IN BRIEF

RENEWABLE ENERGY PROVIDES 52% OF GERMANY’S ENERGY NEEDS

Renewable energy sources – such as wind, PV, wave power and biogas provided enough power to satisfy 52 % of German electricity needs from January-June 2023.

This is up from 49 % in the first half of last year. The figures come from preliminary data gathered by the Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Wuerttemberg (ZSW) and energy industry association BDEW. A record monthly solar power input of 8.8 billion kWh in May made a big contribution, and June could even improve on this record, according to a statement from the two organisations.

WENCHANG DEEP-SEA FLOATING WIND POWER GENERATOR IS OPERATIONAL

CNOOC Ltd has announced that the Wenchang deep-sea floating wind demonstration project has been successfully connected to the grid and is generating power commercially.

The demonstration project is located near the Wenchang oilfields in the western part of the South China Sea, 136 km from shore in a water depth of 120 m.

It is believed to be the world’s first semi-submersible ‘double hundred’ deep-sea floating wind project, being located at a water depth of over 100 m and separated offshore by a distance of over 100 km.

A semi-submersible foundation is partly submerged to provide station-keeping and stability. Such a structure avoids large wave loading. It typically consists of a submerged hull, with mooring provided by weighted foundations for hard seabed conditions and ‘suction anchor’ foundations for softer soil.

The project’s main production facility, Haiyou Guanlan, is China’s first deep-sea floating wind power platform supplying power to an offshore oilfield under such challenging oceanic conditions.

With an installed capacity of 7.25 MW, the platform can produce up to 22 m kWh of power per year, equivalent to saving nearly 10 m cubic m of natural gas and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 22,000 tons.

Accelleron has unveiled the next generation of turbochargers for two-stroke engines, the X300-L series. The platform-based and easy-service concept complemented by Accelleron’s Turbo Insights digital technology sets a new benchmark for turbocharging.

According to the company, this development will offer operators the flexibility to respond to uncertainty around the fuels they will use and how they will operate their vessels in the future.

The benefits of the X300-L series, which currently comprises the ACCX365-L and ACCX370-L models, stem from its platform-based compact design, making it easy to service and easy to adapt for different requirements that might evolve from an increasing variety of fuels.

A new turbocharger design means that the entire rotor subassembly can be easily exchanged, using a new or refurbished cartridge.

The improved serviceability of the X300-L means that instead of servicing turbochargers every five years, an exchange means the full run time between overhauls can be used, resulting in just three scheduled services rather than four across a 25-year equipment lifespan. This reduces operating costs and provides operators with greater flexibility in their service regimes.

Belgium-based Eneria recently managed a key project, which involved installation of six 3516B gensets.

Located at the LCL Brussels-West data centre in Aalst, the site will be the first of its kind in Belgium to operate exclusively on 100% HVO (hydrotreated vegetable oil), a drop-in diesel substitute.

“With our deep roots in Belgium, we are committed to supporting environmentally responsible initiatives that create a better world,” said Laurens van Reijen, managing director of LCL.

“Our collaboration with Eneria has demonstrated the viability of HVO100 in our standby power systems. We’re strongly committed to becoming carbon-neutral by the end of this decade, and we’ve launched numerous initiatives across our operations to help us achieve this goal.”

The standby system was installed as part of a €15.5 million expansion which tripled LCL’s footprint in

Aalst. The site has achieved the Uptime Institute’s Tier III certification for design and construction.

Based on the success of the project in Aalst, LCL is planning to convert the standby power solutions at all its data centers to operate on HVO over the next two years.

Hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) is something that’s becoming more widely used across the world.

One study projects the growth of the HVO industry has gone from producing 5.5 billion litres in 2018 to 13 billion litres by 2024. HVO r educes carbon monoxide and dioxide as well as hydrocarbons without requiring any mechanical modifications.