Electricity sector in Uruguay

The electricity sector of Uruguay has traditionally been based on domestic hydropower along with thermal power plants, and reliant on imports from Argentina and Brazil at times of peak demand.
Over the last 10 years, investments in renewable energy sources such as wind power and solar power allowed the country to cover in early 2016 94.5% of its electricity needs with renewable energy sources.
Hydropower provides a large percentage of installed production capacity in Uruguay, almost all of it produced by four hydroelectric facilities, three on the Rio Negro and one, the Salto Grande dam shared with Argentina, on the Uruguay River. The production from these hydropower sources is dependent on seasonal rainfall patterns, but under normal hydrological conditions, can supply off-peak domestic demand.
Thermal power from petroleum fired power plants, activated during peak demand, used to provide the remaining installed production capacity.
Generation from fossil fuel decreased substantially in recent years, with renewables accounting for 94.5% of electricity generation in 2015.
Thermal power from biomass also provides additional power generation capacity.
The shift to renewable energy sources in recent years has been achieved thanks to modernization efforts, based on legal and regulatory reforms in 1997, 2002, and 2006, which have led to large new investments in electrical production capacity including from the private sector. Wind power capacity has gone from negligible in 2012 to 10% of installed capacity by 2014.
A new, highly efficient thermal power plant which can run on either gas or oil has been installed.
A number of photovoltaic solar power plants have been built.
Additionally, a new electrical grid interconnection has improved the ability to import or export electricity with Brazil.
Electricity supply and demand.
Installed capacity.
Installed electricity capacity in Uruguay was around 2,500 MW (megawatts) in 2009 and around 2,900 MW in 2013. Of the installed capacity, about 63% is hydro, accounting for 1,538 MW which includes half of the capacity of the Argentina-Uruguay bi-national Salto Grande. The rest of the production capacity is mostly thermal and a small share of wind and biomass.
The power system exhibits characteristics and issues of hydro-based generation. The apparently wide reserve margin conceals the vulnerability to hydrology. In dry years it is necessary to import over 25% of the demand from Argentinian and Brazilian markets.
About 56% of generation capacity is owned and operated by UTE, the national utility. The remaining capacity corresponds to the Salto Grande hydroelectric plant (945 MW), to co-generation or to small private investments in renewable sources. The table below shows the plants that are operated and owned by UTE as of 2008:
Installed capacity had barely changed between 1995 and 2008. The most recent addition was the 300 MW Punta del Tigre Plant, whose last units started operations in 2008. A 530 MW dual fuel (gas/light oil) CCGT power plant, "Punta del Tigre B", is being built in the Punta del Tigre site; construction started in late 2013 and final completion is expected by late 2018. The existing large hydroelectric potential has already been developed and the existing thermal units are low performing. Total generation in the year 2008 was 8,019 GWh, 56.1% of which were from hydroelectric sources, with 42.2% being thermal.
Imports and exports.
In the years leading up to 2009, the Uruguayan electricity system has faced difficulties to supply the increasing demand from its domestic market. In years of low rainfall, there is a high dependency on imports from Brazil and Argentina. Exports have historically been negligible. In particular, no electricity has been exported in 2009.The table below shows the evolution of imported electricity since 1999:
(1) January–June 2009
These energy exchanges happen through two existing interconnections, a 500kv line with Argentina, through Salto Grande, and a 70kv line with Brazil, through Garabi.
Demand.
Total electricity consumption in 2008 was 7,114 GWh, which corresponds to a per capita consumption of 2,729 kWh. Share of consumption by sector was as follows:
Demand and supply projections.
In the period 2002-2007, after the 2002-2003 economic and financial crisis, electricity demand increased 4.9% per year on average. Electricity demand increased by 7.5% between 2006 and 2007, from 6,613 GWh to 7,112 GWh, reaching a per capita value of 2,143 kWh. Yearly demand increase is expected to be about 3.5% during the next ten years.
Reserve margin.
Maximum demand on the order of 1,500 MW (historic peak demand, 1,668 MW happened in July 2009) is met with a generation system of about 2,200 MW capacity. This apparently wide reserve margin conceals a high vulnerability to hydrology.
Service quality.
Access to electricity in Uruguay is very high, above 98.7%. This coverage is above average for countries with public electricity services. Quality of service is perceived to be good both by companies and residential users. Companies suffer losses of just about 1.1% of their sales due to electricity service interruptions
Interruption frequency and duration are considerably below the averages for the LAC region. In 2004, the average number of interruptions per subscriber was 7.23, while duration of interruptions per subscriber was 9.8 hours. The weighted averages for LAC were 13 interruptions and 14 hours respectively.
UTE has implemented a series of measures to reduce electricity losses, which were particularly high during the 2002-2003 crisis. In December 2007, losses were still high, about 18%, of which 7% to 8% were of technical nature.
Responsibilities in the electricity sector.
The National Directorate of Energy and Nuclear Technology (DNTEN) formulates energy-sector policies. The regulatory functions are assigned to URSEA, the regulatory body. Both transmission and distribution activities are fully under the control of UTE, as established by the 1997 law.
Private companies.
Currently, there are four private companies that generate electricity for their own consumption and sell their surplus to the grid: Botnia (biomass, 161 MW), Agroland (wind, 0.3 MW), Nuevo Manantial (wind, 10 MW) and Zenda (natural gas, 3.2 MW). The Azucarlito plant (5 MW) operates in the spot market. The current 6% private contribution to the generation park is expected to increase as investments in new wind power plants materialize.
Renewable energy resources.
Renewables could play a role in future energy supply, in particular wind power, allowing Uruguay to reduce its dependence on imports.
All the potential for large hydroelectric projects in Uruguay has already been developed. Existing plants are Terra (152 MW), Baygorria (108 MW), Constitucion (333 MW) and the bi-national Salto Grande, with a total capacity of 1,890 MW.
Uruguay has a favorable climate for generating electricity through wind power. Installed wind power capacity reached 1,000 MW by 2016, generating 17% of the country's electricity.
The National Environmental Directorate (DINAMA) received several requests for new wind projects by 2009 and UTE had a very positive response to the bidding process launched that year. In August 2009, the government of Uruguay approved a Decree that allows UTE to bid 150 MW of wind power. USD 300 million of private investment was expected as a result. The first wind farm in Uruguay, the 10 MW Nuevo Manantial project in Rocha, started operations in October 2008. A few months later, in January 2009, UTE’s 10 MW wind farm in Sierra de los Caracoles also started operations. By 2016 Uruguay had enough wind power to export to Argentina and Brazil at times of high generation.
Biomass based on renewable sources such as rice husk could generate up to 20 MW at competitive prices. Firewood has already been used as a substitute for fuel oil in the 1980s, and cellulose projects expect to generate up to 65 MW for sales to the network.
History.
Power sector reform.
In 1997, the national electricity law was updated following the principles of the so-called “standard
model,” which contemplated the separation of regulatory/governance functions from corporate functions, and put in place the regulatory agency URSEA and a market administrator, ADME. The reform contemplated the remuneration of generators in order of merit, the creation of a wholesale market with regulated prices in transmission and distribution, where competition is not possible.
The reform has not been effectively implemented. After passing the modifications to the electricity law, secondary legislation was not forthcoming and the system continued to operate without any significant change. The new model was regulated in 2002 and it was expected that new operators would enter into a competitive market. The market did not develop as planned and demand actually decreased due to the economic crisis in the region. For instance, natural gas provision, which could have supplied new power generating units, did not materialize. Although URSEA and ADME were established, they cannot yet fulfil most of the functions established in their mandate.
Dependence on imports.
For a full decade no power capacity was added to the power system. Prior to the completion of the 100 MW Punta del Tigre diesel power plant in August 2005, UTE had not added a power station to the system since 1995, when the last unit of Salto Grande came online. The absence of commissioning of new production facilities during this extended period was the product of a conscious, strategic decision to take advantage of market developments in Argentina and in the region, which would allow imports to fill any Uruguayan shortfalls, while exporting hydropower surplus production to Argentina and Brazil during wet years.
Dependence on imports from Argentina started to become problematic in 2004. Before 2004, UTE was able to supply its demand through a combination of contracts and purchases on the Argentinean spot market. As a result of the Argentine energy difficulties, UTE’s contracts with Argentina for firm supply of 365 MW were reduced to 150 MW and were not extended beyond 2007. Notwithstanding this forced reduction in supply from Argentina over the low hydrology period of 2004-06, UTE was able to maintain energy imports through a noticeable increase of imports from Brazil and purchase of energy from the Argentine spot market. In 2008, supply costs increased substantially as the drought, high fuel costs and low availability of power in neighboring countries.
Policy options.
The Energy Strategy Guidelines for Uruguay were defined in 2006 by the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mines (MIEM). This strategy includes: (i) diversifying energy sources to reduce costs and emissions, as well as increase energy security; (ii) increasing private participation in new renewable power generation; (iii) increasing regional energy trade; and (iv) facilitating availability and acquisition of energy efficient goods and services, including efforts to raise public awareness regarding demand-side management interventions. According to the National Directorate for Energy and Nuclear Technology (DNETN), grid-connected wind power generation is one of the domestic resources with both medium and long term potential in Uruguay.
The government has taken action to promote RE development. In March 2006, the executive power issued Decree No.77/2006 to foster private generation through wind, biomass and small hydropower plants. A target of 60 MW was established for the first tender, which was conducted by UTE in August 2006. Although bids received for wind and biomass projects were all higher than US$70/MWh, this can be attributed to the small size of the proposed projects and the uncertainty of contractual arrangements.
Interconnecting with Brazil is also particularly attractive. The expansion of the interconnection capacity with Brazil may be carried out either along the Coast or from Salto Grande. This expansion would contribute to diversifying the supply sources and could be done in order to take advantage of the installation of large thermal (coal) plants in the South of Brazil.
Tariffs.
For 2008, the overall weighted average tariff was US$0.139/kWh. Average tariffs for some sectors are presented below:
Environmental impact.
OLADE (Organización Latinoamericana de Energía) estimated that CO2 emissions from electricity production in 2006 were 1.55 million tons of CO2. As of September 2009, there were only three registered CDM projects in Uruguay, all of them related to energy: the Montevideo Landfill Gas Capture and Flare Project, the Fray Bentos Biomass Power Generation Project and a project on partial substitution of fossil fuels with biomass in cement manufacture. Total expected emissions reductions are 251,213 tons of CO2e per year.
External assistance.
The only active energy project financed by the World Bank in Uruguay is the Energy Efficiency Project (PERMER), with a USD 6.88 million grant from the Global Environmental Facility. The objective this project is to increase the demand for and competitive supply of energy efficiency goods and services, contributing to improved efficiency of energy use, reduced reliance of the Uruguayan economy on imported electricity and fuels, and reduced emissions from the energy sector.


Maximum Power Point Tracking Using novel Bisection search Algorithm


Spheromak

A spheromak is an arrangement of plasma formed into a toroidal shape similar to a smoke ring. The spheromak contains large internal electric currents and their associated magnetic fields arranged so the magnetohydrodynamic forces within the spheromak are nearly balanced, resulting in long-lived (microsecond) confinement times without external fields. Spheromaks belong to a type of plasma configuration referred to as the compact toroids.
The physics of the spheromak and of collisions between spheromaks is similar to a variety of astrophysical events, like coronal loops and filaments, relativistic jets and plasmoids. They are particularly useful for studying magnetic reconnection events, when two or more spheromaks collide. Spheromaks are easy to generate using a "gun" that ejects spheromaks off the end of an electrode into a holding area, called the flux conserver. This has made them useful in the laboratory setting, and spheromak guns are relatively common in astrophysics labs. These devices are often, confusingly, referred to simply as "spheromaks" as well; the term has two meanings.
Spheromaks have been proposed as a magnetic fusion energy concept due to their long confinement times, which was on the same order as the best tokamaks when they were first studied. Although they had some successes during the 1970s and '80s, these small and lower-energy devices had limited performance and most spheromak research ended when fusion funding was dramatically curtailed in the late 1980s. However, in the late 1990s research demonstrated that hotter spheromaks have better confinement times, and this led to a second wave of spheromak machines. Spheromaks have also been used to inject plasma into a bigger magnetic confinement experiment like a tokamak.
Difference with FRC.
The difference between a field-reversed configuration (FRC) and a spheromak is that a spheromak has an internal toroidal field while the FRC plasma does not. This field can run clockwise or counterclockwise to the spinning plasma direction.
History.
The spheromak has undergone several distinct periods of investigation, with the greatest efforts during the 1980s, and a reemergence in the 2000s.
Background work in astrophysics.
A key concept in the understanding of the spheromak is magnetic helicity, a value formula_1 that describes the "twistedness" of the magnetic field in a plasma.
The earliest work on these concepts was developed by Hannes Alfvén in 1943, which won him the 1970 Nobel Prize in Physics. His development of the concept of Alfvén waves explained the long-duration dynamics of plasma as electric currents traveling within them produced magnetic fields which, in a fashion similar to a dynamo, gave rise to new currents. In 1950, Lundquist experimentally studied Alfvén waves in mercury and introduced the characterizing Lundquist number, which describes the plasma's conductivity. In 1958, Lodewijk Woltjer, working on astrophysical plasmas, noted that formula_1 is conserved, which implies that a twisty field will attempt to maintain its twistiness even with external forces being applied to it.
Starting in 1959, Alfvén and a team including Lindberg, Mitlid and Jacobsen built a device to create balls of plasma for study. This device was identical to modern "coaxial injector" devices (see below) and the experimenters were surprised to find a number of interesting behaviors. Among these was the creation of stable rings of plasma. In spite of their many successes, in 1964 the researchers turned to other areas and the injector concept lay dormant for two decades.
Background work in fusion.
In 1951 efforts to produce controlled fusion for power production began. These experiments generally used some sort of pulsed power to deliver the large magnetic forces required in the experiments. The current magnitudes and the resulting forces were unprecedented. In 1957 Harold Furth, Levine and Waniek reported on the dynamics of large magnets, demonstrating that the limiting factor in magnet performance was physical; stresses in the magnet would overcome its own mechanical limits. They proposed winding these magnets in such a way that the forces within the magnet windings cancelled out, the "force-free condition". Although it was not known at the time, this is the same magnetic field as in a spheromak.
In 1957 the ZETA (fusion reactor) machine started operation in the UK. ZETA was at that time by far the largest and most powerful fusion device in the world. It operated until 1968, by which time many devices matched its size. During its operation, the experimental team noticed that on occasion the plasma would maintain confinement long after the experimental run had ostensibly ended, although this was not then studied in depth. Years later in 1974, John Bryan Taylor characterized these self-stable plasmas, which he called "quiescent". He developed the Taylor state equilibrium concept, a plasma state that conserves helicity in its lowest possible energy state. This led to a re-awakening of compact toroid research.
Another approach to fusion was the theta pinch concept, which was similar to the z-pinch used in ZETA in theory, but used a different arrangement of currents and fields. While working on such a machine in the early 1960s, one designed with a conical pinch area, Bostick and Wells found that the machine sometimes created stable rings of plasma. A series of machines to study the phenomenon followed. One magnetic probe measurement found the toroidal magnetic field profile of a spheromak; the toroidal field was zero on axis, rose to a maximum at some interior point, and then went to zero at the wall. However, the theta-pinch failed to reach the high-energy conditions needed for fusion, and most work on theta-pinch had ended by the 1970s.
The golden age.
The key concept in fusion is the energy balance for any machine fusing a hot plasma.
Net Power = Efficiency * (Fusion – Radiation Loss – Conduction Loss)
This forms the basis of the Lawson criterion. To increase fusion rates, research has focused on the "triple product" a combination of the plasma temperature, density and confinement time. Fusion devices generally fell into two classes, pulsed machines like the z-pinch that attempted to reach high densities and temperatures but only for microseconds, while steady state concepts such as the stellarator and magnetic mirror attempted to reach the Lawson criterion through longer confinement times.
Taylor's work suggested that self-stable plasmas would be a simple way to approach the problem along the confinement time axis. This sparked a new round of theoretical developments. In 1979 Rosenbluth and Bussac published a paper describing generalizations of Taylor's work, including a spherical minimum energy state having zero toroidal field on the bounding surface. This means that there is no externally driven current on the device axis and so there are no external toroidal field coils. It appeared that this approach would allow for fusion reactors of greatly simpler design than the predominant stellarator and tokamak approaches.
Several experimental devices emerged almost overnight. Wells recognized his earlier experiments as examples of these plasmas. He had moved to the University of Miami and started gathering funding for a device combining two of his earlier conical theta-pinch systems, which became Trisops. In Japan, Nihon University built the PS-1, which used a combination of theta and zeta pinches to produce spheromaks. Harold Furth was excited by the prospect of a less-expensive solution to the confinement issue, and started the S1 at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, which used inductive heating. Many of these early experiments were summarized by Furth in 1983.
These early MFE experiments culminated in the Compact Torus Experiment (CTX) at Los Alamos. This was this era's largest and most powerful device, generating spheromaks with surface currents of 1 MA, temperatures of 100 eV, and peak electron betas over 20%. CTX experimented with methods to re-introduce energy into the fully formed spheromak in order to counter losses at the surface. In spite of these early successes, by the late 1980s the tokamak had surpassed the confinement times of the spheromaks by orders of magnitude. For example, JET was achieving confinement times on the order of 1 second.
The major event that ended most spheromak work was not technical; funding for the entire US fusion program was dramatically curtailed in FY86, and many of the "alternate approaches", which included spheromaks, were defunded. Existing experiments in the US continued until their funding ran out, while smaller programs elsewhere, notably in Japan and the new SPHEX machine in the UK, continued from 1979–1997. CTX gained additional funding from the Defence Department and continued experiments until 1990; the last runs improved temperatures to 400 eV, and confinement times on the order of 3 ms.
Astrophysics.
Through the early 1990s spheromak work was widely used by the astrophysics community to explain various events and the spheromak was studied as an add-on to existing MFE devices.
D.M. Rust and A. Kumar were particularly active in using magnetic helicity and relaxation to study solar prominences. Similar work was carried out at Caltech by Bellan and Hansen at Caltech, and the Swarthmore Spheromak Experiment (SSX) project at Swarthmore College.
Fusion accessory.
Some MFE work continued through this period, almost all of it using spheromaks as accessory devices for other reactors. Caltech and INRS-EMT in Canada both used accelerated spheromaks as a way to refuel tokamaks. Others studied the use of spheromaks to inject helicity into tokamaks, eventually leading to the Helicity Injected Spherical Torus (HIST) device and similar concepts for a number of existing devices.
Defence.
Hammer, Hartman et al. showed that spheromaks could be accelerated to extremely high velocities using a railgun, which led to several proposed uses. Among these was the use of such plasmas as "bullets" to fire at incoming warheads with the hope that the associated electric currents would disrupt their electronics. This led to experiments on the Shiva Star system, although these were cancelled in the mid-1990s.
Other domains.
Other proposed uses included firing spheromaks at metal targets to generate intense X-ray flashes as a backlighting source for other experiments. In the late 1990s spheromak concepts were applied towards the study of fundamental plasma physics, notably magnetic reconnection. Dual-spheromak machines were built at the University of Tokyo, Princeton (MRX) and Swarthmore College.
Rebirth.
In 1994 T. Kenneth Fowler was summarizing the results from CTX's experimental runs in the 1980s when he noticed that confinement time was proportional to plasma temperature. This was unexpected; the ideal gas law generally states that higher temperatures in a given confinement area leads to higher density and pressure. In conventional devices such as the tokamak, this increased temperature/pressure increases turbulence that dramatically "lowers" confinement time. If the spheromak improved confinement with increased temperature, this suggested a new path towards an ignition-level spheromak reactor.
The promise was so great that several new MFE experiments started to study these issues. Notable among these is the Sustained Spheromak Physics Experiment (SSPX) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, which studied the problems of generating long-life spheromaks through electrostatic injection of additional helicity. Also of note is the steady inductive helicity injected torus experiment (HIT-SI) at the University of Washington headed by Professor Thomas Jarboe. The success of sustaining spheromaks with evidence of pressure confinement on this experiment motivated the creation of a new spheromak-based fusion reactor concept called the Dynomak that is projected to be cost competitive with conventional power sources.
Theory.
Force free plasma vortices have uniform magnetic helicity and therefore are stable against many disruptions. Typically, the current decays faster in the colder regions until the gradient in helicity is large enough to allow a turbulent redistribution of the current.
Force free vortices follow the following equations.
The first equation describes a Lorentz force-free fluid: the formula_4 forces are everywhere zero. For a laboratory plasma, α is a constant and β is a scalar function of spatial coordinates.
Note that, unlike most plasma structures, the Lorentz force and the Magnus force, formula_5, play equivalent roles. formula_6 is the mass density.
Spheromak magnetic flux surfaces are toroidal. The current is totally toroidal at the core and totally poloidal at the surface. This is similar to the field configuration of a tokamak, except that the field-producing coils are simpler and do not penetrate the plasma torus.
Spheromaks are subject to external forces, notably the thermal gradient between the hot plasma and its cooler surroundings. Generally, this leads to a loss of energy at the outer surface of the spheromak though black-body radiation, leading to a thermal gradient in the spheromak itself. Electric current travels slower in the cooler sections, eventually leading to a redistribution of energy inside, and turbulence eventually destroys the spheromak.
Formation.
Spheromaks form naturally under a variety of conditions, enabling them to be generated in a number of ways.
The most common modern device is the Marshall gun or injector. The device consists of two nested, closed cylinders. The inner cylinder is shorter, leaving an empty space at the bottom. An electromagnet inside the inner cylinder sets up an initial field. The field is similar to that of a bar magnet, running vertically down the center of the inner cylinder and up the outside of the apparatus. The magnet is positioned so that the area where the field loops over from the center to outside, where the field lines are roughly horizontal, is aligned with the bottom of the inner cylinder.
A small amount of gas is introduced to the area between the cylinders. A large electric charge supplied by a capacitor bank applied across the cylinders ionizes the gas. Currents induced in the resulting plasma interact with the original magnetic field, generating a Lorentz force that pushes the plasma away from the inner cylinder, into the empty area. After a short period the plasma stabilizes into a spheromak.
Other common devices include open-ended or conical theta-pinch.
Since the spheromak's magnetic confinement is self-generated, no external magnet coils are required. However, the spheromak does experience the "tilting perturbation" that allows it to rotate within the confinement area. This can be addressed with external magnets, but more often the confinement area is wrapped in a (typically copper) conductor. When the edge of the spheromak torus approaches the conductive surface, a current is induced into it that, following Lenz's law, reacts to push the spheromak back into the center of the chamber.
It is also possible to get the same effect with a single conductor running down the center of the chamber, through the "hole" in the center of the spheromak. As this conductor's currents are self-generated, it adds little complexity to the design. However, stability can be further improved by running an external current in the central conductor. As the current scales up it approaches the conditions of a traditional tokamak, but in a much smaller size and simpler form. This evolution led to considerable research on the spherical tokamak during the 1990s.


Wind power in Japan

In Japan's electricity sector wind power generates a small proportion of the country's electricity. It has been estimated that Japan has the potential for 144 gigawatts (GW) for onshore wind and 608 GW of offshore wind capacity.
As of 2019, the country had a total installed capacity of 3,923 MW.
As of 2018, government targets for wind power deployment were relatively low when compared to other countries, at 1.7% of electricity production by 2030.
In December 2020, the Japanese government announced plans to install up to 45 GW of offshore wind power by 2040.
Government incentives.
, the feed-in tariff per kWh are 21 yen for onshore and 36 yen for offshore.
Notable projects.
The Shin Izumo Wind Farm owned by Eurus Energy was the largest wind farm in Japan as of 2011, comprising 26 turbines with a total nameplate capacity of 78 megawatts.
The Shin Aoyama Wind Farm owned by C-tech is currently the largest wind farm in Japan, as of February 2018. It comprises 40 turbines with a total nameplate capacity of 80 megawatts. The amount of electrical power that can be generated is equivalent to the annual consumption of about 44,000 ordinary households.
The Yurihonjo Offshore Wind Farm located in Akita Prefecture is expected to begin construction in 2021. It will comprise 70-90 turbines with a proposed capacity of as much as 1000 megawatts. Upon completion, its capacity is projected to be the largest offshore wind farm in Japan.
In 2011, Japan stated plans to build a pilot floating wind farm, with six 2-megawatt turbines, off the Fukushima coast. After the evaluation phase is complete in 2016, "Japan plans to build as many as 80 floating wind turbines off Fukushima by 2020."
In 2013, a floating offshore wind turbine was tested about 1 km off the coast of the island of Kabajima in Nagasaki Prefecture. It was a part of a Japanese government test project. This was the first of its kind in Japan.


Wind power in Canada

Wind power has a history in Canada dating back many decades, particularly on prairie farms. As of December 2019, wind power generating capacity was 13,413 megawatts (MW), providing about 6% of Canada's electricity demand. The Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) has outlined a future strategy for wind energy that would reach a capacity of 55 GW by 2025, meeting 20% of the country's energy needs.
Timeline.
1990s.
Early development of wind energy in Canada was located primarily in Ontario, Quebec, and Alberta. Alberta built the first commercial wind farm in Canada in 1993. Throughout the late 1990s and early years of the 21st Century every Canadian province has pursued wind power to supplement their provincial energy grids.
2009.
British Columbia was the last province to add wind power to its grid with the completion of the Bear Mountain Wind Park in November 2009. With increasing population growth, Canada has seen wind power as a way to diversify energy supplies away from traditional reliance on fossil fuel burning thermal plants and heavy reliance on hydroelectricity in some provinces. In provinces like Nova Scotia, where only 12% of electricity comes from renewable sources, the development of wind energy projects will provide a measure of electricity security that some jurisdictions are lacking. In the case of British Columbia, wind energy will help close the electricity deficit that the province is facing into the 2010s and help reduce the reliance on importing power from other jurisdictions that may not use renewable energy sources.
2011–2015.
An additional 2,004 megawatts of wind power is to come on stream in Quebec between 2011 and 2015. The new energy will cost 10.5 cents per kilowatt-hour, a price described as "highly competitive".
2019.
Continuing 2018's growth, Canada finished 2019 with 13,413 MW of wind energy capacity - enough to power approximately 3.4 million homes. The year saw completion of five projects that added 597 MW of new installed capacity, representing over $1 billion of investment. Canada is home to the world's ninth largest wind generating fleet.
Wind hybrid projects.
Contributors to the main power grid are Wind-Diesel and Wind-Hydrogen. Canadian examples are the community of Ramea, Newfoundland and Labrador that initially used a Wind-Diesel system and is now being converted to Wind-Hydrogen technology, and a 10MW / 20MWh battery at the 66 MW Summerview II wind farm in Alberta.
Wind power industry.
Canadian industry has started to supply major components for Wind Tower projects, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Canada, Ltd. being one example.
Public opinion.
In a survey conducted by Angus Reid Strategies in October 2007, 89 per cent of respondents said that using renewable energy sources like wind or solar power was positive for Canada, because these sources were better for the environment. Only 4 per cent considered using renewable sources as negative since they can be unreliable and expensive.
According to a Saint Consulting survey in April 2007, wind power was the alternative energy source most likely to gain public support for future development in Canada, with only 16% opposed to this type of energy. By contrast, 3 out of 4 Canadians
opposed nuclear power developments.
Despite this general support for the concept of wind power in the public at large, local opposition often exists, primarily from residents concerned about visual and light pollution, noise or reduced property values. The construction of wind turbines has a negative effect on rural communities, owing to the fact that landowners who receive payments to allow wind turbines on their land are seen as sellouts who are unconcerned with the wind turbine's effect on their neighbours. Public opposition has had the desired effect in some cases, aborting or delaying construction of wind turbines. This opposition has been described as a case of NIMBYism.
Complicating matters further is wind energy's association with high electricity costs in Ontario. Due to increasing hydro prices some attribute to the Green Energy Act, many Ontarians are turning to alternative sources of energy to meet their needs, such as propane and the burning of wood.
Several wind farms in Canada have become tourist attractions, to the surprise of the owners.
Proposed future strategies.
Wind farms on crown land.
Some rural communities want Alberta to grant companies the right to develop wind farms on leased Crown land.
Wind Vision 2025.
In 2008, the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA), a non-profit trade association, outlined a future strategy for wind energy that would reach a capacity of 55,000 MW by 2025, fulfilling 20% of the country's energy needs. The plan, "Wind Vision 2025", could create over 50,000 jobs and represent around CDN$165 million annual revenue. If achieved, CanWEA's target would make the country a major player in the wind power sector and would create around CDN$79 billion of investment. It would also save an estimated 17 megatonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually.
CanWEA recommended to add 500 MW of capacity in Quebec each year from 2018 to 2025.
Current support schemes.
Ontario's Large Renewable Procurement.
The LRP is an important tool of Ontario's commitment to reach the province's 2025 target for renewable energy to comprise about 50% of Ontario's installed capacity. Projects of more than 10 MW of capacity are eligible to obtain a 20-year contract through a price competitive auction.


Magnetized Liner Inertial Fusion

Magnetized Liner Inertial Fusion (MagLIF) is an emerging method of producing controlled nuclear fusion. It is part of the broad category of inertial fusion energy (IFE) systems, which uses the inward movement of the fusion fuel to reach densities and temperatures where fusion reactions take place. Previous IFE experiments used laser "drivers" to reach these conditions, whereas MagLIF uses a combination of lasers for heating and Z-pinch for compression. A variety of theoretical considerations suggest such a system will reach the required conditions for fusion with a machine of significantly less complexity than the pure-laser approach.
Description.
MagLIF is a method of generating energy by using a 100 nanosecond pulse of electricity to create an intense Z-pinch magnetic field that inwardly crushes a fuel filled cylindrical metal liner (a hohlraum) through which the electric pulse runs. Just before the cylinder implodes, a laser is used to preheat fusion fuel (such as deuterium-tritium) that is held within the cylinder and contained by a magnetic field. Sandia National Labs is currently exploring the potential for this method to generate energy by utilizing the Z machine.
MagLIF has characteristics of both Inertial confinement fusion (due to the usage of a laser and pulsed compression) and magnetic confinement (due to the utilization of a powerful magnetic field to inhibit thermal conduction and contain the plasma). In results published in 2012, a LASNEX based computer simulation of a 70 megaampere facility showed the prospect of a spectacular energy return of 1000 times the expended energy. A 60 MA facility would produce a 100x yield. The currently available facility at Sandia, Z machine, is capable of 27 MA and may be capable of producing slightly more than breakeven energy while helping to validate the computer simulations. The Z-machine conducted MagLIF experiments in November 2013 with a view towards breakeven experiments using D-T fuel in 2018.
Sandia Labs planned to proceed to ignition experiments after establishing the following:
Following these experiments, an integrated test started in November 2013. The test yielded about 1010 high-energy neutrons.
As of November 2013, the facility at Sandia labs had the following capabilities:
In 2014, the test yielded up to 2×1012 D-D neutrons under the following conditions:
Experiments aiming for energy breakeven with D-T fuel were expected to occur in 2018.
To achieve scientific breakeven, the facility is going through a 5-year upgrade to:
In 2019, after encountering significant problems related to mixing of imploding foil with fuel and helical instability of plasma, the tests yielded up to 3.2×1012 neutrons under the following conditions:


Compressor characteristic

Compressor characteristic is a mathematical curve that shows the behaviour of a fluid going through a dynamic compressor. It shows changes in fluid pressure, temperature, entropy, flow rate etc.) with the compressor operating at different speeds.
A compressor increases the pressure of a fluid passing through it, so that the exit pressure is higher than the inlet pressure. Due to this property, compressors are used in a wide range of machines, such as refrigerators, cars, jet engines and industrial processes.
Compressor characteristic curves are plotted between various parameters and some are as follows
Pressure ratio vs. non-dimensional flow rate.
Performance of a compressor is usually specified by curves of delivery pressure against mass flow rate for various fixed values of rotational speed and inlet temperature. These performance characteristic curves are usually plotted with dimensionless variables. For this, we start with implicit functional relationships for all the variables as
formula_1
Where
formula_2 = characteristic linear dimension of the compressor
formula_3 = rotational speed
formula_4 = mass flow rate
formula_5 and formula_6 = stagnation pressure at compressor inlet and outlet
formula_7 and formula_8 = stagnation temperature at compressor inlet and outlet
formula_9 = characteristics gas constant
By making use of π-theorem, we obtain the non-dimensional groups (π terms) as
formula_10, formula_11, formula_12, formula_13
When we are concerned with the performance of a machine of fixed size compressing a specified gas and D may be omitted from the groups and we can write
formula_14
Though the terms formula_15 and formula_16 are truly not dimensionless, they are referred as 'non-dimensional mass flow' and 'non-dimensional rotational speed' for practical purpose. The stagnation pressure ratio formula_10 is plotted againstformula_15 in the form of family of curves, each curve of a family being drawn for fixed values of formula_16 as shown in Figure 1.
Pressure rise vs. flow rate.
The plot between pressure rise and flow rate is same as pressure ratio vs. mass flow rate with a small difference as in here we take pressure difference between inlet and outlet of the compressor instead of their ratio.
formula_20
formula_21
Loading coefficient/pressure coefficient vs. flow coefficient.
First we have to know about the loading, pressure and flow coefficient which are as follow-
Loading coefficientformula_22 formula_23
Pressure coefficientformula_22 formula_25 = formula_26
So we can see that
formula_27
Where
formula_28 = impeller tip speed
formula_29 = head
and also
Flow coefficient formula_30
So assuming a function to relate Loading coefficient and the Flow coefficient
formula_31
A compressor gives its best performance while operating at its design point but it is also expected to operate away from the design point.
Therefore, knowledge about its behavior at off-design operation is also necessary. The quantity formula_32 can be assumed constant in a wide range of incidence. This is justified in view of small variations in the air angles at the rotor and stator exits. Therefore, writing
formula_33
formula_34
Where
formula_35 = blade peripheral velocity
formula_36 and formula_37 are absolute air velocity at the rotor inlet and outlet
formula_38 and formula_39 are relative velocity at rotor inlet and outlet
formula_40 = absolute air velocity at the stator outlet
formula_41 and formula_42 are the angles shown in the following Figure 2.
If the design values are identified by the superscript
formula_43
At off-design conditions
formula_44
formula_45 formula_46
This equation also gives the off-design characteristic of an axial-flow compressor. The figure shown below depicts theoretical characteristic curves for some values of the constant formula_47. For positive values of formula_47, the curves are falling, while for negative values rising characteristics are obtained.
Theoretical characteristic curve.
Theoretical characteristic curve of the compressor is the plot to show behavior
of the fluid without considering losses due to shock and friction as it passes through the compressor at different constant speeds. The curve as shown in Figure 3. is plotted between pressure coefficient formula_25 and flow coefficient formula_50
for different values of formula_47 as shown in fig. From fig. It is clear that as the flow coefficient formula_50 increases the pressure gained per unit mass flow rate of the fluid decreases and due to this pressure coefficient formula_25 at higher mass flow rate will be low.
Actual characteristic curve.
Actual characteristic curve of the compressor is the modified version of the theoretical characteristic curve. In this we take care of both shock and friction losses as shown in the Figure 4. As seen in the figure the steepness of the curve increases at higher mass flow rates because since there will be higher frictional losses at high flow coefficient (Darcy's friction law).
Surging.
Surging is the complete breakdown of steady flow in the compressor which occurs at low flow rate. Surging takes place when compressor is operated off the design point and it affects the whole machine and this is aerodynamically and mechanically undesirable. It can damage the rotor bearings, rotor seals, compressor driver and affect the whole cycle operation. It results in high temperature, high vibration and leads to flow reversal.
Surge process.
Assuming the compressor operates at point A (formula_54) on the characteristic curve (let at constant speed formula_55) as shown in Figure 5. Now if the flow rate is reduced to formula_56 by closing a control valve on the delivery pipe, the static pressure upstream of the valve is increased. This increased pressure (formula_57) is then matched by the increased delivery pressure (at B) which is developed by the compressor. Now further reducing the flow (to formula_58 and formula_59), the increased pressures in the delivery pipe are again matched by the compressor delivery pressures at C and S on the characteristic curve.
On the characteristic curve at the flow rates below ṁS provides lower pressure as seen in the fig. at D and E. But now the pipe pressures due to further reduction of flow by valve (let at point D) will be higher than the pressure at D and E. This unbalance between the pipe pressure and the compressor delivery pressure only exist for a very short time. This is because there is higher pressure in the pipe than the gas pressure produced by the compressor and due to this reversing of the flow takes place and it leads to a complete break-down of the normal steady flow from the compressor to the pipe.
Surge cycle.
Due to flow reversal, pressure in the pipe falls and the compressor regains its normal stable operation (let at point B) delivering the gas at higher flow rate (formula_56). But the control valve still corresponds to the flow rate formula_61. Due to this compressor's operating conditions will again return to D through points C and S. And due to lower compressor pressure, the pressure falls further to formula_62 and the entire phenomenon from point E to D repeats again and again and this cycle EBCSDE known as the surge cycle.
Surge point.
Surge points are the peak points on the characteristic curves (as in Figure 5.) left of which the pressure generated by the compressor is less than the pipe pressure and these points initiates the surge cycle. These points on the curves are shown in the fig. by point S.
Surge line.
Surge line is the line which connects the surge points (S) on each characteristic curve corresponding to different constant speeds. The stable range of operation for the compressor is on the right hand side of the surge line.
Surge control line.
Surge control line is the line which works as the indicating line for the surge control mechanism so that surge can be prevented in the system and proper steps can be taken. The line can vary for different surge control systems as it is up to the system to decide the margin between operating point and the surge point.
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Surge margin.
Surge margin is the indicator to show that how close is the system to the surge. It is different for the different surge control system as they employ different surge control lines. The basic surge margin can be defined as
Surge margin = formula_63
Where
formula_64 = mass flow rate at surge control line at a particular constant speed
formula_65 = mass flow rate at surge line at the same constant speed.
Stalling.
Stalling is the separation of flow from the compressor blade surface as shown in the Figure 6. At low flow rates the angle of attack increases over the critical or maximum angle that the aerodynamic profile can sustain, and due to this there occurs the flow separation on the suction side of the blades which is known as positive stalling. If the flow separation occurs on the pressure side of the blade then it's known as negative stalling and this occurs due to negative attack angle. But generally positive stalling is taken into consideration.
In the compressor at high pressure stages if there occurs a deviation from design point (at which compressor is designed to operate) the angle of attack exceeds its stalling value and stall cells (which are the regions where fluid starts to whirl at a particular location and doesn't move forward) to form at hub and tip of the blade. The size of these cells increases with decreasing flow rate. If the flow rate is further reduced these cells grow larger and it affects the whole blade height and this causes significant drop in the delivery pressure and at very low flow rate, flow reversal takes place which is known as surge. It also results in drop in stage efficiency of the compressor and its delivery pressure.
Other compressor phenomena.
Following are some other characteristics of the compressor
Choke/Stonewall point.
Choking is the condition which occurs in the compressor in which it operates at very high mass flow rate and flow through the compressor can't be further increased as mach number at some part of the compressor reach to unity i.e. to sonic velocity and the flow is said to be choked. In compressor maximum volume flow rate is limited by cross-section at the inlet. This condition can be seen in the right side of the Figure 5. in which constant speed lines descends steeply. The point on constant speed line at which choking occurs is known as choke point or stonewall point.
Choke line.
Choke line is the line joining the choke points on different constant speed lines in the Figure 5. In simple words, the operation on right side of choke line is very inefficient, but is possible if the exit static pressure is low enough and blade instabilities such as choke flutter are avoided.
Constant efficiency lines.
Constant efficiency lines are the elliptical shaped curves in the compressor characteristic curve along which the efficiency of the compressor remains constant.
Maximum allowable speed.
This is the maximum speed at which compressor can work properly(shown as formula_55 in Figure 5.) and beyond this speed limit stresses and vibrations in the compressor crosses the prescribed limit and this can damage the compressor and to control this, compressor's speed is lowered.
Minimum required speed.
This is the minimum speed at which compressor should operate (shown as formula_67 in Figure 5.) and below this limit compressor can't increase the pressure of inlet fluid and goes into idle condition.


Electricity in Sri Lanka


CNP-300

The CNP-300 is a pressurized water nuclear reactor developed by the China National Nuclear Corporation.
It is China's first commercial nuclear reactor design.
The reactor has a thermal capacity of 999 MW and a gross electrical capacity of 325 MW, with a net output of about 300 MWe.
Development of the reactor began in the 1970s, based on a nuclear submarine reactor design.
The first CNP-300 unit started operations in Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant in 1991.
The CNP-300 was the first Chinese nuclear reactor to be exported, with the installation of the first unit at Chashma Nuclear Power Plant in Pakistan.
The unit began operation in 2000.
Another unit was completed in 2011 and other two reactors are under construction at the same plant.


Sun Ba Power Corporation

The Sun Ba Power Corporation () is an independent power producer company in Taiwan.
History.
The Sun Ba Power Corporation was established on 29 August 2000. On 19 August 2004, the company was listed as public company.
Business.
The company involves with the business of generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. It is affiliated with Taiwan Cogeneration Corporation, a publicly traded company with active interests in the transmission of electricity, and Taiwan Sugar Corporation, a private company with active interests in the production and distribution of sugar.


China Resources Power

China Resources Power Holdings Company Limited (commonly known as CR Power, ) was incorporated and registered in Hong Kong in 2001. It is a subsidiary of China Resources Holdings, a conglomerate in Mainland China and Hong Kong. Its business is concerned about the investment, development, operation and management of coal-burning power plants in the regions including Beijing, Hebei, Henan, Liaoning, Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong and Yunnan.
China Resources Power was added to be Hang Seng Index Constituent Stock on 8 June 2009 to replace Yue Yuen Industrial.


Nemo Link

Nemo Link is an HVDC submarine power cable between Richborough Energy Park in Kent, the United Kingdom and Zeebrugge, Belgium. The project is a joint venture between British National Grid and Belgian Elia. The electrical interconnector is the first between the two countries, capable of transmitting up to 1,000 MW at 400 kV for an annual transmission capacity of 8.76 TWh. The link has been fully operational since 31 January 2019.
History.
In 2015, contracts totalling €500 million were awarded to Siemens for the construction of the two onshore HVDC converter stations and to J-Power Systems Corporation for the cable system. The contract for the laying of the actual cable was awarded to DeepOcean who completed the work in 2017 and 2018.
Route.
The total cable length is of which is under water, buried at a depth of up to . The offshore section runs from Pegwell Bay in the United Kingdom to Zeebrugge beach in Belgium. The onshore cable in Belgium is nearly long and connects the landing point of the submarine cable in Zeebrugge beach to the converter station in Herdersbrug. In the United Kingdom there is of land cable from Pegwell Bay to the Richborough converter station.


Ritek

RITEK Corporation manufactures optical discs such as CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-RAM, HD DVD, Blu-ray Disc and Blu-ray M-Disc, storage cards such as CF (CompactFlash) cards, SD cards and MMC cards (MultiMediaCard), memory stick and consumer electronics. Ritek also produces solar modules and touch panel products such as passive matrix OLED and ITO glass. Ritek has also launched a few products in nano- and biotechnology.
The company's English name is a portmanteau of the words “right” and “technology”.
Ritek Corporation was established in 1988 with efforts to manufacture Compact discs. In 1990 the company produced the first compact disc in Taiwan.
In November 2005 the company had a market share of 20 percent in rewritable DVDs and CD-RWs and was so the biggest disc-manufacturer worldwide.
2009 juridical disputes with Toshiba about licences were.
In September 2020 Ritek has 5,900 employees.
Trade marks and brand.
RITEK, RIDATA, TRAXDATA, ARITA, imation (since November 2019)
Prehistory and start.
Yeh Ching-Tai, founder of RITEK, started to manufacture and market vinyl records in 1957. In 1958, he published the album “Green Island Serenade”, performed by Zi Wei, a famous female singer of the time. At that time, the production process was completely manual. Waste gases and toxic chemical solutions were all over the manufacturing environment at the high temperature of . Meanwhile, the materials deteriorated easily and as a result, the yield was low. Quality depended entirely on the experience of manufacturing supervisors and the process cost a lot of time and money. During this period, Yeh Ching-Tai made improvements introducing new technologies and machines from Japan, looking for new materials and developing new manufacturing processes. Eventually the vinyl record industry in Taiwan finally began to produce better products in improved manufacturing environments.
Due to the insufficient quantity of recording equipment and facilities in Taiwan at that time, Mr. Yeh Ching-Tai felt it would be necessary to preserve Peking Opera, Nan-Guan and Bei-Guan as educational and cultural heritage. In 1980, he invested a significant amount in the creation of Platinum Studio in 1980, by importing from Switzerland a 24-track recorder. It was the first multitrack recorder in Taiwan. The studio also invited technicians from Japan to give instructions. It was at that juncture that Mr. Yeh Ching-Tai learned that the Japanese people were starting to produce Compact discs. In 1985, the R&D and ramp-up of compact discs were transforming the record industry as a new technology. Mr. Yeh Ching-Tai realized that digitalization was the trend for the record industry and he immediately initiated on R&D activities on compact discs.
In 1988 the Ritek Corporation was established, in 1990 the company produced the first compact disc in Taiwan and put an end to Taiwan's reliance on imports from Japan. This also directly contributed to the booming of the local music market.
Milestones.
Before founding.
1952
1960
1980
Since founding.
1988
1989
1990
1991
1994
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2006
2007
2008
2009
2011
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019


Electricity sector in Pakistan

Electricity in Pakistan is generated, transmitted, distributed, and retail supplied by two vertically integrated public sector companies, Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) for all of Pakistan (except Karachi), and the Karachi Electric (K-Electric) for the city of Karachi and its surrounding areas. There are around 42 independent power producers (IPPs) that contribute significantly in electricity generation in Pakistan.
As of 2016, more than 99% of its population on average has access to electricity.
History.
Pakistan electricity sector is a developing market. For years, the matter of balancing the country's supply against the demand for electricity had remained a largely unresolved matter. The country faced significant challenges in revamping its network responsible for the supply of electricity. Electricity generators were seeking a parity in returns for both domestic and foreign investors indicating it to be one of the key issues in overseeing a surge in electricity generation when the country was facing growing shortages. Other problems included lack of efficiency, rising demands for energy, and political instability. Provincial and federal agencies, who are the largest consumers, often do not pay their bills. At one point electricity generation had shrunk by up to 50% due to an over-reliance on fossil fuels. The country was hit by its worst power crisis in 2007 when production fell by 6000 Megawatts and massive blackouts followed suit. Load Shedding and power blackouts had become severe in Pakistan before 2016.
Economic Survey 2019-20 unfolds that Pakistan's installed capacity to generate electricity has surged up to 37,402 MW by June 2020 which stood at 22,812 MW in June 2013, showing the growth of 64 percent.
Installed capacity.
According to the Pakistan Economic Survey 2019–20, the installed electricity generation capacity reached 37,402 MW in 2020. The maximum total demand coming from residential and industrial estates stands at nearly 25,000 MW, whereas the transmission and distribution capacity is stalled at approximately 22,000 MW. This leads to a deficit of about 3,000 MW when the demand peaks. This additional 3,000 MW required cannot be transmitted even though the peak demand of the country is well below its installed capacity of 37,402 MW.
Electricity concerns.
Although Pakistan has reduced blackouts and increased electricity production significantly, blackouts are still common, and the price of electricity has still increased. Recent tariff have contributed to this increase in prices.
The latest blackout happened in Pakistan on 9 January 2021 at 11.41pm local time (1841 GMT) on Saturday. It happened due to an engineering fault in the Southern Punjab. Hence, Pakistan is still facing electricity concerns but the government is trying to come up with solutions to avoid such incidents in the future.
Governance and sector reform.
Recent reforms include the unbundling and corporatization of the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) into 10 regional distribution companies, 4 government-owned thermal power
generation companies and a transmission company, the National Transmission and Despatch Company. The hydropower plants were retained by WAPDA as WAPDA Hydroelectric. All are
fully owned by the government. K-Electric Limited (formally known as Karachi Electric Supply Company), which is responsible for power generation and distribution in the Karachi area, is
listed on the stock exchanges and is privately owned. Privately owned independent power producers generated 53% of the country's power in FY2016.
Effects of natural and man-made disasters.
During 2010 Pakistan floods and 2005 Kashmir earthquake power stations, power distribution and transmission and other energy infrastructures were damaged. During the floods and rainfalls the recently constructed Jinnah hydroelectric power plant was flooded in addition to severe damages to transmission and distribution network and installations while several power plants and refineries were threatened by rising waters and had to be shut down. Natural gas field output had to be reduced as the flood waters approached the wells. There has also been some concern by Pakistani nuclear activists over the effect of natural disasters on nuclear plants specially over the Chashma Nuclear Power Plant, since the plant lies over a geological fault.
Due to over reliance of Pakistan on dams for electricity generation, some environmental impacts of dams such as submergence of usable/ecological land and their negative impact on Pakistan's mangrove forests due to loss of river silt load, as well as increased risk of severe floods have become evident.


Estlink

Estlink is a set of HVDC submarine power cables between Estonia and Finland. Estlink 1 is the first interconnection between the Baltic and Nordic electricity markets followed by Estlink 2 in 2014. The main purpose of the Estlink connection is to secure power supply in both regions to integrate the Baltic and Nordic energy markets.
Estlink 1.
History.
First plans for a submarine power cable between the Baltic and the Nordic regions were proposed in 1990s. Negotiations between Eesti Energia, Pohjolan Voima, Helsingin Energia, Graninge (now E.ON Sverige), Latvenergo, Statkraft and TXE Nordic Energy, a subsidiary of TXU (now Energy Future Holdings Corporation) started In 1999, and on 9 October 2001 a contract was signed in Tallinn. However, only after the harsh winter of 2002–2003 which resulted in an increased demand for power, the project of the submarine cable between Estonia and Finland got a boost. The letter of intention for underwater sea cable was signed between Eesti Energia, Pohjolan Voima, Helsingin Energia and Latvenergo on 31 March 2003. In May 2004, the Lithuanian power company Lietuvos Energija agreed to participate in the project, shortly after which the project company AS Nordic Energy Link was established. On 29 April 2005, the Estlink project was launched. Construction of Harku converter station and land cable installation begins on 5 April 2006. The submarine cable was laid in September 2006. The Estlink cable was inaugurated on 4 December 2006 and it became fully operational on 5 January 2007.
The Estlink 1 cable was operated by AS Nordic Energy Link company, founded by Baltic and Finnish power companies. The main shareholder was Eesti Energia with 39.9% of the shares, Latvenergo and Lietuvos Energija had 25% each, and the remaining 10.1% was divided between Pohjolan Voima and Helsingin Energia (operating through their joint project company Finestlink). On 30 December 2013 the interconnector was sold to the transmission system operators Elering and Fingrid.
Description.
The long (including under water) +/-150 kV, 350 MW HVDC link cable is connected to the Estonian electrical system at the Harku 330 kV converter station and to the Finnish transmission network at Espoo 400 kV converter station in Järvikylä using HVDC Light transmission technology. The installation of land cable began on 4 May 2006 in Harku. The submarine cable was laid on the seabed of the Gulf of Finland in the autumn of 2006. The cable's maximum depth on the seabed is .
The cable is constructed by ABB. The submarine cable was laid by Global Marine Systems using the "Sovereign" service vessel. The project cost €110 million.
Estlink 2.
History.
A preliminary agreement on EstLink 2 was signed between Elering and Fingrid on 15 February 2010 in Tallinn. Capital investment decision by Fingrid was made on 20 May 2010. A construction agreement was signed on 1 November 2010.
On 23 December 2010, the contract to manufacture and install the subsea and underground cables was awarded to Nexans, the contract to build converter stations was awarded to Siemens, the contract to build the Nikuviken cable terminal station and to expand the Anttila substation in Finland was awarded to Empower Oy, and the contract to build the transmission line between Anttila and Nikuviken was awarded to ETDE, a part of Bouygues.
Laying of the cable started on 15 October 2012 and it is laid by the cable ship "Nexans Skagerrak". The cable testing started on 22 October 2013. A trial operation started on 6 December 2013 and continued until 6 February 2014 after which it started commercial operations. It was officially inaugurated on 6 March 2014.
Description.
The total length of Estlink 2 would be , including a long offshore cable, a long onshore cable in Estonia, and of overhead lines in Finland. The long underground cable starts at the Püssi substation and runs the coast of the Gulf of Finland at Aseri. From there the long offshore cable runs to the Nikuviken cable terminal station in Finland. The Nikuviken cable terminal station will be connected with the Attila converter station by the long overhead line.
Estlink 2 will be a classic bidirectional monopolar high-voltage direct current connection with line-commutated converter thyristors. Its maximum transmission rate will be 650 MW and it will operate with a voltage of 450 kV. Its estimated cost is about €320 million, of which converter stations cost €100 million and cable €180 million. The European Commission has decided to allocate €100 million to the project.


Solar challenge

Solar challenge refers to races between solar powered vehicles, such as:


Synchronization (alternating current)

In an alternating current electric power system, synchronization is the process of matching the frequency of a generator or other source to a running network. An AC generator cannot deliver power to an electrical grid unless it is running at the same frequency as the network. If two unconnected segments of a grid are to be connected to each other, they cannot exchange AC power until they are brought back into exact synchronization.
A direct current (DC) generator can be connected to a power network by adjusting its open-circuit terminal voltage to match the network voltage, by either adjusting its speed or its field excitation. The exact engine speed is not critical. However, an AC generator must match both the amplitude and the timing of the network voltage, which requires both speed and excitation to be systematically controlled for synchronization. This extra complexity was one of the arguments against AC operation during the war of currents in the 1880s. In modern grids, synchronization of generators is carried out by automatic systems.
Conditions.
There are five conditions that must be met before the synchronization process takes place. The source (generator or sub-network) must have equal line voltage, frequency, phase sequence, phase angle, and waveform to that of the system to which it is being synchronized.
Waveform and phase sequence are fixed by the construction of the generator and its connections to the system. During installation of a generator, careful checks are made to ensure the generator terminals and all control wiring is correct so that the order of phases (phase sequence) matches the system. Connecting a generator with the wrong phase sequence will result in a short circuit as the system voltages are opposite to those of the generator terminal voltages.
The voltage, frequency and phase angle must be controlled each time a generator is to be connected to a grid.
Generating units for connection to a power grid have an inherent droop speed control that allows them to share load proportional to their rating. Some generator units, especially in isolated systems, operate with isochronous frequency control, maintaining constant system frequency independent of load.
Process.
The sequence of events is similar for manual or automatic synchronization. The generator is brought up to approximate synchronous speed by supplying more energy to its shaft - for example, opening the valves on a steam turbine, opening the gates on a hydraulic turbine, or increasing the fuel rack setting on a diesel engine. The field of the generator is energized and the voltage at the terminals of the generator is observed and compared with the system. The voltage magnitude must be the same as the system voltage.
If one machine is slightly out of phase it will pull into step with the others but, if the phase difference is large, there will be heavy cross-currents which can cause voltage fluctuations and, in extreme cases, damage to the machines.
Synchronizing lamps.
Formerly, three light bulbs were connected between the generator terminals and the system terminals (or more generally, to the terminals of instrument transformers connected to generator and system). As the generator speed changes, the lights will flicker at the beat frequency proportional to the difference between generator frequency and system frequency. When the voltage at the generator is opposite to the system voltage (either ahead or behind in phase), the lamps will be bright. When the voltage at the generator matches the system voltage, the lights will be dark. At that instant, the circuit breaker connecting the generator to the system may be closed and the generator will then stay in synchronism with the system.
An alternative technique used a similar scheme to the above except that the connections of two of the lamps were swapped either at the generator terminals or the system terminals. In this scheme, when the generator was in synchronism with the system, one lamp would be dark, but the two with the swapped connections would be of equal brightness. Synchronizing on "dark" lamps was preferred over "bright" lamps because it was easier to discern the minimum brightness. However, a lamp burnout could give a false-positive for successful synchronization.
Synchroscope.
Another manual method of synchronization relies on observing an instrument called a "synchroscope", which displays the relative frequencies of system and generator. The pointer of the synchroscope will indicate "fast" or "slow" speed of the generator with respect to the system. To minimize the transient current when the generator circuit breaker is closed, usual practice is to initiate the close as the needle slowly approaches the in-phase point. An error of a few electrical degrees between system and generator will result in a momentary inrush and abrupt speed change of the generator.
Synchronizing relays.
Synchronizing relays allow unattended synchronization of a machine with a system. Today these are digital microprocessor instruments, but in the past electromechanical relay systems were applied. A synchronizing relay is useful to remove human reaction time from the process, or when a human is not available such as at a remote controlled generating plant. Synchroscopes or lamps are sometimes installed as a supplement to automatic relays, for possible manual use or for monitoring the generating unit.
Sometimes as a precaution against out-of-step connection of a machine to a system, a "synchro check" relay is installed that prevents closing the generator circuit breaker unless the machine is within a few electrical degrees of being in-phase with the system. Synchro check relays are also applied in places where several sources of supply may be connected and where it is important that out-of-step sources are not accidentally paralleled.
Synchronous operation.
While the generator is synchronized, the frequency of the system will change depending on load and the average characteristics of all the generating units connected to the grid. Large changes in system frequency can cause the generator to fall out of synchronism with the system. Protective devices on the generator will operate to disconnect it automatically.
Synchronous speeds.
Synchronous speeds for synchronous motors and alternators depend on the number of poles on the machine and the frequency of the supply.
The relationship between the supply frequency, "f", the number of poles, "p", and the synchronous speed (speed of rotating field), "ns" is given by:
In the following table, frequencies are shown in hertz (Hz) and rotational speeds in revolutions per minute (rpm):


Taesa S.A.

Taesa is one of the largest Brazilian electric power transmission company. It is majority owned by Belo Horizonte based CEMIG, but the Bogotá based Interconexion Eléctrica is the second largest shareholder of Taesa
The company operates approximately 10,000 kilometers of transmission lines in 18 Brazilian states.
Currently, Taesa has 34 transmission concessions, segregated into 10 concessions that make up the holding company; 5 full investees and 19 participations.
The Paraguaçu, Aimorés and Lot 1 concessions are joint ventures with CTEEP - which holds 50% of the capital of each of them.
In addition, it has assets in 67 substations with a voltage level between 230 and 525kV, present in all regions of the country and an Operation and Control Center located in Brasília.


Reliance Power

Reliance Power Limited (R-Power), formerly Reliance Energy Generation Limited (REGL) is a part of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. It was established to develop, construct, operate and maintain power projects in the Indian and international markets. Reliance Infrastructure, an Indian private sector power utility company and the Reliance ADA Group promote Reliance Power. The present CEO of Reliance Power is K. Raja Gopal since 2 May 2018.
The company is the sole distributor of electricity to consumers in the suburbs of Mumbai. but in 2017 they sold Mumbai operation to Adani Power. It also runs power generation, transmission and distribution businesses in other parts of Maharashtra, Goa and Andhra Pradesh. With its subsidiaries, it is developing 13 medium and large-sized power projects with a combined planned installed capacity of 33,480 MW.
Reliance Natural Resources merged with Reliance Power in 2010, shortly after its initial public offering. As of March 2018, Reliance Power has 50 subsidiaries. In Fortune India 500 list of 2019, R-Power was ranked as the 176th largest corporation in India with 9th rank in 'Power sector' category.
Overview.
The company was incorporated on 17 January 1995 as Bawana Power Private Limited and changed its name to Reliance Delhi Power Private Limited in February 1995. Its name was changed to Reliance Energy Generation Limited in March 2004, and finally to Reliance Power Limited in July 2007.
The company website identifies project sites broadly to be located in western India (12,220 MW), northern India (9,080 MW) and northeastern India (4,220 MW) and southern India (4,000 MW). They include six coal-fired projects (14,620 MW) to be fuelled by reserves from captive mines and supplies from India and abroad, two gas-fired projects (10,280 MW) to be fuelled primarily by reserves from the Krishna Godavari basin (the "KG Basin") off the east coast of India, and four hydroelectric projects (3,300 MW), three of them in Arunachal Pradesh and one in Uttarakhand.
Power generation projects.
Renewable Energy.
There is only one operational Renewable Energy (RE) project. All the rest are pending at various stages; some may have been shelved formally or informally. The projects are:
Order to Shanghai Electric.
Anil Dhirubhai Ambani placed a single order for $8.3 billion with Shanghai Electric Group Company (SEC) for buying 36 coal-fired thermal power generation units, spare parts, and related services over a 10-year period. This took the total deal size between Reliance Power and the Chinese power equipment maker over the past couple of years to $10 billion, making it the largest contract between a private Indian company and a government-owned Chinese firm.
While Reliance Power has also given a $2.2 billion deal to US-based General Electric, the agreement signed with SEC is on a different plane. The Chinese company will supply boiler, turbine and generator packages for up to 30,000 MW capacity of coal-based power at six plants, including the 4000 MW ultra mega power project in Krishnapatnam, the 3960 MW Project in Chitrangi and the 4000 MW Power Project in Tilaiya.
Loans from Exim bank.
Reliance Power Ltd. signed an agreement with the US Export-Import Bank in 2010 for a $5 billion loan to finance power projects. The loan will finance 900 megawatts of renewable technologies such as solar and wind energy, as well as up to 8000 MW of gas-based power generation technology, the Indian company said in a statement. This $5 billion agreement is in addition to the $917 million already approved by the Ex-Im Bank for Reliance Power's coal-fired power plant at Sasan in central India.
The agreement will allow Reliance Power access products and services at competitive rates and help create manufacturing and services jobs in the US. The loan will also enable quicker access to the bank's long-term dollar loans. Reliance Power signed a pact with the US's General Electric Co. (GE) worth INR100 billion ($2.2 billion) to implement a 2400 MW power plant. The plant will be located in the southern Indian town of Samalkot and the pact was signed during the visit of President Barack Obama.
Initial public offering and controversies.
In 2007, Reliance Power issued a red herring stating an intention to go public with an IPO. The proposed IPO was to fund the development of its six power projects across the country whose completion dates are scheduled from December 2009 to March 2014. The Securities and Exchange Board of India, the organisation which regulates activity in the Indian stock market, placed some restrictions based on a complaint about the formulation of the IPO. The complaint also resulted in a public interest litigation being filed against the company. However, the Supreme Court of India passed a ruling that the IPO would go ahead even if any order is passed by any Indian court against the venture.
The IPO opened on 15 January 2008 and attracted $27.5 billion of bids on the first day, equivalent to 10.5 times the stock on offer, thereby creating India's IPO record. The upper cut off price for the bid was Rs. 450 A media report pointed out that, if the company's stock price were to cross Rs. 650–700, Anil Ambani would go past L. N. Mittal to become the richest Indian. "It is a reflection of world community in the future of India... Investors seem to be confident in the future of Indian economy," Indian Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram told the media about the IPO.
Reliance Power debuted on the stock markets on 11 February 2008. However, the markets were still reeling after the January 2008 stock market volatility, and concerns over speculation that the issue was overpriced sent the stock plummeting soon after its listing. At the end of the first day, the stock traded at a value that was 17 percent lower than its issue price of Rs. 450. Investors who were betting on the stock reaching 1.5 or even twice its issue price lost a fortune in the process. On 25 February, in an effort to mitigate investor losses, Reliance Power decided to issue 3 bonus shares for every 5 shares held.
Carbon credits.
On 2 February 2011, United Nations registered Reliance Power's Sasan Power Plant to be eligible for earning carbon credits followed by Krishnapatanm Ultra Mega Power Project and Tilaiya Ultra Mega Power Projects.
United Nations issues carbon credits to companies that employ advanced technologies in reducing carbon emission.
These carbon credits can then be sold to those companies that are emitting more than their statutory emission


Inter RAO

Joint Stock Company Inter RAO UES (, short form: Inter RAO), traded as, is a diversified energy holding company headquartered in Moscow, Russia. Its business includes power and heat generation, electricity supply, international energy trading, engineering, design and development of electric power infrastructure. In addition to its assets in Russia it controls several energy companies outside Russia including thermal and hydro power plants, grid operators and energy traders. It holds a monopoly on the export and import of electricity in Russia.
Inter RAO is one of the largest Russian public energy companies by market capitalization which exceeded US$10.5 billion at the end of 2011. In fiscal year 2011 the company reported a revenue of USD 18.24 bn (versus USD 15.28 bn in 2010) and net income of $1.41 billion (vs $614 million in 2010). At the end of 2011, Inter RAO Group had more than 47,000 employees.
History.
Inter RAO was established in 1997 as a subsidiary of the Russian unified power company RAO UES. Its initial focus was international energy trading.
In 2002, Inter RAO started exporting electricity from Russia and generating its own electricity using a rented power generation unit at Irikla Thermal Power Plant. In 2003, Rosenergoatom acquired a 40% stake in Inter RAO, and the company became the sole exporter of Russian electricity.
In 2005, Inter RAO made several acquisitions:
In the same year, Inter RAO co-founded Sangtuda 1 Hydroelectric Power Plant in Tajikistan. In 2006, Inter RAO Group acquired 100% stake in Electric Power Grids of Armenia.
In early 2008, Inter RAO obtainted listings on the Russian stock exchanges MICEX and RTS. As a part of its reorganization, Inter RAO received several Russian power generation facilities including Sochi Thermal Power Plant, North-West Thermal Power Plant, Ivanovo CCPP and Kaliningrad CHPP-2. In the same year, Inter RAO purchased the remaining 49% stake in Moldavskaya GRES.
In following years, the Government of Russia transferred the power companies shares remaining after the reform of RAO UES in the property of state-owned companies RusHydro, FGC UES, Rosimushchestvo, and Rosneftegaz to Inter RAO. That included transfer of 41% stake in Irkutskenergo, 65.8% of OGK-1, 3.24% of OGK-4, 26.43% of OGK-5, 24.9% of TGC-6, 34.21% of TGC-7, 30.54% of TGC-11, 20.24% of Kuzbassenergo, 21.27% of Bashkirenergo, 14.48% of Sangtuda 1 Hydroelectric Power Plant (in Tajikistan), and 100% of Razdan Thermal Power Plant (in Armenia).
In 2009, Inter RAO shares were included in the MSCI EM Index. In the end of 2009, INTER RAO was ranked fifth in Standard & Poor's informational transparency rating of the Russian energy companies. At the same time, Inter RAO kept developing other lines of business, mainly engineering and power generation equipment. In 2010, Inter RAO established joint ventures with General Electric and WorleyParsons.
In 2011, INTER RAO started to design a unified management structure for its Russian power generation assets. In February 2011, Inter RAO established Inter RAO - Management of Electric Power Plants, a fully owned subsidiary appointed as a sole executive authority of OGK-1, OGK-3 and INTER RAO - Electric Power Plants (another subsidiary established in 2011 as a holding for North-West Thermal Power Plant, Kaliningrad CHPP-2, Ivanovo CCPP and Sochi Thermal Power Plant). In March 2012, Inter RAO announced that it will reorganize its Russian power generation assets and consolidate them under its Inter RAO - Electric Power Plants Subsidiary. As the result, all major Russian power plants owned by Inter RAO will be consolidated under a single entity.
In June 2018, board member Karina Tsurkan was arrested by the Federal Security Service, on allegations of spying on behalf of Romania.
Shareholders.
Major shareholders of Inter RAO are Russian state-owned entities. As of August 2018, shareholders of Inter RAO were:
Boris Kovalchuk is the CEO of Inter RAO.
Operations.
Electricity generation.
Combined installed capacity of power plants operated by Inter RAO Group is approximately 28 GW. Inter RAO UES controls the following power generation assets.
Russian power generating assets
Power generation assets in other countries
Trading.
Electricity import and export, as well as energy trading on the Russian wholesale electricity market are among the most important business lines of the company. In 2011, Inter RAO exported 22.7 billion kWh of electricity from Russia and imported 3.4 billion kWh of electricity to Russia in 2011.
The main export markets for INTER RAO are Finland, Lithuania and Belarus.
The following Inter RAO subsidiaries are responsible for international energy trading:
Power supply.
Inter RAO Group operates seven Russian power supply companies. United Power Supply Company (UPSC) manages the majority of Group's sales assets with exception of RN Energo. INTER RAO's grid companies in South Caucasus also act as power suppliers.
Electric power distribution grids.
INTER RAO Group controls two distribution grid companies in South Caucasus, Power Grids of Armenia and Telasi. The total length of transmission lines operated by INTER RAO Group grid companies exceeds 34 thousand km. The companies delivered more than 7.6 million kWh of energy in 2011.
Engineering.
Inter RAO develops its engineering business as a key component of its integrated business model. In engineering, Inter RAO plans to focus on design of energy infrastructure, coordination of construction, delivery and installation of equipment; installation, configuration and maintenance services; and manufacturing of boiler and turbine equipment. The company asserts that these initiatives of its engineering business will help Inter RAO secure at least 20% of thermal power plant engineering, construction and equipment market.
List of main engineering businesses within Inter RAO Group:


Larson Electronics

Larson Electronics is an American electronic component provider and industrial lighting manufacturer. It was founded in 1973 by Earnie Larson and is currently headquartered in Kemp, Texas, United States. The company manufactures and supplies high power magnetic mount and permanent mount spotlights and floodlights to the military, utilities, telephone and electrical power industries including US Secret Service, US State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security.
Overview.
Larson Electronics was established by Earnie Larson in 1973 and purchased the Magnalight original handheld, portable lighting line and name from R&L Enterprises. The company initially focused on the cable industry as a power supplier. Currently, it provides services to military, oil and gas, marine, federal, hunting, manufacturing and commercial sectors.
The company's core products include high output lighting products, energy efficient LEDs and commercial lighting fixtures for professional applications.
In 2013, the company shipped lighting equipment to Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, where they were used to illuminate various locations on the U.S. military base. In Baghdad, Iraq, U.S. military groups were sent high grade lights that were used for patrolling and mounting on Abrams tanks.
Larson Electronics has also participated in organized civilian efforts to outfit military units. The company donated lighting equipment to the "Marines Helping Marines Foundation" in support of their fourth annual fishing tournament, and the LED spotlights to the "National Elephant Conservation Centre" in Malaysia in support of their relocation and protection efforts for endangered elephants.
Products.
Larson Electronics manufacturers and distributes the following types of industrial equipment: