wiredinUS July 2015

13 / 22

wiredInUSA - July 2015 wiredInUSA - July 2015 25 24 EUROPE NEWS
Renewable energy researchers from
Lappeenranta University of Technology
(LUT) suggest that a fully renewable energy
system is a viable solution for Finland.
To achieve the national greenhouse gas
reduction targets for 2050, all sectors of the
energy system need to be nearly emission-
free by 2050. System modeling shows that
a fully renewable energy system featuring
wind and solar energy should include smart
interaction between the electricity, HVAC
and mobility sectors.
Power-to-gas technology (where electricity
is converted into gases such as hydrogen or
synthetic natural gas) and energy storage
solutions, such as batteries, heat storage
and synthetic natural gas storage, will also
have a role as enabling technologies.
The proposed system includes up to 35GW
installed capacity of solar power and
44GW of wind power, possibly creating
over 166TWh of electricity per year,
approximately double the current level of
power consumption in the country.
Resourceful Finland
Automotive cable and connectors
manufacturer Axon Cable has begun
production at a new plant in Hungary.
The building work was completed in
February 2015, and Axon Kábelgyártó,
the Hungarian subsidiary of Axon group,
officially inaugurated the factory in May.
Axon, which first established a nearby
operation in the country in 2000, decided
to build its own plant there and began
construction last year. The French group
has made Kecskemét its European center
for manufacturing and developing flat
flexible cables and cable harnesses.
Axon supplies composite cables,
connectors and assemblies for high-tech
markets, primarily automotive, but also
for the consumer electronics, medical
technology,defenseandcommunications
sectors. The new Kecskemét facility
includes a 1,000m2 ISO 7 class clean room,
suitable for the production of medical
electronics.
The new plant has been developed for
efficiency and sustainability, featuring
renewable energy sources including a
solar power electricity station, solar
collectors for hot water, efficient air-source
heat pumps and energy-saving LED
lighting.
Cable expansion
Alcatel-Lucent and Energia Communications
are conducting Japan’s first field trial of
next generation ultra-broadband access
technologies.
Japan has one of the highest penetrations
of FTTH ultra-broadband services in the
world, with connections in over 37 million
households, and network traffic is set to
increase at a dramatic rate in the next
few years.
Japan will host a major global sporting
event in 2018, the first 8K-resolution TV test
broadcasts are scheduled to begin in
2016, and the Internet of Things promises
to bringmyriad devices to place demands
on communications networks.
As a result, Energia Communications
is investigating an increase its access
network capacity to meet future high-
volume traffic demands from its consumer
and enterprise customers.
Ultra-broadband services
German inverter manufacturer SMA
Solar Technology AG, and the German
industrial conglomerate Siemens AG are
to be partners in the development of
decentralized large-scale PV projects.
Projects developed by the two companies
will rely on SMA solar inverters and Siemens
transformers and switchgear for the high-
and medium-voltage ranges.
According to SMA, the first product to
result from the partnership is a new type
of container solution that combines a
2.5MW central inverter from SMA with
a medium-voltage transformer and
medium-voltage switchgear fromSiemens.
PV joint venture