Mechanical Technology November-December 2016

42 / 44

40 Mechanical Technology — November-December 2016
⎪ Nota bene ⎪
Industry diary
December 2016
Pump Guy, Larry Bachus
5-8 December 2016, Secunda
Phindi Mbedzi
+27 11 325 0686
Valves, John Tonkin
5-8 December 2016,
Johannesburg
February 2017
Energy Storage 2017
8-9 February 2017
Paris, France
Mohammad Ahsan
+44 203 141 0606
ABB technology is to power the
largest logistics hub of the Inter-
national Committee of the Red
Cross (ICRC) through a state-of-the-art
microgrid, delivering reliable power for
the first time in a region exposed to fre-
quent outages and power quality issues.
Located in the Kenyan capital,
Nairobi, the global logistics centre for the
ICRC employs 170 employees delivering
food and other essential items such as
medicines and relief supplies across the
African continent.
ABB will build a microgrid for the
ICRC that runs on solar energy and diesel
to maximise the use of renewable energy
and secure the supply of reliable power.
It is scheduled for completion by the
middle of 2017. The agreement reflects
an ICRC initiative launched in 2014 for
greater technology collaboration with the
private sector.
“We are delighted to partner and
support the humanitarian work of the
International Committee of the Red
Cross,” said ABB CEO Ulrich Spiesshofer.
“Microgrids have enormous potential in
Africa, where more than 600-million
people live without access to electricity.
Reliable access to electricity is essential
to speed up economic development.”
Microgrids are used to integrate
distributed energy resources and loads
that can be operated in a controlled,
coordinated way either connected to the
main power grid or to provide power in-
dependently, ensuring utility-grade power
quality and grid stability.
“Reliable power is essential for our
staff to continue their life-saving work
uninterrupted in the field,” said ICRC
president Peter Maurer. “In addition,
the ABB microgrid solution is in line
with the ICRC’s goal to use environ-
mentally friendly technolo-
gies. Solutions such as this
are proof that cooperation
between the corporate and
humanitarian sectors is not
only possible, but also im-
perative. We are happy and
proud to count ABB as a
member of our corporate
support group.”
ABB is a pioneer in mi-
crogrid technology with a
track record of more than 30
global installations that are
operated commercially for
a diverse range of applications such as
remote communities, islanded electrical
grids, utility grid support and research
and industrial campuses.
ABB has been a member of the ICRC
corporate support group for the past de-
cade, contributing to water and habitat
programmes for victims of conflict in the
Democratic Republic of Congo and Iraq.
ABB also helps train ICRC engineers.
Microgrids are low- or medium-
voltage grids located at or near the
consumption sites. They can generate
power from renewable and conventional
sources and, although they are mainly
electrical systems, they can also incorpo-
rate a thermal energy component, such
as combined heat and power.
Microgrids are increasingly being
equipped with energy storage systems,
as batteries become more cost competi-
tive. The system is controlled through a
microgrid controller incorporating de-
mand-response so that demand can be
matched to available supply in the safest
and most optimised manner. A flywheel
or battery-based grid stabilising system
can be included to offer real and reactive
power support.
The concept of a microgrid is not
new: the earliest electricity networks
were essentially microgrids before they
were joined into regional and national
grids. What is new is their changing
and expanding role in the face of rising
power demands, falling cost of renew-
able sources, and the increasing need for
supply resilience and autonomy – both
on- and off-grid.
The African Energy Indaba and NEPAD’s Renewable Initiatives
NEPAD, the implementing arm of the African
Union (AU), is embarking upon an exercise to
accelerate the development and implemen-
tation of Africa’s High Priority Renewable
Energy Projects.
Through the Sustainable Energy for All
Initiative (SE4ALL), NEPAD is cooperating
with The Africa Energy Indaba Conference to
host focused sessions where country project
owners will present their selected projects
to potential investors/developers and other
interested stakeholders, who would consider
funding these projects for further develop-
ment or implementation.
NEPAD senior energy advisor, Professor
Mosad Elmissiry notes, “This will be the
first time that country government’s will be
showcasing their high priority renewable
energy projects to the open market and look-
ing to attract private sector participation and
investment.”
The 2017 Africa Energy Indaba is taking
place at the Sandton Convention Centre in
Johannesburg from 21-23 February 2017.
State-of-the-art microgrid
to power African Red Cross
An ABB hybrid microgrid is to provide uninterrupted and cleaner power derived
from renewable solar PV and diesel gensets to the International Committee
of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Kenya
ABB is to provide a hybrid solar-diesel microgrid to power the Kenyan
logistics hub of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).