Sparks Electrical News June 2019

ENERGY MEASUREMENT AND SUPPLY

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FUTURE OF POWER WHITEPAPER TAKES CENTRE STAGE AT CONFERENCES

ENERGY MONTH UNDERLINED NEED FOR NEW THINKING IN ENERGY

G lobal and regional energy indus- try trends shift continuously and stakeholders need to stay con- stantly informed to better understand the key drivers of change. As the 19 th edition of the Africa Utility week and PowerGEN event kicked off, GE unveiled a whitepa- per on re-imagining the future of power in Sub-Saharan Africa. The paper, devel- oped by the Strategic Marketing unit of GE in Sub-Saharan Africa, focused on the changing trends and future direction of the energy industry as it explores the relevance and impact of key drivers both regionally and globally. Key themes discussed in the paper in- cluded decarbonisation, decentralisation and digitisation and how they affect the current and future energy transformations in the region. The paper also sheds light on the rise of renewables including solar, wind and hydro, and the place of geother- mal in Sub Saharan Africa’s energy mix. The whitepaper discussed energy sector management, financing and regulatory frameworks that create an enabling envi- ronment for the sector. Sub-Saharan Africa needs power and there is seemingly an over-dependence on governments to resolve this energy dilemma. Governments are faced with investment, policy and regulatory frame- work challenges that oftentimes hinder their ability to fulfil the responsibility of providing affordable and reliable power. With increasingly diverse funding from public and private sources, including inno- vative partnerships with private investors and independent power producers (IPPs), the current narrative that two out of three

people in the region need access to elec- tricity is expected to change. “To solve Africa’s energy deficit and im- prove energy access, there is a clear need for solutions that foster collaboration through partnerships with governments, technology providers and the private sec- tor” said Elisee Sezan, CEO for GE’s Gas Power business in Sub-Saharan Africa. “GE has been at the forefront of driving this collaboration which has resulted in significant milestone projects and solid partnerships that have successfully added more megawatts to the grid. We are de- lighted to lead this changing narrative on powering Africa forward and are commit- ted to supporting energy initiatives to ac- celerate its progress.” he added. Africa Utility Week brought together utilities, financiers and energy leaders from across the region to discuss and develop technical knowledge in the field of electricity generation, transmission and distribution. The Whitepaper on Re-imagining the future of power in Sub-Saharan Africa is available for download at https://invent. ge/2VyUJF7

Taru Madangombe, Vice President of Energy in Anglophone Africa Cluster for Schneider Electric.

M ay was Energy Month in South Africa and, as the South African government urges busi- nesses to save energy, it is important to review what steps can be taken to reduce power consumption in industry, mining and construction, thereby conserving energy and reducing the carbon footprint. “Schneider Electric is leading thedigital transformation of energy management and automation through its world-beating EcoStruxure Power systems, which help increase safety and reliability, whilst saving on time and money in project delivery and execution,” explains Taru Madangombe, Vice President of Energy in Anglophone Africa Cluster for Schneider Electric. “Offering a portfolio of integrated digital solutions designed to increase customer efficiency, our EcoStruxure Power offers leverage on digitisation to deliver key end user value to make our solutions safer, more reliable and efficient during the operation and maintenance phase by connecting deep domain expertise with 20 000 application and software engineers across the globe.” Energy demand “Our projections show that electricity demand will grow twice as fast as energy demand by 2040 and this will need new ideas in the provision of electricity across the world, particularly in Southern Africa. Eighty-two percent of economic potential for energy efficiency is in com- mercial and industrial buildings, with more than 50% in industry remaining untapped “The electrical distribution industry is going through a paradigm shift as the world gets more electric and more digital. Research suggests that there will be ten times more connected devices than there will be connected people by 2020. This already calls for more connected products or A s winter approaches and temperatures drop, the country’s energy consumption increases. In order to avoid conditions of low or under-voltage (also known as brownouts) the nation will be subjected to ra- tioning of power. The need for load-shedding reminds us of other power conditions which may be more damaging to the consumer than the inconvenience of experiencing no power for a couple of hours. Electrical and electronic equipment may be irreparably damaged and, in the

solutions (smart ready) to be integrated into the system, of which Schneider Electric is a global leader. “Our EcoStruxure Power Offers deliver value to a diverse set of customers in large buildings, critical facilities, Utilities and Electro-intensive industries such as Mining and Oil & Gas. The expertise is offered in power availability, safety, operational efficiency, risk management and cost optimisation. Schneider Electric offers tailored solutions that drive safety, efficiency and reliability.” New buildings, new ideas “Global customers are increasingly concerned with sav- ing costs through faster lead times on construction of new facilities. Standardisation, fast lead times and streamlined execution are key to optimising project deliv- ery through design, delivery and execution. The systems help comply with standards and best practices by ensuring designs are upheld and maintain their performance over time. It designs best practices and guidelines to enable com- pliance to international or local energy efficiency standards. This is achieved by adhering to standards and internal best practices that safeguard from costly downtime and other business risks, such as a cyber security attack. “EcoStruxure Power delivers safer, more reliable power that is more efficient. This means peace of mind and significant financial benefits—with tailored,IoT-enabled,and future-ready power solutions that ‘simply work’. “We can offer a 10% potential improvement in energy intensity by following global energy efficiency standards. Schneider Electric empowers a global ecosystems campaign, #BoldIdeas, to create, collaborate, scale business solutions and seize new value. Send us your #BoldIdea in Energy Month,” concludes Madangombe.

Enquiries: www.ge.com/power

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DOWNLOAD THE WHITE- PAPER

Enquiries: www.se.com/za

AVS: PROTECT AGAINST THE DANGERS OF LOAD SHEDDING

due to the unpredictable nature of the problem. Automatic Voltage Switches (AVS) disconnect and protects loads when voltage levels fall outside set parameters, automatically reconnecting again when power returns inside parameters for a pre-set period. Select an appropriately sized single or 3-phase AVS for cost effective peace-of-mind.

Enquiries: www.sollatek.co.za

case of refrigeration, highly valued food or even vaccines may have to be destroyed. The same conditions that give rise to the need to ‘shed load’ also result in power conditions such as ‘under voltage’ (brown-outs), ‘over voltage’, ‘spikes and surges’ (including power back surges), and an increase in the likelihood of ‘loss of neutral’ (theft) resulting in single-phase loads being subjected to 3-phase voltages. In order to protect valued equipment, one may resort to unplugging loads, a very difficult precautionary measure to manage

SPARKS ELECTRICAL NEWS

JUNE 2019