STRATEGY AND BEST PRACTICES,ENERGY
Azure Power | August 16, 2022
Azure Power Global Limited (NYSE: AZRE) ("Azure" or "the Company"), a leading independent sustainable energy solutions provider and renewable power producer in India, today announced that it has signed a Master Supply Agreement ("MSA") with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Power Private Limited ("Siemens Gamesa"), a global leader in wind technology. Siemens Gamesa will supply 96 units of SG 3.6-145 onshore wind turbines which will cater to an overall capacity of ~346 MW wind projects. The turbine supply is expected to commence during Q2 CY 2023.
Speaking on the partnership, Harsh Shah, CEO, Azure Power said, We are pleased to partner with Siemens Gamesa in our first wind project. Wind energy is going to be an imperative element for delivering firm, reliable and clean energy to achieve the energy transition vision of the country. This partnership will create long-term supply visibility while securing sustainable value for our stakeholders.
"We are delighted to begin this new partnership with Azure Power on this large-scale project using our latest India focused technology. The contract provides new impetus to the wind industry at a key juncture in the country's energy transition. Teams from both companies have worked relentlessly over the last few months to secure maximum value for the project. With this new joint approach, alongside our technological innovation, we are confident of delivering the right renewable energy solutions to the market."
-Navin Dewaji, CEO, Siemens Gamesa-India
About Azure Power
Azure Power is a leading independent sustainable energy solutions provider, and renewable power producer in India on a mission to create value for all stakeholders through high-performance Renewable Energy assets. We developed India's first utility scale solar project in 2009 and since then, Azure Power has grown rapidly to become a leader in developing and operating large utility-scale renewable energy projects in the country. We also partner with commercial and industrial customers in their decarbonization journey by providing comprehensive solutions for their clean energy needs.
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ENERGY
Clean Energy Systems, Inc. | July 15, 2022
Clean Energy Systems, Inc. (CES) announced that it entered into an agreement to acquire the idled Madera Biomass Power Plant (located in Madera County, California). CES intends to convert the existing facility into a Biomass Carbon Removal and Storage (BiCRS) Facility.
"We are excited for the opportunity to expand our efforts to address the challenges of climate change, improve air quality in the Central Valley and make a vital contribution to the local economy by converting an idled biomass plant into a BiCRS facility, We look forward to engaging and working with all neighboring landowners and other stakeholders as we progress this critical project in the coming months."
-Keith Pronske, CES' President and CEO
The facility, once converted into a BiCRS facility, will convert agricultural waste biomass from local farms, into a renewable synthesis gas that will be mixed with oxygen in a combustor to generate electricity and/or hydrogen. More than 99% of the carbon from the process is expected to be captured for permanent storage by safely injecting carbon dioxide (CO2) underground into nearby deep geologic formations. By using biomass fuel that consumes CO2 over its lifetime to produce energy and then safely and permanently storing the produced CO2, the process is designed to result in net-negative carbon emissions, effectively removing greenhouse gas from the atmosphere.
The new BiCRS facility, when completed, is expected to remove about 600,000 tons of CO2 annually, which is equivalent to the emissions from electricity use of more than 130,000 U.S. homes. It also will help improve air quality in the San Joaquin Valley by using approximately 400,000 tons of agricultural waste annually (which otherwise would have been burned), in line with the California Air Resources Control Board plan to begin phasing out agricultural burning in the San Joaquin Valley by 2025.
Working with its partners, CES plans to evaluate the Madera Biomass Power Plant for conversion to a BiCRS facility using CES' proprietary oxy-fuel technology that contributes to cost-effective carbon capture. BiCRS is identified as a low-cost form of engineered carbon removal, resulting in net energy production without routine emissions of nitrous oxide, carbon monoxide and particulates from combustion produced by conventional biomass plants.
The agriculture industry requires clean and effective disposal options as an alternative to open field burning," said Roger Isom, President/CEO of the California Cotton Ginners and Growers Association and Western Agricultural Processors Association. Repurposing conventional biomass power plants into carbon removal projects is one of the solutions that also addresses air quality in the Central Valley.
The work builds upon the efforts of similar projects in Fresno and Kern Counties, which are under active development. The acquisition is subject to continued due diligence, with closing expected in early 2023.
About Clean Energy Systems
Clean Energy Systems is a California-based technology company and a global leader in the development and deployment of carbon reducing energy systems. The company has successfully transitioned proven, reliable rocket engine combustion principles into a flexible and economically attractive power generation system for the benefit of our planet. CES' proprietary oxy-combustion technologies enable cleaner and more efficient co-generation of power, steam, water, and captured CO2 and offers the world a new perspective on the way we assess the value of natural resources.
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SOLAR+STORAGE,ENERGY
Ampt | September 17, 2022
Ampt, the world’s #1 DC optimizer company for large-scale photovoltaic (PV) systems, announced that its products have been integrated into the Energy Storage modeling software solution from Fractal, a leading energy storage and renewable energy consulting and engineering firm. Users of the Fractal Model software can now model their photovoltaic (PV) solar-plus-storage projects including Ampt String Optimizers to design lower cost and higher performing systems.
Fractal’s energy storage software solution – the Fractal Model – is used globally by electric utilities, IPPs, developers, EPCs, and integrators to perform battery storage sizing, dispatch and financial analysis. The software consists of a technoeconomic modeling platform used during project design and development, due diligence and RFP evaluation to provide investment-grade performance and cost analysis and simulations. Following today’s announcement, users of Fractal software are now able to model systems with Ampt String Optimizers.
Ampt String Optimizers are DC/DC converters that improve system performance and lower the cost of PV power plants and DC-coupled energy storage systems. Ampt’s innovative technology is used in a variety of PV solar applications with products ranging in power up to 70 kW that are used in system voltages up to 1500 VDC. With over 1 GW of optimizers in solar-plus-storage projects, Ampt powers some of the largest hybrid power plants in the world.
“Fractal is committed to providing its customers with access to the most comprehensive modeling capabilities, We are pleased to include Ampt products in our software to expand the options available to our users when optimizing their PV and energy storage systems.”
-Judy McElroy, CEO of Fractal Energy Storage Consultants
Fractal Energy Storage Consultants provides technical design, financial analysis, procurement, buy and sell side due diligence, technoeconomic models, controls integration and owner’s engineer services for energy storage and hybrid projects. Fractal has provided consulting services including technical design and financial analysis to over 600 utility-scale projects and more than 6 GW of battery storage.
“Fractal’s software provides investment-grade modeling capabilities to optimize the design and improve the economics of PV+storage power plants, Now developers can also use Fractal’s software to quantify the benefits of Ampt’s fixed-voltage DC architecture.”
-Levent Gun, Ampt CEO
Ampt is exhibiting at RE+ on September 20-22 at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. Please visit us in booth 1252 to learn about our award-winning products including our new i50 String Optimizer which will be on display. Visitors to Ampt’s booth also can see a demonstration of Fractal’s energy storage modeling software.
About Ampt
Ampt delivers innovative power conversion and communication technology that are used to lower the cost and improve performance of new PV systems, repower existing systems, and enable lower cost DC-coupled storage. With installations and experience serving markets around the world, Ampt is the number one DC optimizer company for large-scale systems. The company is headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado and has sales and support locations in North America, Europe, and Japan as well as representation in Asia, Australia, and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.ampt.com.
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SUSTAINABILITY,PRODUCTS
Lumen Energy | July 14, 2022
Bridge Investment Group Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BRDG) (“Bridge” or the “Company”) announced the launch of its newest strategy, Bridge Solar Energy Development (“Bridge Solar”), in partnership with Lumen Energy Inc. (“Lumen”).As companies move to decarbonize their operations, onsite renewable energy is increasingly economical. Commercial rooftop solar technology costs have fallen 69% over the last 10 years, while retail electricity prices increased 10% nationally just since 2020; however, onsite commercial solar deployment has remained slow due to complex utility building data, supply chain issues, financing complexities and diverse state-specific incentives. For one-off projects, the unfamiliar process overhead and capital expenditure remain high compared to direct benefits, yet too small for utility-scale investors. Bridge believes that its national footprint and local expertise, combined with Lumen’s data-driven technology, will streamline the analysis and implementation of solar in a high-demand market that has been largely untapped. Only 4.5% of the approximately six million commercial properties in the United States currently have solar arrays, leaving more than 145 gigawatts of onsite solar potential.
“We expect Bridge Solar to provide an unmet need for green energy, via the provision of clean energy at a discount to market rates by deploying renewable energy infrastructure equipment on existing buildings, By partnering with Lumen Energy, a leader in the clean energy software and energy project development process technology space, we will offer best in class design, procurement, construction and operation of solar projects on properties owned by Bridge-managed funds and third-party assets.”
-John Ward, Chief Executive Officer, Bridge Solar, and Chief Investment Officer, Bridge Office.
This unique partnership enables Bridge Solar to evaluate thousands of new property addresses at once, and make decisions in minutes. Building on technology pioneered at U.S. National Labs, Lumen’s technology quantifies the economically ideal “clean energy stack” unique to each property, inclusive of financing and incentives, then automates the deployment process.
“We are excited to partner with Bridge on the next phase of growth for Lumen, Together, our scale, precision, and automation allow us to deliver profitable decarbonization with speed and ease. By building solar-powered energy systems on existing buildings, Bridge Solar will utilize unused space to meet the growing demand for green energy, while simultaneously providing owners and tenants a discount to market energy prices.”
-Peter Light, Chief Executive Officer of Lumen
About Bridge Investment Group
Bridge is a leading, vertically integrated real estate investment manager, diversified across specialized asset classes, with approximately $38.8 billion of assets under management as of March 31, 2022. Bridge combines its nationwide operating platform with dedicated teams of investment professionals focused on select U.S. real estate verticals: residential rental, office, development, logistics properties, net lease and real estate-backed credit.
About Lumen Energy
Lumen Energy is a leading software platform that empowers commercial real estate owners to profitably select and deploy renewable energy across many properties at once. Lumen Energy’s software fuses supercomputer outputs and energy market data into investment-grade financial models, enabling building owners to easily evaluate which clean energy solutions enhance the value of their buildings. The Lumen platform connects owners with a marketplace of qualified local installers, automating clean energy deployment from start-to-finish.
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