Around the Industry

It has been announced that Fortum is launching a significant development project that aims to manufacture high-value products from agro residues and woody biomass to replace the use of fossil and other environmentally taxing raw materials. The project received significant support from Business Finland for a €14.4m, two-year project.

The technology group Wärtsilä, Finland’s Lappeenranta University of Technology (LUT) and Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD), have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the study of the development of a business case for the use of alternative fuels with Wärtsilä generating sets. The MoU was signed on 13th November.

Renewable energies covered 38% of Germany’s gross power requirement in the first three quarters of 2018, according to the Federal Association for Energy and Water (BDEW). The new figure is a three percentage point rise on the figure for 2017 and was boosted by an exceptional weather year for renewable energies, with plenty of wind through the spring and an exceptionally sunny summer. 

Pay-as-you-go solar company Azuri Technologies and the Electrification Financing Initiative (ElectriFI) will have a presence at the UN Climate Change Conference COP24 this week to showcase how innovative financing in the off-grid solar sector is helping millions across Africa access affordable, renewable, clean energy.

One of the top three nuclear engineering companies worldwide, Assystem, has been awarded a major, multi-discipline design framework agreement to support the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), a UK government research organisation responsible for the development of nuclear fusion power. Assystem will support the engineering design of projects across all major disciplines including mechanical engineering, process engineering, electrical, control and instrumentation, building services and civil engineering, and integrated design.

  Local transportation on the Åland Islands in the Baltic Sea is switching to Neste MY Renewable Diesel which is produced entirely from waste and residues. The first vehicles to use the product are the local and charter buses of the Viking Line Buss and Williams Buss companies, in addition to the Åland Post fleet.

  With many household devices listing watts and energy bills listing kilowatt-hours, it can be difficult to put energy usage into context. To help, MoneySuperMarket has put together a report to compare how much physical exercise is needed to power household and personal appliances.

  UK-based technology company Renovare Fuels has been awarded support by Innovate UK for aviation fuel testing through the Sustainable Aviation for Clean Growth programme. The company has developed a technology that converts waste into a biofuel that could replace traditional fossil fuels.

The Smart City Cookbook provides an introductory guide with a set of examples that cities and other smart city program leaders can utilize when planning and managing their smart city activities. Examples in the book are from the Smart Tampere program by the City of Tampere in Finland.

A new power control system for Quinnipiac University’s York Hill Campus, located in Hamden, Connecticut, ties together a range of green energy power generation sources with utility and emergency power sources.  By Steve Dunn, Aftermarket Product Line Manager, Russelectric