the Californian Desert. Currently the largest tower is in Abu Dhabi and it is 100 MW. The new design uses 50% less water and 13% less land for a similar Solar Tower plant, and 33% less land than a PV plant. Solar Towers also provide for energy storage and already run for 16 hours a day in Spain.


Toolset: Behaviour Change


Toolset: Energy Efficiency

• Examples• Calculations


Energy Efficiency Examples

• Energy Efficiency is all about not using or needing electricity in the first place

• Eg:– Electricity Meter– Insulation• Ceiling, window, pool cover

– Heating / Cooling• Solar Water Heater; Ice Cooler

– Energy Efficient Appliances


Simple Electricity Meter


NegaWatts, not MegaWatts


PV = Photovoltaic SystemEE = Energy Efficiency: Spend to saveER = Eskom ESCO Rebate (approximate)

NegaWatts = Negative Watts

RE Example and Effect of EEFigures as at July 2011


Haven’t taken into account

• Potential sales to the City of Cape Town• Net Metering through the transformer• Retail Wheeling• Time of Use Tariffs• Carbon Credits• Eskom ESCO rebate• DR (Demand Response)


Toolset: Time of Use Tariffs

• Give the member of the Virtual Power Station the opportunity to get paid to move their loads outside Peak Time

• The member also gets the opportunity to sell electricity at peak time– We’ll see this when we discuss Net Metering


Cape Town Time of Use Tariffs


Cape Town Residential Stepped Tariffs


http://www.capetown.gov.za/en/electricity/Pages/ElectricityTariffs.aspx



Toolset: Computers

• Computers and the Internet• Allowing the move:– ET + IT = EI– Energy Technology– Internet Technology– The Energy Internet• Eg: Homeowner tells the utility that she needs the oven

for 1 hour during the day• Work Smart


Computers: The ISP Model

• The Backbone– Telkom, BCX, Internet Solutions– Sells to ISPs

• The ISP: Internet Services Provider– Sells to the public

• A relatively small number of backbone suppliers

• A large number of public users


The ESP Model• ESP = Electricity Services Provider• Based on the ISP model• Other examples:– Railway grid in Europe– Aviation grids– Telecommunications grid– All shared. Paid for by whom?• Capex payments• Utilisation payments


ISMO: Independent Systemand Market Operator= electricity middleman1998 Electricity White Paper

re ISMO & Competition2003 RE White Paper

re Competition

ISMO Bill Update in Business Report on 27th March 2013:http://www.iol.co.za/business/business-news/new-electricity-middleman-nears-lift-off-as-ismo-bill-is-finalised-1.1492346#. UVlfEGnlw9B

http://www.iol.co.za/business/business-news/new-electricity-middleman-nears-lift-off-as-ismo-bill-is-finalised-1.1492346%23.UVlfEGnlw9B

http://www.iol.co.za/business/business-news/new-electricity-middleman-nears-lift-off-as-ismo-bill-is-finalised-1.1492346%23.UVlfEGnlw9B

Smart Metering and Control


Measure - SMART energy"If you can not measure it, you can not improve it.", Lord Kelvin


What your electricity measurement should do

• Real time reporting• Onboard reporting• Long term data collection• RS-232 communication to

database via GSM, Wifi or Ethernet modules

• SMART control for geyser heating and pool pumps

• Load shifting and DR• SMART geyser element

management


ESCO Rebates


ESCO Rebates• Standard Product (specific products)– Lighting– Solar Water Heater (homes)– Showerheads– Timers

• Standard Offer (projects)– 70c per kWh deemed rebate for SWH– R1.20 per kWh for first 10MW of NM PV– Eskom IDM Web Site

• Other(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 88

Demand Response

• http://www.eskomidm.co.za/demand-response

• It is a dynamic energy infrastructure management programme designed to support the stability of the national electricity grid, and meet South Africa’s growing demand for energy with the assistance of large and very large energy users – in both the industrial and commercial sectors – who agree to switch off certain production processes or turn down certain electrical loads during periods of peak demand.


http://www.eskomidm.co.za/demand-response

http://www.eskomidm.co.za/demand-response

Demand Response• Demand Response is a highly flexible programme that can be customized

to the individual financial and energy usage objectives of participating companies. The programme offers:– Energy and capacity incentive payments;– Seamless business continuity;– Information on energy cost reduction; and– Recognition for supporting the national grid and, therefore, the stability of electricity

supply to South Africa and its people.

• Utilising ground breaking software, hardware and support services that reduce the demand for energy of participating companies, Demand Response allows large and very large energy users to participate for free and, most importantly, without operational interruptions.


Demand Response• Eskom pays customers to reduce load on

instruction to balance supply and demand• 3 types– 1 second notice: up to 10 mins– 10 min notice: up to half an hour– 30 min notice: up to 2 hours

• Needs “Aggregator” & Customer Services Provider• Eskom pays for measuring and other

equipment plus monthly fees• Eskom looking for 500 MW short term and 2

GW long term (c) My Power Station Technology 2013 91

Some Eskom DR / ESCO Rebates

• ESCO Incentives– 42 cents per kwh for reducing electricity at peak

time– 10 cents per kwh for reducing electricity at off-

peak time– 70 cents per kwh for water heating– For customers with more than 100 kW to save– Note that I am unsure what the latest numbers are

for these rebates (as at 3rd April 2013)


Demand Response


Homeowner DR

• Is it possible?• How?• TOU and DR• PV and DR• Taking DR to the people


My Suggestion for the VPS DR

• Standard Time Rate: R1.50 per kWh• Peak Time Rate: R3.00 per kWh• Off Peak Rate: 20 cents to 75 cents per kWh• Prices including VAT• And• Using Net Metering– Incentivises people to minimise use at peak time

and to try to sell at peak time.


Homeowner VPS DR

• ESCO Rebate– 53 cents per kwh for reducing electricity at peak

time– 10 cents per kwh for reducing electricity at off-

peak time• Homeowner assumption


Carbon Credits


Carbon Credits

• Electricity Producer in “developing” country earns carbon credits

• Paid for by polluter in “developed” country• ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds)– Allows one to trade Carbon Credits


Net Metering (NEM)• Normal– Buy and sell at the same rate, eg R1.50 per kWh– Bank excess electricity used during the day– Buy back at night

• Other– 1: Buy at the normal rate; Sell at a lower rate• In South Africa, this would get NEM going

– 2: Sell at the normal rate; Buy at a higher rate• Great for users who can make more electricity than

they need.

(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 99The Jargon: http://www.thegreentimes.co.za/stories/energy/item/1130-net-metering-buzz-words

Net Metering (NEM)• Avoided Costs• Incl: the sum of all costs that the utility avoids as a result of customer generation to the grid,

including: energy purchases; generation capacity or resource adequacy; line losses; transmission and distribution capacity; air pollution permits and offsets; ancillary services; renewable energy purchases (E3, Net Metering Cost-Effectiveness Evaluation, Jan 2000, California Public Utilities Commission)

• Facilities Private Investment• If we are at Grid Parity it makes sense• Facilitates Job Growth which in the USA is 10x

faster than the economy as a whole; 75% are installation Jobs which are local and cannot be exported


Countries with Net Metering• 13 Countries + 42 USA States• More than 20 years experience– Were already running in 1991

• Government’s White Paper on RE – Nov 2003– “Government is committed to the introduction of

greater levels of competition in electricity markets– The production and distribution of energy should

be sustainable and lead to an improvement in standard of living of citizens

– Barriers to entry should be lowered”(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 101

The Grid


From Eskom AnnualReport 2009

Quick Summary

• We can do all of this without residential and other end user PV

• Although we should allow the utility to buy energy at peak time, eg from battery backup and/or EV’s and/or generators, etc

• And the utility and municipality should make TOU tariffs available to small users


Renewable Energies• Solar: SWH, PV, CSP, Solar Tower. + with storage• Water: ocean, tidal, river, wave, pumped storage • Other: Wind, Geo-thermal, Biogas, Sewerage to Gas• Storage: battery, fuel-cell, water, salt, Sulphur, Hydrogen

• Non-renewable: coal, oil, gas, nuclear


Riverside Renewable EnergyHolt LogisticsGloucester Marine TerminalNew Jersey, USA• 9MW Roof Top PV• $42m• ~ 110,000 square meters• 80% of energy requirement

What is PV?Photovoltaic Panels


Can we produce electricity cheaper than we can buy it?

Whiteboard / Word• Assumptions:

– City of Cape Town– Borrowing at 10% interest rate over 20 years– Rooftop PV Systems– 3 bedroom, 4 person household using 1,200 kwh per month

• Homeowner– R1.29 per kwh 16% R1.50

• Business owner– R1.02 per kwh 16% R1.18 + 1 cent (additional) levy + R120 per

ton carbon tax, ie 12 cents per kwh R1.31 28%• More Info: R1,800; R182,400; 8 KW; R22.80; R182,400; R20 per watt?

How?(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 106

The real savings in being energy independent (kw vs kwh)

• If you spend R1m a year on electricity• And you can install your own system for

R900,000 per year• What would you prefer?

• If you buy your own system, then at 10% per annum over 20 years, the R900,000 equates to a capital cost of R7.5M


The Cherry on Top

• Once you’ve paid off the system, it is YOURS• Your electricity cost doesn’t increase every

year …☞ … which means that you can plan for the future!

• And: you can save 70%+ of your electricity cost over 20 years


Buying and Producing ElectricityGraph in Rand per kwh ex VAT

(c) My Power Station Technology 2013

Fix your price and save


Discussion


Trust & Expectations

• Can we rely on the system?• Should we rely on the system?• What is “the system”?• Customers expect– The system to be up– Maybe we expect “load shedding” because of

what happened in 2008– Many private people and businesses installed

generators to give themselves security of supply(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 112

Opportunity to sell electricity

• To Cities, Eskom, other users• Especially at peak time– Average electricity cost to City of Cape Town is 55

cents per kwh– E.g.: Ankerlig near Atlantis produces 1,350 MW,

uses 25,000 litres of diesel per minute, at a cost of between R4 and R13 per kwh

– So, we can produce at R1.32 per kwh and sell at R3 per kwh!


How to get started?• “Mandelaton” CID– Community Improvement District

• Milnerton Proper; Woodbridge Island; Lagoon Beach; Joe Slovo / Phoenix; Sunset Beach

• Measure: 2,000 meters * R6,000 each installed– Incl, Voltage, Current, Peak Demand,– Can tell what’s running by looking at “profiles”– Can control Geyser– Can switch loads on and off (DSM and rebates)– Is Wireless, so user needs internet connection

• Design, Finance, Implement, Insure, Maintain(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 114

Mandelaton CES


VPS Mandelaton Prezihttp://prezi.com/p0j3paibfy6j/echo-2/?auth_key=20848266276fdb23f7d16535f3ceb50b9136f3f0&kw=view-p0j3paibfy6j&rc=ref-

15959272


http://prezi.com/p0j3paibfy6j/echo-2/?auth_key=20848266276fdb23f7d16535f3ceb50b9136f3f0&kw=view-p0j3paibfy6j&rc=ref-15959272



Discussion


Social and Technical Factors


Social and Technical Factors

• Social– “Belief”– “Myth”

• Technical– Prices are dropping 10 to 20% per annum– Energy Storage is possible; cheaper than running

peaking power stations– RE allows non-degreed installation and

maintenance personnel, appropriate for RSA


Energy Literacy

• How literate are South Africans about their energy choices?

• The USA has http://www1.eere.energy.gov/education/energy_literacy.html and http://www.need.org/


http://www1.eere.energy.gov/education/energy_literacy.html

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/education/energy_literacy.html

http://www.need.org/

http://www.need.org/

Do we know the risks & costs?

• Of Fossil Fuel Energy– No, even after 150 years of building power

stations– Kusile and Medupi: budgetted to cost R79 billion

for 4.8 GW each; now R125 billion each and rising– Coal and other fossil fuel costs rising faster than

expected• Of Renewable Energy– Yes, and they are decreasing


The Risks

• Mainly our 20th Century assumptions• Compare wind and nuclear risks• Donor assistance risks


Assumptions• Our economy has an assumption built into it– Cheap and reliable Electricity ??

• But 150% increase over the past 5 years

– Cheap build ??• But R79 bn quote: R125 bn now; 12 months behind schedule

– Cheap raw materials ??– Reliable Distribution Systems ??• Transformer life: was 35 years -> now 12.5 years

• Decreasing Costs works for IT ✔– Lets find out if it can work for electricity?

• How risky are our assumptions?(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 123

Risks continued• Environmental Risks– Water, health, pollution, jobs, GDP growth

• Security of Supply– Coal, oil, nuclear: Wind, sun:

• Cost of Supply– Coal, oil, nuclear: Wind, Sun:

• The Cost of Unserved Energy– Energy Security; what is the cost of being out of action?

• For a business; for a homeowner who doesn’t know they are off?

– R75 per kWh• Nuclear Waste Management


Risks


IRP2010 v8 (nothing re PV; nothing re Net Metering)

Cheap?Reliable?

Risks: The “Nuclear Fleet” Cost• 9.6 GW• What’s it going

to cost?• With such widely

varying costs, wouldyou do this project?

• Can we remove9.6 GW from thegrid at peak /any time?

• How?(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 126

Risk of “old thinking”

• South Africa might miss out on the 21st Century “Gold Rush”


Risks Section – New Build


World Energy Growth Rates by SourcePercent Annual Average Growth


Solar Insolation Map


Germany: 2.4 ave peak sun hours per day; SA 5.9 (5 after derate factor)

Risks Section - Wind Power


http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2013/highlights37

Risk Section – Chinese Wind vs Nuclear Generation


Risk Thinking – Chinese Wind Power Potential


The Big Energy Myth• From Dr Hermann Scheer’s Book – “The Solar Economy” pp 169 to 170– “Once the fear of the small scale has been dispelled,

once RE has demonstrated that it can replace fossil energy in its entirety, then the aura of the centralised nuclear/fossil industry will quickly fade. While fossil mythology remains unchallenged, humanity is faced with the absurd prospect of choosing death over a solution it is afraid to embrace. … Ordinary people are caught up in the myth of big technology … We need an active and engaged society”


Seven Crises (video)

- caused by our energy system• Climate crisis• Fossil fuel availability crisis• Social (3rd World) crisis• Health crisis• Nuclear crisis• Water crisis• Food (agricultural) crisisDr Hermann Scheer, Member of the German Government, President of EUROSOLAR, General Chairman World Council for Renewable Energy (WCRE)Photo: “For Work and Environment”, from Dr Scheer’s Facebook Page.


Show Dr Scheer Videohttp://youtu.be/w_KZ01ps6gI


http://youtu.be/w_KZ01ps6gI

http://youtu.be/w_KZ01ps6gI

Crises / Risks of the Fossilised Fuel IndustryDr Scheer at Retech Conference, February 2009, Las Vegas, USA

• [3rd world]:– 40 countries are unable to pay their energy bill– Their oil import bill is more than their total export

earnings• COP 17 and global treaties– How do we organise the technological revolution?– Which technological revolution happened as a

result of a global treaty? Not One!• We should do it because it is an advantage of

us(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 137

The [3rd world] My brackets ([])

• The so called “third world” is where the new empires are starting– Where development is happening

• The “third world”– Has population growth– Has resources• Most of the Developed World is stagnating

– Has growth potential• The Developed (1st) world– Stuck in an old paradigm?


The “Downturn”

• Is it possible that we’re creating it ourselves?– By focusing on cost savings instead of growth?

• Just something to think about– I’m not saying we’ve created our recession, but I

wonder if its in our minds, as a self-fulfilling prophesy

– Also in South Africa:• One has to do the same thing over and over again• A huge waste of resources, time and energy


What’s electricity for anyway?• It’s like ICT, except ICT depends on Electricity

• It’s an enabler to get the country moving• Fast, cheap, reliable pathways from a to b will

get our economy going– Communications (Infrastructure)– Electricity, Population Growth, Resources• David Murrin: “Breaking the Code of History”

• Can the “Energy Internet” finally happen?– Thomas Friedman in “Hot, Flat and Crowded”


Donor Assistance Risks (DAR)BRICS Dev Bank?

• What are the risks?– Dependence on outside funding– If the exchange rate weakens, repayments get

higher– Little capacity building– An expected “repayment” for donor assistance

• What chance is there that we can build our future infrastructure needs without DAR?


Some of the Rules• See application Form – Embedded Generation for

City of Cape Town’s rules


Government and Citizens• Is making our own electricity legal?• “Embedded Energy” Generation Legislation

Already Exists• SABS: NRS 097-01-2010 (December, 2010)• NERSA: Embedded Generation (2011)• Waiting for:– Eskom adoption– City adoption– Business and Homeowner adoption


Red Tape• City of Cape Town– Red Tape to Red Carpet Process

• South Africa– 15 laws; 10 standards; 10 documents– Just for “parallel feed”!

• USA– 2 laws; 3 standards; 1 document

• Germany– Install; inspect; FITs 8 days later


How to convince Govtof The Five Winners?

• The Five Winners http://youtu.be/I7W6kn9M8pI

– Customers• eg the homeowner (electricity generator & consumer)• Eg the business owner (and employees)

– Suppliers• Installers; Designers; Maintenance People; Call Centres;

Inspectors; Manufacturers

– Cities– Eskom– The Environment

• Fast economic growth. “Base Load” can’t keep up!(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 145

http://youtu.be/I7W6kn9M8pI

http://youtu.be/I7W6kn9M8pI

Reaching Grid Parity


Reaching Grid Parity

• Feed in Tariffs and their purpose• Rebates and their purpose• Net Metering


Why FITs? Why any kind of incentive?• Introduced in Germany in 1991– In 1993, the FIT was $1.34 per kWh– In 1993 Rands, this was R4.57 per kWh– In 2012 Rands, this was R11.32 per kWh– In 2001 in South Africa:• Per kWh: Domestic 24.59c; Manu and Mining 12.32c

• The FIT had three principles– The Utility must connect anyone to the grid– They must buy all the energy that is produced– They must buy at a fixed price for the length of the

contract, ie 15 to 20 years(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 148

So what did FITs do?• Brought down the cost of Renewable Energy• Note that the FIT contract is similar to the

contract the government signs with Eskom to build a power station– An agreement to buy a certain amount of

electricity– At a certain price– For a certain period of time

• There are “FITs” in our car production system– Government gives R5 billion of incentives to car companies annually– The Joule needed R9.5 billion. And South Africa would have had its

own electrical car!


What do Rebates do?

• Kickstarted Renewable Energy• Benchmark: 30%– A utility’s “avoided cost”

• Germany: 50%– Higher incentive

• Different kinds– Rebate– Tax Credit


EQUALITY• How did we get to Equality (Grid Parity)?• Who helped?– Germany (G): Feed In Tariffs since 1991– Still the largest installed base of PV panels (roof

top, building integrated, farm, etc)– 370,000 people employed in RE in G in 2010– Targeted 20% RE by 2020• Achieved this in 2011!• Now targeting 35% by 2020• Solved the “Grid Destabilisation” problem in 2011


Retail Wheeling


Retail Wheeling

• Selling electricity across the grid• Similar to– Airways– Railways– Telecommunications

• Pay the Grid Operator a Wheeling Tariff for using the grid

• Needs an Independent System Operator?


Next Steps

• Contact me for training, consulting and to set up Virtual Power Stations

• Contact me for Financial ICT Solutions


Contacts• David Lipschitz, My Power Station– Phone• 021 551 9935 (W); 074 119 3246 (C)

– Email• [email protected]

– Web• http://www.mypowerstation.biz



http://www.mypowerstation.biz/

http://www.mypowerstation.biz/

• End of presentation• The rest is for reference


Virtual Power Station Agenda• See hand out• I’d like us to brainstorm and develop a solution• We will consider:– Systems Thinking– What benefits do big electricity users get?– How can these benefits be made available to small

/ all electricity users?– Reaching Grid Parity – how did we get here– Feed In Tariffs and their purpose


Agenda continued

– Rebates and their purpose– Net Metering– Time of Use Tariffs– Demand Response– Energy Efficiency– Smart Metering– Social Factors– Technical Factors


Agenda Continued

– Types of technologies that can be used in a Virtual Power Station• Photovoltaic Systems; Concentrated Solar Power; CSP

Tower; BioGas• Pumped Storage• Battery, ultra-capacitors, hydrogen storage, fuel-cell

– Dealing with peak demand– What about rainy days and night?– Government’s role. NRS 097-2-1:2010 and NERSA.

Embedded Generation and its Rules. Laws, Policy.


Agenda• Electricity Generation; Assumptions & Risks• Electricity and Infrastructure Challenges• Some Questions & Myths• Our Environment– We live in Exponential Times

• Electricity & “The Grid”– Can we rely on The Grid?– Can we make electricity ourselves cost effectively?

• How to get started?• Q&A


The Numbers• How to understand the really big numbers?

• Should we think differently?– Do we need cars? How many? What sort? Can

they be shared?– Do people need to go to work or can they

telework?– Should our systems stay centralised or can they be

decentralised– How would we design the system if there was no

coal or nuclear energy?(c) My Power Station Technology 2013 161

R2.3 trillion

R2,300,000,000,000• Repayments– At 10% over 20 years– R23,000,000,000 per month• R23 billion per month is what the people of South

Africa will be paying for their new electricity fleet if we follow the old 20th Century technology path

– 50 million people; 7 million taxpayers• R3,285 per taxpayer per month

– for capex repayments only


R125 billion for KusileR125,000,000,000

• 12,500,000 * R10,000 Solar Water Heaters– i.e. : 12.5 million R10,000 Solar Water Heaters

• Kusile– 4.8GW– 12,500,000 SWH need 20 GW of electricity• SWH can be used to

– Heat water & air– Cool water & air

– R46 billion (58%) over budget already


Electricity Challenges• For City Dwellers without electricity, NO:– Water, Banking, Petrol, Transport, Food, Life– Only 4 days of food in the supply chain

• Everything we do depends on electricity– We need security of supply– We need price certainty

• Therefore we need a game plan to make this a reality


Some Questions• http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NetMeterin

g-2012-12-22

• If you could make your own electricity cheaper than you could buy it, would you want to do this?

• Do you know what Net Metering is?• Do you want to make money and conserve the environment?


http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NetMetering-2012-12-22



Global Energy Resources


30 TWH in 2030

10 TWH in 1990

The sun provides 5,000 times the amount of energy required by the entire planet

How long do we have?At 3% electricity consumption growth


Buying and Selling Electricity

• Normally– We buy electricity• From Eskom• From the Cities, who buy from Eskom

• Now– We can produce electricity• We can use it ourselves• We can sell it to The Grid• We can sell it to our own customers!


Producing Electricity (Energy) 1

• History– Before Electricity• Windmills; Pumps; Water-Mills; Steam

– “Base Load” (after electricity “invented”)• Coal, Nuclear, Hydro-electric (3)

– Now• Sun, wind, river, tide, ocean-current, geo-thermal (6)• Sun: PV, CSP, Tower, Solar Water Heating (+3)

– PV = Photovoltaics (like the leaves of a tree)– CSP = Concentrated Solar Power (with or without storage)


Producing Electricity (Energy) 2

• History– Benefits and Costs• Base load electrical systems dramatically reduced our

costs and allowed the industrial revolution to happen• But this assumed unlimited, cheap, supply of

equipment and raw materials (coal, etc)• But: population growth and industrial growth have put

huge constraints on the systems• And: at the same time, maintenance costs have been

rising rapidly for power stations, transmission and distribution systems


Reliability of equipment

• What happens when there is a problem?• Disruption in power supply– Unplanned and prolonged downtimes– Destruction of equipment– Sudden cut offs

• No proper shutdowns• Customer dissatisfaction/frustration


Uni of Joburg talk at Transformer and SwitchGear ConferenceJoburg April 2012

David Lipschitz• BSc (Honours) MBA• My Power Station Technology: Energy Expert, Software Developer• Grid-Tied Photovoltaics Course: Feb 2009, Phoenix, AZ, USA• NABCEP Level 1 Certification

– North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners

• Additional related technical training• Spoke / Chaired Energy Efficiency conference 2010• Spoke at Various other Energy Conferences• Presented in Parliament re. Climate Change Hearings• Presented to Parliament re. IRP2010 Hearings• Presented at Powering Africa Strategy Summit in November 2011• Contact Details:

– 021 551 9935 (Office)– 074 119 3246 (Cell/Mobile/iPhone)– [email protected]– Mypowerstation (Skype)– http://www.linkedin.com/in/davidlipschitz (LinkedIn)




http://www.linkedin.com/in/davidlipschitz

http://www.linkedin.com/in/davidlipschitz

Designs• We charge R6,800 plus VAT for a design for a private houses and for systems up to 10KW.

Above 10 KW we charge R50,000 plus VAT, excludes EIAs, Engineering or Architect Fees.• Why we charge for designs?

– A design includes a site visit, a formal design with a parts list, an Efergy electricity meter so that the client can become aware of their electricity use and reduce it, and an energy efficiency exercise

– If the client buys a system from us and the value of the system is over R80,000, we discount their installed price by the fee.

– This is fair as the design requires experience and designs in IT, Architecture, etc, aren’t free. Designs can take up to 3 days. All prices and equipment needs to be checked. If we do 10 designs and then someone buys from us, we need to constantly increase the prices of the systems to recover our sales cost investment; this means that we either go out of business or run at a loss, which isn’t in our or our clients bests interests

– We need to recover our investment of over R4 million so far in ensuring that we install systems that meet electricity needs, are properly grounded, cable sizes are correct, the proper circuit breakers and fuses are used, etc. At the moment we follow the USA NEC article 690 RE guidelines as far as possible as there aren’t guidelines in South Africa, although there are DC guidelines.

– Update November 2011: NERSA have published RFD Embedded Generation which refers to NRS 097-2-1:2010 (Grid Interconnection Of Embedded Generation). We are now waiting for implementation by Eskom and the Cities.


Research


Do wind turbines kill birds?


Bibliography - Mindmaps

• Renewables and Sustainability Mindmap by David Lipschitz: https://www.mindmeister.com/maps/show/13046747

• Domestic Energy Independence by David Lipschitz: https://www.mindmeister.com/maps/show/47331785

• Living Without Grids – a survival mechanism by David Lipschitz: https://www.mindmeister.com/maps/show/14204830


https://www.mindmeister.com/maps/show/13046747






Project Video and Example

• Gecko Rock– Specification:

http://mypowerstation.co.za/2010/09/16/my-power-station-completes-installation-of-power-station-at-gecko-rock-press-release-16th-september-2010/

– Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LT1AF4ycAQY








Other Resources

• Total Installed Electricity Capacity Worldwide: http://www.steamtablesonline.com/electricity/electricity-installed-capacity.aspx

• Eco Economy Indicators: http://www.earth-policy.org

• Insolation Map: http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C49/wind_power_2012


http://www.steamtablesonline.com/electricity/electricity-installed-capacity.aspx



http://www.earth-policy.org/

http://www.earth-policy.org/

http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C49/wind_power_2012

http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C49/wind_power_2012

Other Resources

• Books– Hot, Flat and Crowded by Thomas Friedman• 2008

– Bending the Curve by Robert Zipplies• 2008

– Screw Business as Usual by Richard Branson• 2011

– Breaking the Code of History by David Murrin• 2010


Country Production Graphs

• Germany– http://www.agora-energiewende.de/service/aktu

elle-stromdaten/stromerzeugung-und-verbrauch/

• Portugal– http://www.centrodeinformacao.ren.pt/PT/Inform

acaoExploracao/Paginas/EstatisticaDiariaDiagrama.aspx


http://www.agora-energiewende.de/service/aktuelle-stromdaten/stromerzeugung-und-verbrauch/



http://www.centrodeinformacao.ren.pt/PT/InformacaoExploracao/Paginas/EstatisticaDiariaDiagrama.aspx



Germany Net Exporter of Electricity

• http://www.pv-magazine.com/news/details/beitrag/germany--power-exporter-even-with-fewer-nuclear-plants_100010756


http://www.pv-magazine.com/news/details/beitrag/germany--power-exporter-even-with-fewer-nuclear-plants_100010756


