George Kariniotakis, lead session chair of forecasting at EWEA 2013
A weather forecast might be something you look at when deciding whether or not to take an umbrella with you in the morning, but for wind energy it is vitally important and contributes to the efficient management of wind-powered electricity. We spoke to George Kariniotakis, lead session chair of forecasting at EWEA’s 2013 Annual Event to find out more.
Can you describe the role wind forecasting plays in the wind power sector?
Forecasting the power output of wind farms in the next hours or days is of primary importance for the management of a power system with high wind penetration. Power system operators need to anticipate the necessary electricity generation to meet the electricity demand at each moment. The challenge comes when a large share of the generation depends on weather conditions, as is the case for wind energy. Wind power forecasts are useful for power system scheduling, congestion management, storage management, reserves allocation and other functions. Wind farm operators also need forecasts to participate in a day-ahead electricity market or to plan maintenance of wind farms.
What are the current technologies used?
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In the second of this two-part interview, EWEA 2013 Annual Event Chair Francesco Starace, CEO of Enel Green Power, explores the recent developments in the wind power sector and looks at the sector’s prospects ahead…
EWEA’s last Annual Event in Copenhagen is already over six months ago, what key developments – positive and negative – have taken place since then?
During the current difficult period, the wind industry remains resilient. Turbines manufacturers adopt survival strategies by upgrading turbines while developers focus on building premium higher margin projects.
With respect to Europe, the tightening of national budgets due to austerity measures and the fears of the impact of a rising electricity bill in a weak economic environment have led many governments to operate further regulatory changes, sometimes not very fortunate, especially when involving retroactive changes on power plants already installed. Nevertheless, a very important milestone has been reached by the European wind industry: the EU-wide wind installed capacity has reached 100GW – notably, half of which installed just in the last six years – and new and interesting signals are coming from emerging markets in Eastern Europe, North, South America and North African countries. continue reading »
EWEA staff on a wind turbine visit
On a recent late-October morning, EWEA staff set off early from our offices in Brussels to visit a wind farm. For many of us, it would the first time to get so close to the energy-producing giants that we spend our time promoting. The sun rose and we were confronted with a thick blanket of fog, which did not lift during the two hour drive to the Europarc, near Aachen in Germany. Not the best weather for viewing wind turbines. But we persevered.
Descending from the bus at the Europarc in Vetschau, we suddenly found ourselves at the base of a gigantic turbine, a 1.5 MW Enercon machine with a 66 metre rotor diameter. The blades were spinning silently in the breeze, shrouded by fog. This was an unusual turbine, specially designed for visiting, with a viewing platform on top and a safety ladder on the outside, allowing space for groups to climb the 65 metres to the top on a staircase inside. Within the turbine there were several floor levels off the stairs, for catching your breath on the 300 steps and listening to explanations on the construction of the turbine by our knowledgeable guide, Pieter De Greef from Windvision. The turbine is the same weight as 30 African elephants!
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The WWF logo
Recently some national governments in Europe have made changes to their support mechanisms for renewable energies that have created an environment of insecurity for the wind energy sector. However, a new report by the WWF says that such policies create needed certainty for renewable energy investors, backing up a view held by EWEA.
Uncertainty about future policy support for renewable energy in key markets such as the UK, Italy and France has contributed to a notable drop in investment levels across the EU. However, On Picking Winners, a report written by Dr Rob Gross of Imperial College London, argues that given the numerous benefits of renewable energy, it is vital that the EU and its member state governments provide the support needed to ensure it plays its full part in decarbonising the EU’s energy system.
“Without targeted and proportionate policies supporting our renewables industry, we will miss out on the opportunity rapidly to reduce the costs of emerging renewable technologies, and will fail to capitalise on the promising economic growth opportunities that the sector has to offer in the EU,” says Imke Lübbeke, Senior Renewable Energy Policy Officer at WWF European Policy Office.
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Francesco Starace, EWEA 2013 Chair and CEO of Enel Green Power SpA
With three months to go until Vienna becomes a hive of wind energy activity at the EWEA Annual Event, we caught up with Conference Chair Francesco Starace, CEO of Enel Green Power SpA, to find out what he thinks is hot in wind energy right now…
How would you describe the current wind power market in Europe and what do you think the short-term outlook is?
The context where the EU wind industry is currently operating is one of economic downturn. Yet, the strong links between economic activity, energy supply and demand and energy investments, make it more difficult to understand the condition and timing of recovery. It will likely take other three or four years for the EU economy to recover and for the gap between power supply and demand to close and until that time major growing opportunities will be unlikely in mature European Markets. Despite the concerns on the short term outlook, positive signals are coming from promising markets in Eastern Europe. Meanwhile there is still room for EU member states to stimulate growth in renewables by making progress on the targets planned for 2020 in National Renewable Energy Action Plans through increasing coordination and a sound policy framework at European and national level.
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