This Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) waiver enables NYPA to conduct fully remote drone operations, such as asset and vegetative management inspections, at its 1,160MW Blenheim-Gilboa Pumped Storage Power Project in Schoharie County, about 60 miles from Albany, New York.

NYPA’s drone programme supports its asset management strategies and is part of an authority-wide digitisation initiative to modernise grid infrastructure to advance the efficient delivery of clean power statewide, according to a release.

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“The Power Authority is proud to be leading the way in the advanced deployment of automated flight technologies for use in the utility industry,” said Justin E. Driscoll, New York Power Authority acting president and chief executive officer. “Drones will become an even more valuable tool as we expand our capability to detect infrastructure issues and support our mapping and land management responsibilities. Being able to capture images remotely, regardless of weather conditions or distances, will allow us to track and evaluate our assets more efficiently and safely.”

FAA Part 107 regulations require pilots to maintain visual contact while operating a drone. This waiver allows operators to conduct operations without the requirement for the pilot or an observer to see the unmanned aircraft or to scan the surrounding airspace throughout the entire flight. Routes, however, must be pre-planned and the drone must remain within 50 feet above ground level or within 50 feet of structures.

The waiver was obtained with the help of Skydio, a US drone and software manufacturer providing equipment and advisory services. The waiver, which is specific to Skydio drones, authorizes operations through 2027 and grants NYPA the capability to conduct remote operations from other locations without an on-site pilot or visual observer. The timing of the waiver dovetails with the launch of a new drone docking technology by Skydio that allows drones to take off and land autonomously with a pilot directing operations from a remote location.

“This important approval enables NYPA to operate Skydio drones beyond line of sight without visual observers,” said Jenn Player, Skydio’s senior director of regulatory affairs. “Skydio autonomy and collision avoidance capabilities are key to conducting these low-altitude, high-value operations safely and easily.”

Peter Kalaitzidis, NYPA’s UAS programme manager, who submitted the application, said the Blenheim-Gilboa Pumped Storage Project was proposed as a first use case to prove the technology’s application, primarily because of the sparser population in the region. Drones are already being operated at various NYPA sites to monitor asset health, including for inspection of transmission lines, vegetation management and monitoring of overgrown trees, and spillway erosion mapping.

“Our application demonstrated to the FAA that we are ready to enhance our program and capabilities,” Kalaitzidis said. “Having this waiver removes limitations and unlocks opportunities moving forward. We will continue to explore potential uses for this technology that will benefit the Authority and hopefully the industry at large. At present, we are developing the procedures, mitigation steps and hardware so we can best use these resources over the next few years.”

NYPA’s in-house drone programme is researching and testing new applications to implement drones more fully into day-to-day utility operations while maintaining high standards of aviation professionalism and safety. More than 40 employees are trained as drone pilots.

NYPA is the largest state public power organization in the US, operating 16 generating facilities and more than 1,400 circuit-miles of transmission lines. More than 80% of the electricity NYPA produces is clean renewable hydropower.

Originally published on hydroreview.com

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The Mangla hydropower project is a multipurpose facility located on the Jhelum River in Mirpur district of Azad Kashmir.

It includes Mangla Dam, which is the seventh largest dam in the world, and the country’s largest reservoir, which has a live storage capacity of 7.48 million acre feet. The Mangla powerhouse is 50 years old and contains 10 turbine-generator units. As Pakistan’s electricity consumption is growing, the refurbishment work will extend the lifetime and efficiency of the plant, as well as boost capacity by 280MW.

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GE’s scope of work for these two units includes the design, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of the two hydro turbine and generator components.

Previously, GE was selected for the ongoing refurbishment of units 1 through 6 at Mangla. The 100MW units will be replaced by 135MW units.

“By replacing the units in an existing dam, we can extend the life of a project for another 50 years,” said Pascal Radue, Hydro Solutions president and chief executive officer, GE. “We can also increase the capacity of the hydropower plant, to deliver an even larger amount of renewable energy for the country. We are thrilled to be partnering further with WAPDA on this project to help accelerate the hydro energy transition in Pakistan.”

Pakistan has long-term goals to have hydropower meet 46% of the country’s power generation needs by 2030.

GE Renewable Energy, part of the GE Vernova portfolio of energy businesses, provides end-to-end solutions for customers in the onshore and offshore wind, blades, hydro, storage, utility-scale solar, and grid solutions industries, as well as hybrid renewables and digital services offerings. GE Vernova is comprised of the Power, Renewable Energy, Digital and Energy Financial Services businesses.

Originally published on hydroreview.com

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Hydropower will be essential for the decarbonisation of the energy sector.

However, for hydropower to have a bright future, it needs to keep up with the changing times, which means that some aspects need to be improved and some adjustments need to be made.

This was the finding of a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), “The changing role of hydropower challenges and opportunities”.

According to IRENA, if the world is to meet the climate goals set in the Paris Agreement, hydropower installed capacity should more than double by 2050.

This will require annual investments in hydropower to grow roughly fivefold.

Also, as most hydropower potential lies in developing countries, IRENA suggests that financing institutions and governments work together to overcome local risks and funnel much-needed investment into these regions.

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The report highlights that despite being the most mature renewable technology, hydropower faces a number of challenges that need to be overcome to maximise the renewables resource. The challenges include:

• The need to ensure sustainability and climate resilience;
• Changing water flows due to climate change;
• Ageing fleets and related investment requirements;
• The need to adapt operation and maintenance (O&M) to modern power system requirements;
• Outdated market structures and business models that do not recognise the full range of services provided by hydropower.

Investments must be directed to modernisation and refurbishment, and new capacity to cope with present and future power system requirements.

Also important is the need for new business models and market structures that appropriately reward the services that hydropower can provide and that are increasingly more valuable, like flexibility and balancing services.

“Hydropower has been an effective source of clean power generation for more than a century,” said IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera.

“However, with the rapidly evolving energy landscape, it is important to reevaluate its future role and leverage recent technological advancements that can maximise its potential while ensuring its sustainability and climate resilience.”

The report also emphasises that the planning and development of hydropower will only be successful if aspects of sustainability and resilience are taken into consideration.

This can be achieved by ensuring that adequate measures that protect communities, water flows, water quality and local species are embedded throughout the development and operation of hydropower projects.

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Abu-Dhabi headquartered clean energy firm Masdar and Austrian utility VERBUND are to explore the production of green hydrogen for Austria and Southern Germany.

The two companies have signed a memorandum of understanding to produce and export hydrogen, with Verbund chief executive Michael Strugl stating that green hydrogen “is the game-changer for a sustainable energy system, taking us a step closer to carbon neutrality”.

Verbund generates 97% of its electricity from renewables, mainly hydropower, plus some wind and solar.

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Strugl believes green hydrogen will become a crucial building block to decarbonize industry and transport in Europe and Verbund has already launched several flagship projects to expand its value chain into green hydrogen.

Last year, Masdar announced the establishment of its new green hydrogen business, with a goal of producing 1 million tonnes of green hydrogen per annum by 2030.

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Masdar chief executive Mohamed Jameel Ramahi said that the “future is upon us” in respect of green hydrogen.
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INEOS Inovyn, a chlor-vinyl company, operates a site in Norway producing raw materials for industry sectors as diverse as automotive, building and construction, paints and adhesives, food, healthcare and medical, personal care, pulp and paper, textiles, and water treatment.

The agreements will secure the majority of the power needed for existing manufacturing activities and the additional power required for planned investments into electrification and hydrogen production as part of INEOS Inovyn Norway’s plans to decarbonize its assets in Norway, according to a release.

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The largest agreed power contract covers a capacity of 100MW, equal to an annual volume of 876GWh of documented renewable energy. The new long-term agreement replaces the existing power contract, which expires in May 2023.

The second long-term power agreement covers up to 30MW, adding 263GWh per year for the period from 2026. The agreement is linked to INEOS Inovyn’s development plan in process electrification and hydrogen production to further reduce carbon emission of the asset at Rafnes in Vestfold and Telemark County.

“These long-term green energy supply agreements allow us to continue to competitively supply our customers in Europe and elsewhere in the world. They also allow us to pursue our ambitious asset development plans which we have put in place to reach our 2030 CO2 reduction targets and to continue the decarbonization of our operations to deliver net zero emissions by 2050,” said Geir Tuft, chief executive officer of INEOS Inovyn. “Statkraft’s support is critical for us to carry out this ambition as early movers in Norway and hence achieve our climate goals benefiting the full value chain for our customers.”

Statkraft is Europe’s largest generator of renewable energy. The group produces hydropower, wind power, solar power, gas-fired power and supplies district heating. Selling electricity to power-intensive industries is an important part of Statkraft’s activities, the company said. In 2023, Statkraft will deliver around 10 TWh on such contracts. In 2022, the company signed eight new contracts with a total volume of 25 TWh over the contract period.

Originally published on hydroreview.com

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The Federal Republic of Nigeria is the most populous country and largest economy on the African continent. It is home to one of the fastest-growing populations globally, which has led to a rapidly increasing demand for energy that will be key to unlocking further economic development.

This presents a substantial opportunity to develop the rich natural renewable energy resources of the country and unlock low-carbon growth, IRENA said in its report Renewable Energy Roadmap: Nigeria.

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This report, developed in collaboration with the Energy Commission of Nigeria, analyzes the additional renewable energy deployment potential up to 2050, with an additional 2030 focus to aid shorter-term policy development.

The study encompasses all key sectors of the Nigerian energy system to provide additional context for energy policy discussions on how increased ambition in terms of renewable energy, beyond current government policy and targets, can be realized.

Nigeria is endowed with abundant renewable energy resources – namely solar, wind, hydro and biomass — that can be harnessed to scale up its energy supply and achieve universal energy access, energy security and reduced greenhouse gas emissions for climate change mitigation.

With regard to hydroelectricity specifically, in 2015, Nigeria had about 1.9GW installed capacity of large hydro and about 60MW of small hydro.

According to the report, Nigeria has a hydro potential of around 24GW and a small hydro potential of about 3.5GW. This potential for the most part is yet to be exploited.

Hydropower will be key in balancing the centralized power system by offering flexibility to mitigate solar power variability, the report said.

The transforming energy scenario (TES) sees hydroelectric power reaching 13GW in 2030 and 15.5GW in 2050, compared with the planned energy scenario of 5.9GW in 2030 and 13GW in 2050.

Originally published on hydroreview.com

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Anhui Jinzhai Pumped Storage Power Co. Ltd., one of the divisions of State Grid Xin Yuan, signed a contract with GE Hydro Solutions in 2017 to supply four 300MW pumped storage turbines, generator-motors and balance of plant equipment for the Anhui Jinzhai pumped storage power plant in Jinzhai County, Anhui Province, China.

The first two units were connected to the grid in October 2022.

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The Jinzhai plant will play a key role in the journey to a stronger energy mix in the country, GE said. The Jinzhai pumped storage station will save up to 120,000 tons of coal and reduce 240,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year.

“The Jinzhai pumped storage project now fully operational will provide for a huge amount of clean energy to China and will help stabilize the grid to ultimately help integrate more renewable energies in a reliable way,” said Pascal Radue, president and chief executive officer, GE Hydro Solutions. “And the beauty of hydropower projects is that it is set to be operational for the very long term, about 80 years, meaning that the project will provide affordable energy for several generations to come.”

GE Renewable Energy, a part of the GE Vernova portfolio of energy businesses, provides onshore and offshore wind, blades, hydroelectric, storage, utility-scale solar, and grid solutions as well as hybrid renewables and digital services offerings. GE Vernova — comprised of the Power, Renewable Energy, Digital and Energy Financial Services businesses — focused on supporting customers’ transformations during the global energy transition.

Originally published on hydroreview.com

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After completing the building permit process, Axpo and Rhiienergie began work on the hydrogen production facility at the Reichenau hydropower plant on 23 January 2023. The hydrogen plant is scheduled to go into operation in the fall of 2023.

The hydrogen installation will be connected to the Reichenau hydropower plant, in which Axpo holds a majority share. The Reichenau plant, on the Rhine River, was completed in 1962.

Axpo and Rhiienergie are jointly investing over CHF8 million ($8.7 million) in the facility.

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Using Swiss hydropower, the facility will produce about 350 tonnes of green hydrogen annually. This corresponds to about 1.5 million litres of diesel fuel that the Canton of Grisons and the neighboring Rhine valley will be able to save. The green hydrogen will be delivered directly to filling stations from the production facility. Alternatively, the hydrogen can also make a contribution to the decarbonisation of industrial operations.

Green hydrogen, which is produced with power from renewable energy sources, is considered a pillar of the energy transition. Axpo has defined the expansion of this area as a strategic growth field. The hydrogen plant at the Reichenau power plant is one of many facilities that Axpo is planning at run-of-river hydropower plants in Switzerland.

The use of hydrogen as a fuel is not widespread in Switzerland. A filling station network is being developed and the first hydrogen-fueled trucks are already on the road. The filling station network, as well as the Swiss hydrogen fleet, will grow strongly in the upcoming years, Axpo said.

Switzerland is striving to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. To reach this goal, the country must strongly reduce its CO2 emissions. As a climate-friendly fuel, green hydrogen plays a key role in this decarbonisation strategy – particularly in the area of freight transport.

Axpo says it is Switzerland’s largest producer of renewable energy. The company owns or co-owns about 60 hydroelectric power plants.

Switzerland has about 1,500 hydroelectric power stations in total.

Rhiienergie is an energy supply company that provides electricity products and a support program for energy efficiency.

Originally published by hydroreview.com

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The specific capacity the government considers to be “micro hydropower” was not disclosed.

The president said all types of energy are being used to develop the country’s system, with new solar, wind and hydroelectric stations being built in addition to expanding existing capacities.

In the hydropower sector over the past few years, 27 projects worth $500 million have been implemented, adding capacity of 260MW. The cumulative capacity of stations in the Uzbekhydroenergo system has exceeded 2,000MW.

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This year, seven hydro plants and 10 micro hydroelectric plants with total capacity of 197MW are scheduled to be commissioned. In addition, work to implement eight prospective projects and construct 50 micro hydroelectric plants with capacity of 438MW are set to commence.

The president pointed out the high potential of the hydropower sector and instructed to substantially increase its capacities. To this end, 250 prospective sites for the construction of micro hydropower plants have been selected. According to calculations, new micro hydroelectric power stations will be able to generate 675 million kWh of electricity and save 200 million cubic meters of gas per year.

Due to attractive prices of electricity produced by micro hydropower projects, the interest of businessmen has increased. In this regard, the president mentioned the possibility of selling solar and wind energy at attractive prices. The task has been set to build hybrid plants (wind- and solar-powered plants) on free sites around hydroelectric power plants. Due to the availability of ready infrastructure, the cost of construction of such plants will be low.

The president also touched on the issue of localization in the industry. It has been instructed to establish production of equipment for micro hydropower as well as hydroelectric units by JSC Suvsanoatmash in the Tashkent region.

Originally published on hydroreview.com

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The agreements were signed under the umbrella of the Etihad 7 initiative, a UAE-led initiative that aims to raise public and private-sector funds to invest in the development of Africa’s renewable energy sector.

The deals cover 2GW in Angola, 1GW in Uganda and 2GW in Zambia, involving solar, wind and hydropower.

“The UAE and African nations share a firm belief in the tremendous potential that clean energy offers Africa to unlock economic and climate action progress,” said UAE’s minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Sheikh Shakhboot Nahyan Al Nahyan.

Masdar chairman Dr Sultan Al Jaber, who is also President Designate of COP28, which will be held in the Emirates later this year,said: “The UAE is committed to advancing sustainable development in the Global South – and especially in our brotherly nations in Africa.”

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He added that the “landmark agreements will be transformative to local communities and will help African nations to drive economic growth for their people while still meeting net-zero objectives”.

Uganda’s energy minister Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu said the 1GW planned for the country would “go a long way to contributing to the attainment of our universal access goals and our energy transition goals”.

Last August, Masdar also signed an agreement with TANESCO, the sole provider of electricity in Tanzania, to develop renewable energy projects with a total capacity of up to 2GW, also under the umbrella of the Etihad 7 program.

The two parties are in the process of finalizing the establishment of a joint venture company to advance the collaboration.

According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), less than half of the Sub-Saharan African population has access to electricity.

Africa also generates just 20& of its electricity from renewable sources, while according to a report by Masdar and McKinsey, the continent has a theoretical potential capacity of approximately 850TW of solar and wind.

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