Category — Projects

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has been awarded by Lakshadweep Electricity Department a major contract for installation for a 1.1 MWp Solar Photovoltaic (SPV) Power Plants at Lakshadweep Island, along with the refurbishment of existing installations totalling 850 kWp. A total of ten islands will be involved in this project.

BHEL is one of the largest engineering and manufacturing enterprises that operates in India’s energy and infrastructure sectors. The company provides services to India’s power, railway, telecommunication and transmission markets. It is currently estimated that 70% of power generated in India is produced by BHEL-manufactured equipment.

BHEL has contracted OPS India to provide new power electronics equipment as well as to augment and refurbish the SPV Power Plants. OPSI will supply our proprietary technology Power Conditioning Units with SCADA systems & MPPT charge controllers to BHEL for Lakshadweep.

The scope of work for OPS India includes total project work for installation, system integration, commissioning and O & M of the SPV plants for a period of 5 years.

OPS India will also provide a remote monitoring system that will be integrate the individual inverters on the respective Islands. This will enable remote accessibility with special control for individual inverters as well as the integrated system. Our web based monitoring and control system is capable of data acquisition through both local and remote access points.

To view more images of this project, please click on one of the images below or visit the Lakshadweep Project page at our Flickr website here.

On February 07th 2011, Optimal Power Solutions engineers commissioned a new 360 kWp solar hybrid system at remote grid network located on Bunaken Island, North Sulawesi, Indonesia.

OPS supplied the power conversion and system integration technology, including a Hybrid Power Conditioner of 200 kVA rating, 2 x units of 180 kW Maximum Power Point Trackers (MPPT). OPS also supplied the power plant integration equipment including the AC Switching cabinet to accommodate the existing 2 x diesel engine generators rated at approximately 300 kVA each.

In the words of OPS engineer Zeke Paolinelli: “The first obstacle of this project was considering the status of the gensets. Due to old age and lack of remote control, the upgrade and design from OPS had to enable semi-manual genset operation. Many conditions have to be taken into account when manual operation of the genset is required by the operators. Because the OPS system is designed to work with little intervention from operators, instructions on how to operate the gensets under different situations was given through on-site training. More analysis with site data in the coming weeks will also enable OPS to improve the genset running hours as well as monitor the system under semi-manual mode and instruct the operators if required.”

The principal client for the Bunaken Job is the National Indonesian utility PLN, and the system was inaugurated by the Governor of North Sulawesi. OPS worked closely with a leading solar & building construction company in Indonesia market and looks forward to future collaborative projects.

Director of PT PLN Persero Mr Vickner Sinaga announced  that the new solar system at Bunaken is the first island in Indonesia to receive 24 hour power from an integrated solar hybrid system. The hybrid system is expected to displace diesel fuel with major positive effects for PLN, the consumers and the delicate island eco-system. The system is expected to meet the energy demands of the 680 Bunaken citizens and will provide for peak demands of 160 kW. Mr Sinaga also projected that the renewable component of this system will displace 260 kilolitres of diesel fuel per year at a saving of Indonesian Rupee 1.8 billion.

“The system was delivered with the presence of the Governor and other important people from Indonesian Government and PLN Utility. A large celebration followed as this was a very important occasion. Previously, the islands power demands were met at selected times, from diesel gensets only. Now, the gensets run one at a time, during 5 pm to 11 pm. The rest of the time, the batteries and solar PV provide power to the village. People from the village were extremely happy to finally have 24 hours of uninterrupted power supply, and also to have the diesel genset running for only a few hours a day instead of all day long,” (Zeke. P).

More Bunaken image available here: Project Photos at the OPS Flickr website here.

Optimal Power Solutions has recently completed upgrades to its software control at a privately-held island hybrid system in the Bahamas. OPS made various improvements in order to better support the islands unforeseen peak loads.

This included a new facility that enables separate diesel generators to charge a single battery bank simultaneously via the HPC power conditioning units. In addition, OPS also provided enhancements to its SCADA remote management software and improvements to the integration of the eight wind turbines.

We previously covered this project in an earlier article, Caribbean island lights up with OPS renewable energy technology.

Caribbean Project Photo Slideshow

In June 2010 the City of Puerto Princesa in Palawan, Philippines formed a technical partnership with Optimal Power Solutions in order to address the city’s power shortage, currently estimated at 5 to 10 MW.

An ongoing and significant issue has been the provision of sustainable energy for Puerto Princesa. At present, diesel-powered gensets provide a capacity of 30 MW of power to the inhabitants of Puerto Princesa. OPS and the City Council plan to design and implement renewable energy sources to generate additional power supply, reduce diesel fuel consumption and promote a viable and sustainable energy future. It is envisaged that new renewable sources of up to 10 MW capacity will be integrated over successive phases. This renewable capacity will prioritise the export of photovoltaic power into the grid to better support and lower use of the current diesel generators. Phase One of 1 MW capacity shall be installed in 2011 progressing up to 2MW, 5MW and finally 10 MW providing for future load growth of the City.

The systems will combine solar photovoltaics, OPS proprietary inverter control technology, battery storage and diesel engines configured for 24-hour continuous power supply. OPS will provide the technical design, product technology, delivery, installation and service and maintenance of these new renewable services. The inverter technology will employ specially developed SCADA software for real time control management of the photovoltaic/diesel systems. This proprietary SCADA is currently in use in multi-megawatt grid-connect projects in India and has proven highly invaluable for real-time, remote monitoring of power generation and general system trends.

Puerto Princesa, Palawan: Background Context

Palawan is an island province of the Philippines located in the MIMAROPA region. Its capital is Puerto Princesa City and it is the largest province in the country in terms of total area of jurisdiction. Palawan is widely considered as one of the most important areas of biodiversity and conservation in the Philippines due to the outstanding environmental landmarks including spectacular limestone cliff formations, immense reefs teaming with marine life and significant mangroves. Puerto Princesa also contains an environmentally significant tidal underground river. Positioned in the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park (PPSRNP), this unique natural phenomena was listed as a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site in 1999. The PPSRNP is considered one of few examples in the Philippines whereby a concerted effort has been made to protect and manage the natural area.

The Puerto Princesa City Council is considered to be a leader of sustainable policies and is widely acknowledged as the cleanest and greenest amongst local Philippine governments. As a result, the PPSRPN and surrounding areas of Puerto Princesa are a source of national pride and a key element in the identity of the Philippine people. OPS looks forward to the ongoing technical involvement in regard to the development of sustainable energy and technology trends in the greater region of Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

Optimal Power Solutions has commissioned a unique hybrid power project in the Caribbean islands as of late April 2010.

Renewable energy is well positioned to address increasing energy supply concerns in the Caribbeans. Environmental concerns regarding diesel and fossil-fuel transportation have come to the forefront of political debate as the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico continues to cause catastrophic damage. Furthermore, the landed cost of diesel is highly vulnerable to future price spikes and diesel is therefore a risky financial choice as the primary source of energy supply for off-grid requirements. Fortunately, the Caribbeans offer immense potential for new, off-grid renewable projects due to the plentiful solar and wind resource availability.

OPS is pleased to have provided the system integration for this hybrid renewable system that includes solar photovoltaics, wind turbines, diesel generators and proprietary OPS power conversion technology.

This project compromises 2 x 300 kW Hybrid Power Conditioning (HPC) inverters. Our HPC product provides a complete tecnological solution for off-grid renewable energy systems. This unit can operate in parallel with the generators to meet peak loads and features a flexible operating platform for integrating other balance of system components, in this case, the solar PV, wind-turbines and battery storage.

Renewable components of this system include 8 x 15 kW wind turbines and approximately 240 kWp of solar PV that utilise two large capacity OPS Maximum Power Point Tracker’s. In addition, the system utilizes 3 x 312 kVA diesel gensets and a 360 v battery bank rated at 6000 Ah, capable of providing 2.16 MWh of energy storage. The AC system sources are switched through a customised AC switching cabinet that is rated at 1.5 MW. In addition, OPS supplied a Station Control Module that incorporates local and remote access to the system.

To view more images of this project, please click on one of the images below or visit the Caribbeans Project page at our Flickr website here.

Optimal Power Solutions has been contracted for the supply of power conditioning units and system integration for three sites in the Kinabatangan District of Sabah, Malaysia.

Each site compromises a solar hybrid power system that is designed for the supply of electricity to three villages of KG Batu Darat/ Laut, Kg Kuamut and KG Kuamut Seberang. The total combined solar capacity of 430kW across the three villages is expected to reduce fuel consumption by a minimum of 50 per cent. Optimal Power Solutions will provide three proprietary inverters of a combined 710kW capacity. The inverters include 2 x 250kVA Hybrid Power Conditioner, 2 x 30kVA Hybrid Power Conditioner and 4 x 100kVA Grid Export Conditioner, (further HPC & GEC information is available on our products webpage or downloads section).

The sites are very remote and can only be accessed at times via river barges. The Kinabatangan floodplain is located on the east coast of Sabah, Borneo, it is considered of enormous environmental importance for wildlife and the local community as it is arguably the last forested, alluvial floodplain in Asia. Due to the remote location and delivery routes, the cost of landed diesel is high, averaging RM$8 to RM$9 per litre in recent years. It is estimated that the systems discounted payback period for the larger villages will be less than 10 years with scope for a shorter payback period should fuel prices escalate further.

Solar hybrid systems are a particularly viable option for remote area power supply. Optimal Power Solutions is pleased to offer a complete range of proprietary inverters with full service system integration and project development inclusive of remote system monitoring software packages.

For more information please visit our Products, Projects, or Services, webpage

The above map is courtesy of Google Maps 2010.

Optimal Power Solutions is the lead renewable energy technology provider for the system upgrade of the US Navy’s China Lakes testing and training facility.

This project site is located in the Superior Valley, U.S.A. Due to the remote nature of the site, the facility requires a self-contained electrical generating system that includes a large-scale photovoltaic system.

OPS is currently supplying the power conversion equipment and system integration for this system upgrade. The upgrade aims to optimize the energy output of the site’s existing PV modules (210kWp). The existing modules will not be replaced however the previous inverter will be de-commissioned.

Due to the limitations of the existing PV modules to operate at high voltages, OPS was required to design and implement a custom boost-mode MPPT charger. This newly designed boost mode charger will enable the best possible integration of the existing PV array.

This is the same US Navy testing and training facility where an OPS system was previously commissioned in early 2009. It is expected this system upgrade will be commissioned in mid-April 2010.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) of Bangalore has contracted OPS India to supply the power conversion and system integration at the upcoming 3 MW solar PV project in Raichur, Karnataka. State-owned utility KPCL has selected BHEL, a major engineering and manufacturing company, to construct the new project.

BHEL is one of the largest engineering and manufacturing enterprises that operates in India’s energy and infrastructure sectors. The company provides services to India’s power, railway, telecommunication and transmission markets. It is currently estimated that 70% of power generated in India is produced by BHEL-manufactured equipment.

The Karnataka Government launched its solar technology program in 2009 with an aim to power 3900 villages to meet the energy of 5.0 million people. OPS India has had considerable involvement with Karnataka Government’s Solar Initiative. Karnataka’s first multi-megawatt pilot project, commissioned in 2009, utilizes OPS proprietary inverters.

This 3 MW grid connect project will begin construction in March 2010 with a completion date of June 2010. OPS will be supplying twelve units of 250 kW Grid Export Power Conditioners (GEC-250k).

Click here for more information on OPS Products.

Pine Bluff is Trinity Grammar School’s outdoor education campus in NSW. It is situated on the Abercrombie River some 75kms from Crookwell. The outdoor campus consists of various freestanding buildings including a lodge, dormitory buildings, cottages, classrooms, a shed and a storeroom. In the summer groups of students attend the campus and participate in camping, bush walking and other similar activities.

Being in a remote environment a standalone power system is required.  Around 2001, the site had a remote hybrid system installed. That system included 12 kW of solar panels designed to supply power to the facility during the day. The system also utilized a 210kWh battery bank along with a 50kVA inverter system.

OPS carried out a site assessment and found that the battery bank had exceeded its useful lifetime. Also, a number of other maintenance tasks were needed to bring the system back to a satisfactory level of performance. OPS was employed to upgrade the existing system. This included a complete system upgrade of the original inverter to a new DSP controlled hybrid power conditioner including a SCADA remote monitoring package. The aging battery bank was completely replaced with 40 x 6V, 875 Ah batteries, and an MPPT solar regulator was integrated into the DSP control to ensure maximum yield of the solar energy.

The system upgrade was carried out in October and November 2009. It is now fully operational in its self-managed “automatic” mode and has been contributing significant amounts of solar energy to the peak summer load of the facility.  The system does this with the assistance of the 2 diesel generators on site and these are also controlled by the HPC unit.

The solar eclipse of January 15, 2010 was an annular eclipse of the Sun which NASA figures show had a magnitude of 0.9190.  This eclipse is unique in that it will have the longest duration of this millennium, a total of 11 minutes and 8 seconds. It reached its greatest effect as it passed over the Indian Ocean. Whilst most countries would have only observed a partial eclipse, many inhabitants of India were lucky to have the full eclipse highly visible.

Parts of India would have witnessed the eclipse duration of around 10 minutes and 24 seconds. The next annular solar eclipse with such a long duration is not expected until December 23, 3043.

OPS India exported this live solar insolation graph from the recently commissioned 1 MW solar photovoltaic grid connect system in Jamuria, West Bengal. The graph shows the reduction in solar insolation and associated drop in the systems exported power. This can be seen in the graph from 12.40pm to 3.00pm with the eclipse peaking at 2.15pm.

Below is a Video of the Eclipse over Varanasi, India, as filmed by the BBC.