IN BRIEF

Geothermal Binary Plant To Be Built In Turkey

Exergy International, a specialist in Organic Rankine Cycle based plants, has signed a contract with Hez Enerji for the supply of a 24 MWe geothermal binary plant, the Bilecik Hez Morali JES-1 unit.

The new plant will draw energy from a geothermal field in Aydin, Turkey. The ORC power plant is planned to be delivered in early 2024, with commercial energy production slated for 2024.

Hez Enerji is an energy company with 9 geothermal licence areas under development in the Aydin, Manisa, Denizli, Bilecik and Nigde regions. The geothermal potential of its licence areas that has been estimated at around 300 MWe of total capacity. Exergy will be responsible for the design, engineering and supply of the power plant. The design of the binary system consists of a cycle utilising two radial outflow turbines (ROT) of 12 MWe each and an air-cooled condensing system.

World Supergrid By 2050 Proposal Made By Researchers From China

Researchers in China have proposed the building of a super grid designed to connect northeast Asia’s major economies and make renewable energy as cheap as coal. China, Russia, Mongolia, South Korea, North Korea and Japan would all be connected. The region currently consumes a third of the world’s electricity, with demand set to double by 2050.

Zhang Ning, professor of electrical engineering at Tsinghua University, has said that the grid could “significantly increase the proportion of clean energy in electric power supply systems.”

In 2018, a study by Kepco, the state energy utility of South Korea, estimated that it would cost around US$6-$7bn to install the transmission lines required. The main interconnector - Kwepco proposed - would be a US$2.6bn, 370km undersea power line linking the Chinese port of Weihai with Incheon in Korea. Another US$2.1bn would be needed to link Vladivostok to North Korea by some 1,000km of landlines. The transmission lines would be accompanied by battery storage facilities to smooth fluctuations in power output.

With the exception of North Korea, the five nations that would benefit from the grid have signed a number of agreements in principle in recent years.

Many experts see this as an opportunity to link fossil-fueldependent countries such as Japan and South Korea with relatively cheap wind energy from Mongolia, solar power from the Gobi Desert and hydropower from Russia.

Gateway will be humanity’s first space station in lunar orbit and serve as an essential element of NASA’s Artemis missions. As astronauts live and work on Gateway to enable sustained exploration and research in deep space, their efforts will be made possible by the Power and Propulsion Element (PPE).

PPE will provide Gateway with power and allow it to maintain its unique orbit around the Moon. PPE will generate 60kW of electrical power, which will power Gateway’s subsystems and its solar electric propulsion (SEP) system to keep the station in orbit around the Moon, reports NASA.

A spokesman commented: “PPE leverages technology advancements from past successful electric propulsion missions – such as the recent DART mission – to help NASA push the boundaries of what’s possible in deep space.

“PPE’s SEP system provides greater fuel economy, enabling lower-cost missions which can carry more cargo. This is because the spacecraft’s propellent mass can be reduced up to 90% by being augmented with energy from the Sun.”

Once deployed, PPE’s two large, yoga-mat-like roll-out solar arrays – which are approximately the size of a football field’s endzone – will generate power to ionize and accelerate Xenon gas, using a tenth of the propellant required by conventional chemical propulsion systems. As the powerhouse of Gateway, the PPE will also provide capabilities for high-rate communications between the station, the lunar surface, and Earth.

ABB Energy Industries is embarking on an ambitious venture in collaboration with Lhyfe and Skyborn to bring to life one of the world’s most impressive renewable hydrogen projects: SoutH2Port.

This nmew project aims to combine the expertise of Lhyfe, a pioneer in renewable hydrogen production, and Skyborn, a global leader in renewable energy.

The location for the new hydrogen production plant, operated by Lhyfe and Skyborn, has been chosen as the municipality of Söderhamn in Sweden. This is conveniently connected to Skyborn’s 1 GW offshore wind farm at Storgrundet.

Once fully operational, this plant is projected to yield approximately 240 tons of hydrogen per day, boasting an impressive installed capacity of 600 MW. This accomplishment will establish it as one of

Europe’s largest suppliers of renewable hydrogen.

Brandon Spencer, President of ABB Energy Industries, emphasised the significance of this collaboration. He said: “This partnership aligns perfectly with our strategic goals in both the hydrogen and offshore wind sectors.

“To expedite the energy transition, it is vital to establish seamless supply chains through efficient collaborations like these. Hydrogen plays a pivotal role in achieving global climate goals, particularly in the decarbonization of industrial and transportation sectors.”