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Renewables

Thai power firm chose Pöyry for wind farm project

19 April 2019

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Thailand

Pöyry, Finland’s international consulting and engineering firm, has revealed it was awared by B. Grimm Power Company, Thailand’s power producers, to work in B. Grimm Power’s latest renewable energy project, the 16MW Bo Thong Wind Farm, located in Mukdahan province, Thailand.

As stated in Pöyry’s press release on April 10, 2019, the work included EPC bid evaluation and negotiations, energy yield assessments, project management, design review, and site monitoring during construction and commissioning.

The purpose of B. Grimm Power’s latest project was to add 635MW equity capacity to its existing 1,082 MW equity capacity by the end of year 2021 and when the project is completed, B. Grimm Power’s equity capacity will increse at least 70% in the next two years.

Bo Thong project was expected to be substantially completed before September 2020 which is when commercial operation date (COD) is scheduled.

Esa Holttinen, Pöyry’s Business Director, highlighted the benefit that this project could provide to people involving in industrial sector as well as local sector.

“Typically located in less developed rural areas, wind farm projects not only benefit the energy sector development, but also contribute to achieve broader rural development goals, including the upgrade of local infrastructure, security, and electrical supply capability.

“Apart from that, such projects also create local job opportunities and spur additional income in the community, overall positively impacting the locality’s quality of life,” he added.

Pöyry has been collaborating with B. Grimm Power for over past 8 years since 2010 and Bo Thong project is the 13th owner’s engineering construction assignment that Pöyry has handled for B. Grimm Power.

Energy Efficiency

Local fuel prices increase by K140-K200 per liter in over four months

19 April 2019

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Myanmar

Local fuel prices have continued to increase by K140 to K200 per liter over the past four months as global oil prices reach about US$64 per barrel although Myanmar Kyat against dollar sees little fluctuation with the current value of just over K1,500, according to local filling stations.

On April 18 in local market, maximum prices were K990 for one liter of diesel (K4,500 per gallon), K1,000 for one liter of premium diesel (K4,546 per gallon), K860 for one liter of 92 Ron octane (K3,910 per gallon) and K930 for one liter of 95 Ron octane (K4,228 per gallon). In comparison with the prices on January 3 this year, prices of one liter of diesel have increased by K140 (16.47 percent), one liter of premium diesel by K145 (16.95 percent), one liter of 92 Ron octane by K190 (28.35 percent) and one liter of 95 Ron octane by K200 (27.39 percent).

Since the second week of October in 2017, oil prices per barrel had significantly increased with US$49 in early August, US$51 in early October, US$55 in early November, US$58 in early December, US$61 in early January this year, US$64 in early February, US$68 in late April, US$72 on May 21, and US$74 on July 10. The price decreased to US$69 on August 7 and US$65 on August 20. But it increased again to US$67 on September 10, US$70 on September 21 and US$76 on October 3. The price decreased to around US$42 on December 24, and reached around US$45 on December 27. However, prices gradually increased again with US$54 on January 21, US$57 on February 22, US$60.23 on March 20 and US$64.05 on April 16.

When dollar price against Myanmar Kyat and global oil prices increased in four months from June to October 2018, local fuel prices increased by over 21 percent.

Renewables

Feature: China-invested hydropower plant paves way for poverty alleviation in Laos

19 April 2019

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Lao PDR

VIENTIANE, April 19 (Xinhua) — For most of the villagers living along the River of Nam Tha in Bokeo province in northern Laos, they have never expected that their life would been changed so much with the Chinese-built Nam Tha 1 Hydropower Plant.

The project is the first overseas BOT (build-operation-transfer) hydropower project carried out by China Southern Power Grid under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

“The place we used to live is now submerged. It’s surely a sad thing for us,” said Inkeo Keomany, 42, whose home now is the place to build the reservoir of the Nam Tha 1 Hydropower Plant.

His family has moved to a newly-merged village where people from four or five villages gather together and they are satisfied with the new home now.

“It is convenient to do business as there are more people here. Our family lives in a new house that the company has built for us, and now runs a small shop. Besides, it is convenient to travel now,” he said.

Road No. 3, which links Louang Nam Tha province with Bokeo province in northern Laos, is extremely hard to travel as it is much winding. Many poppy replacement plantations along the road tell that the region used to be a drug-ridden place because of poverty.

Traveling off the main road and driving onto a mountain path for more than one hour on a walkway, Nam Tha 1 Hydropower Plant appears in a river valley.

A total of 37 villages are submerged under the reservoir of the plant with 1,735 households of 9,296 people resettled.

In October 2018, all three units of the power plant, with an installed capacity of 168 MW, began its pre-commercial operation. The annual generation capacity is expected to reach 721 GWh, which can provide green electrical power to more than 2 million people.

In addition, the hydropower station is also expected to transmit power to the border regions of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos for sales.

In 2018, China Southern Power Grid has completed the construction of 11 relocation sites to have the migrants settled down, aiming to bring green development and prosperity to the area.

For Hadnam village near the power plant, it has the access to a reliable road to the outside world when the power plant came, and in February the Chinese company helped Hadnam village build a road linking the plant to the village. Before that vllagers had to travel by waterway to the outside towns.

“Our farmers live on weather in the past,” said 54-year-old Duangpy Vixaiphone, the village chief. “The project has boosted the development of our village. Now it’s convenient for people to travel and do business as roads have been built. And some people even have worked in Chinese companies with better incomes.”

Xiengdy Huaykham, the deputy chief of Hadnam village, has been the station’s security chief since 2014. He earns around 1.6 million Lao kip (about 190 U.S. dollars), and now he plans to raise cattle and then sell them outside the village.

For reservoir migrants, the most important thing is to seek new livelihood as the Chinese company-invested power plant has tried to recruit more locals.

Viengkeo Onxaisy, 22, works as a technician in the central control room of the power plant. “I have worked for the project for about one year. My Chinese colleagues are very friendly and nice, and they often help me when I have questions,” said the young man.

Vilaisack Thongsien, 23, has recently found a job in the power plant. He went to study operation and management of hydropower plant in Yellow River vocational and technical college of water conservancy in the city of Kaifeng in central China’s Henan Province. He, who plans to settle down near the plant, told Xinhua that “knowledge learned in China” is useful, and he is now able to work independently.

According to Xu Chenghong, deputy general manager of Nam Tha River Company of China Southern Power Grid, which is in charge of the operation of the plant, the company has put 40,000 fishes in the reservoir, and plans release more in future based on ecological needs.

“The project has enriched our life. Living condition is better than before”, said 35-year-old Sithoun Bounpaserth. He is particularly happy to see that no one set fire to the mountain over the past two to three years as in the mountainous area of Laos, villagers still rely on slash-and-burn cultivation, resulting in ecological and environmental losses.

Meanwhile, poor local education facilities weigh heavily on the mind of the Chinese.

In Nongka Middle School in Nalae, there are only five bungalows for 135 students, among which three are used as classrooms, one as teachers’ office, and one as girls’ dormitory, while the boys live in tents. As told by teachers, some students are even not able to pay the tuition fee of 1,000 Laos kip (about 0.12 U.S. cent) each month.

The Nam Tha River Company has launched a donation for the school with around 1,200 U.S. dollars plus computers, quilts, clothes, and sports equipments. Enditem

Renewables

Wise steps in investing in renewable energy sector in Vietnam

19 April 2019

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Vietnam

In April 2018 Gulf Energy Development Group of Thai energy tycoon Sarath Ratanavadi tied up with TTC Group to develop solar and offshore wind power plants.

The plants include TTC No. 01 and TTC No.02 Solar Power Plant projects in the southern Tay Ninh Province, and a solar power and wind power plant each in Ben Tre Province, with a total installed capacity of 460 megawatts (MW).

Besides, Gulf is also interested in LNG electrification projects worth nearly US$8 billion.

TTC No. 01 and TTC No.02 Solar Power Plants in the southern Tay Ninh Province. — Photo Courtesy of TTC

Gulf Energy Development’s investment in renewable energy in Vietnam is not only a strategic step to expand its operations in Southeast Asia, but also benefits from incentives in the Vietnamese market.

With June 30, the deadline for solar power projects to enjoy a preferential tariff of 9.35 cents / kWh under Decision 11 of the Prime Minister in 2017, approaching, there are concerns about how Gulf will realise its goals.

Two projects, TTCIZ 01 and 02 in Trang Bang District, Tay Ninh Province, have linked up with the national grid. TTCIZ 01with a capacity of 68.8 MWp began commercial operation on March 6, 2019, and TTCIZ 02 with a capacity of 49 MWp was put into operation on April 16, and is awaiting the COD (the Commercial Operation Date) certificate.

These projects that Gulf has tied up with TTC for are among six that the latter and its member connected to the national grid so far.

There are 13 solar power projects in operation in the country now, and all energy companies are scrambling to begin operations by June 30 to enjoy the preferential tariff of 9.35 cents, but it is thought that only a few will.

To finish their projects before the deadline, they need to resolve legal issues related to investment, land clearance and compensation and electricity procedures. Besides, they also need funds to develop their renewable projects, but with banks cautious about lending to this sector, it will be not easy for them to get credit.

TTC No. 01 and TTC No.02 Solar Power Plants have linked up with the national grid. — Photo Courtesy of TTC

Regarding to other projects, Gulf is preparing to develop the Ben Tre Solar Power Project with a capacity of 30 MWp and start construction of the Binh Dai Wind Power Project with a capacity of 30 MW in phase 1 out of a total of 310 MW, which is now completing legal procedures.

The construction will be carried out in phases to increase to 310 MW and then nearly 500 MW before the deadline of November 2021 to get incentives under the Government’s Decision No. 39/2018 to support wind power development.

The Ben Tre Solar Power Project, which has a capacity of 30 MWp and is awaiting completion of legal formalities, will enjoy the incentive rate for Region 3 under the draft decree on the new retail electricity price structure.

All Gulf’s plans are currently being implemented with solar power projects of nearly 150 MWp, wind power projects of 500 MW and other M&A projects in the renewable energy sector to meet its target of developing 1,000MW of renewable energy.

In addition, Gulf is developing a gas-fired power complex in the central province of Ninh Thuan.

The complex is designed with four plants with a total capacity of 6,000 MW. Its cost is estimated at $7.8 billion.

With Vietnam’s average electricity demand growing at 10 per cent per year, and many foreign corporations entering the energy sector, Gulf, the largest energy company in Thailand, has taken the pioneering step and achieved encouraging results in the renewable energy market in Vietnam.

Others

Singapore crowned fibre city champion

18 April 2019

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Singapore

Singapore has topped the first ever ranking for fibre coverage in a city in Asia-Pacific. The smart nation boasts 93 per cent of fibre-to-the-home coverage, as well as 100 per cent 4G and 10,000 wi-fi hotspots.

The Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) Council Asia Pacific evaluated cities on fibre coverage as well as how extensive they are using those networks for connected devices and collecting data.

Champs and Challengers

Cities are ranked in two categories: Champs and Challengers. Champs have almost complete fibre coverage all around the city and have reached maturity in the smart projects that have been deployed. These cities generally have a fairly complete smart city framework in place across different areas as well as operational smart projects.

Challengers are cities that are actively deploying fibre infrastructure in order to realise their smart city strategy, but don’t yet have a full panel of smart services based on fibre. Instead, the focus is on specific domains.

Following Singapore in the Champs category is Tokyo (Japan) and Seoul(South Korea) in second and third places respectively, both with roughly 90 per cent FTTH/B coverage. Hong Kong, Busan (South Korea) and Melbourne (Australia) are fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively.

The ranking promotes the specific concept of a “smart fibre city” as the FTTH Council believes that only a smart city enabled by fibre can be a genuine smart city

In the Challenger category, Shanghai (China) scored highest, with around 90 per cent FTTH/B coverage. Second and third are Hangzhou and Wuhan (China). Runners up are Selangor (Malaysia), Jakarta (Indonesia), Bhubaneswar (India) and Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam).

The ranking promotes the specific concept of a “smart fibre city” as the FTTH Council believes that only a smart city enabled by fibre can be a genuine smart city.

“The research into smart fibre cities shows that we are just at the beginning of these developments,” states Venkatesan Babu, president, FTTH Council Asia-Pacific.

“Across APAC, we see many mature projects in areas such as e-government and security, with 5G-based applications in, for example, transport and disaster management coming up. We have great expectation for the large numbers of pilots in areas such as healthcare, smart grids and autonomous traffic.”

Renewables

Luzon solons thumb down nuclear energy

18 April 2019

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Philippines

By Ellson Quismorio

Two lawmakers from Luzon have thumbed down a proposal to utilize nuclear energy as a means to address the dire power situation in the country and said there are safer and cheaper alternative sources of energy that can be tapped.

Isabela Rep. Rodito Albano (Photo from congress.gov.ph/ MANILA BULLETIN)

“Nuclear power is a non-issue now. Nobody is talking about nuclear energy,” said Isabela 1st district Rep. Rodito Albano when asked if the country should study the possibility of building a new nuclear power plant.

Observers said that the finished but unused and now probably obsolete Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) could’ve helped the country avoid its current power woes, particularly the plunging of power reserves in the Luzon grid.

Albano pointed out that the lowering of reserves “only happen during summer,” and as such, there’s no need to invest in a new nuclear plant.

Quezon City 2nd district Winston Castelo agreed with Albano and said the Philippines should stay away from nuclear energy.

“Not anymore, no need to build a new nuclear plant. There are a lot of alternative [energy] that are safer and less expensive. We should explore that,” said Castelo, who chairs the House Committee on Metro Manila Development.

He mentioned solar and wind energy as renewable energy sources that the government could develop further.

Last week, the Luzon grid was placed on red alert status three times by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) warning consumers, including those in the franchise area of the Manila Electric Company (Meralco), of rotating brownouts.

The reason for this was falling power reserves caused by the simultaneous shutdown of several plants in Luzon during the summer when power demand from consumers is at its highest.

Completed in 1984, the BNPP was never fired due to a confluence of events, most notably the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution and the Chernobyl nuclear disaster that same year. The single-reactor plant cost $2.3 billion.

In 2017, Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Alfonso Cusi said the government would have to invest $1 billion in “reviving” the BNPP.

Cusi also said that due to the sensitive nature and history of the BNPP, the public’s approval via national referendum must be gained first before the controversial plant could be activated.

Electricity/Power Grid

DOE working to increase power reserves

18 April 2019

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Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Energy (DOE) is still working to increase the power grid’s contingency reserve from 15 percent to 25 percent to cover peak demand in the power system.

DOE Undersecretary Jesus Cristino Posadas said yesterday this is necessary since peak demand “is growing annually in pace with economic growth between six percent to seven percent, while available capacity supply is hard up to keep pace.”

The increase in reserves has been pushed since 2017 by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, well before a series of yellow and red alert warnings were raised in the Luzon grid.

Posadas said the agency is working on policies that would encourage private players to invest in more power plants that will cover the grid’s peak demand.

“Private investors favor tight supply conditions which maintain high electricity prices,” Posadas said.

“The issue is how to motivate the private sector to invest on the deregulated and privatized power generation by creating a market environment of stable and predictable regulations and policies,” he added.

As grid operator of the country’s transmission network, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) handles the contracting of ancillary service with generating companies to stabilize the fluctuation of power needed in the grid.

The ancillary service has three different layers to support the transmission of capacity and energy from resources to loads while maintaining reliable operation of the transmission system in accordance with good utility practice and the grid code.

The NGCP maintains the regulating reserve, which is the capacity allocated to cover inter and intra-hour variations in demand, equivalent to four percent of the demand in a specific hour.

It also maintains contingency reserve, which refers to the capacity allocated to cover the loss or failure of a generating unit or a transmission line in order to maintain balance between generation and load.

Meanwhile, it also secures dispatchable reserve, which refers to the generating capacity that is readily available for dispatch in order to replenish the contingency reserve service whenever a generating unit trips or a loss of a single transmission interconnection occurs.

However, some of these reserves are also sourced from the same generating capacities supplying to the power grid.

Cusi earlier said the ancillary service should be like a spare tire of a vehicle, which should always be available in times of trouble.

So far this month, the Luzon grid has been placed on yellow alert for six days and red alert for four days as several power plants went on unplanned outage.

Last Friday, several parts of Luzon, particularly Metro Manila, experienced two- to three-hour rotational blackouts because of the supply deficiency in the grid.

Renewables

Vietnam’s New Draft Development Guidelines on Rooftop Solar Power Systems from 1 July 2019

18 April 2019

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Vietnam

On 12 April 2019, the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam (“MOIT“) released the third draft (“Third Draft“) of the Decision of the Prime Minister on the mechanism for encouraging the development of solar power in Vietnam, applicable from 1 July 2019 (“Draft Decision“).

In addition to proposing new Feed-in-Tariffs for application from 1 July 2019 through to 31 December 2021, the Draft Decision sets out guidelines and requirements for rooftop solar power systems in Vietnam to replace the current Decision No. 11 in 2017 as amended by Decision No. 02 in early January 2019.1

The Third Draft continues to recognize a “direct power sale and purchase” model (as defined below) for rooftop solar power systems with an installed capacity of less than 1MWp. The Third Draft leaves unchanged (compared to the second draft) the specific FiT rates for “rooftop solar power systems”.

However, the Third Draft has removed the “intermediary power sale and purchase” model from the list of rooftop solar power systems under the Draft Decision.2

Models of Rooftop Solar Power Systems

Under the Third Draft, “rooftop solar power systems” are defined as solar power systems having solar PV panels installed on the roof or attached to civil buildings and having an installed capacity less than 1 MWp. This definition proposed by the MOIT serves the purpose of determining the tariffs and licensing requirements for these rooftop solar power systems. For “rooftop” solar power systems having an installed capacity of 1MWp or greater directly connected to the national grid, under the Draft Decision, they will be considered “Grid-connected solar power projects” (i.e., solar farms) for those purposes.3

The Draft Decision provides for four models of rooftop solar power systems:

“Power Consumption” model, which is defined as a model of “Rooftop solar power systems” under which organizations and individuals invest and install rooftop solar power systems to (i) use (consume) parts of energy output produced from the rooftop solar power systems and (ii) sell excess energy output to the national grid.
“Excess power sale business” model, which is defined as a model of rooftop solar power systems under which organizations and individuals invest in and install rooftop solar power systems to (i) sell parts of power energy outputs to other organization and individuals and (ii) sell excess power energy output to the national grid.
“Entire power sale business” model, which is defined as a model of rooftop solar power systems under which organizations and individuals invest in and install rooftop solar power systems to sell the entire power energy output produced from the rooftop solar power systems to the national grids.
“Direct power sale and purchase” model, which is defined as a model of rooftop solar power project under which organizations and individuals invest in, install and sell power from their rooftop solar power systems to other individuals and organisations (i.e., not EVN) without directly utilizing the national grid systems.

Compared to the first draft in January 2019, the Third Draft has removed the “intermediary power sale and purchase” model from the list of rooftop solar power systems under the Draft Decision.

Technical Requirements for Rooftop Solar Power Systems

Under the Third Draft, rooftop solar power systems directly or indirectly connected with the national grid must register their grid connections with EVN or its authorized entities.

Investors of rooftop solar power systems must also ensure compliance with the requirements on electrical power safety and construction safety under the relevant legal regulations.

Tariff mechanism for Rooftop Solar Power Systems

As a general principle governing offtake commitments, EVN/the Power Purchaser is obligated to purchase the entire power output sold from rooftop solar power systems to the grids consistent with the regulations on operation of national power systems and the technical standards and regulations of the electrical power industry. These technical regulations are separately provided for by the MOIT and EVN.

For (i) “Power Consumption” model, (ii) “Excess power sale business” model and (iii) “Entire power sale business” model, the proposed tariffs for sale of power output from rooftop solar power systems to the national or EVN grids are as follows:

These proposed tariffs are exclusive of VAT and are subject to adjustments based on the fluctuation of the United States Dollar (in US cents/kWh) in accordance with the central exchange rate between the United States Dollar and the Vietnamese Dong as announced by the State Bank of Vietnam on the last day of the previous year to calculate the power payment for the following year. The involved parties are responsible for complying with the regulations on taxes and fees.

The proposed tariffs for sale of power output to EVN will apply to part or the whole of rooftop solar power systems achieving an actual commercial operation date between 1 July 2019 and 31 December 2021 for application for a PPA term of 20 years from the commercial operation date.

For the “Direct power sale and purchase” model (i.e., in case the power purchaser is not EVN or its authorized entities), then, under the Third Draft, the tariff and the terms of the direct power purchase agreement (DPPA) between the power seller/developer and private power consumers/ purchasers shall be “implemented in line with the current regulations”. The Third Draft is not entirely clear as to what this means, but it implies that the parties to this DPPA are not subject to the FiT for rooftop solar power systems or the standard terms of model PPA template regulated by the MOIT.

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