EDL picks Senvion turbines for hybrid power system

German wind turbine manufacturer Senvion SA (ETR:SEN) will supply two of its 2-MW MM92 machines to project developer Energy Developments Ltd (EDL) for an off-grid hybrid microgrid system in the remote northern parts of South Australia state.

In a statement on Tuesday, Senvion said that it has signed a contract for the Coober Pedy Renewable Diesel Hybrid scheme. Apart from wind, the system will feature 1 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) power generation capacity and a 1-MW/250-kWh battery, combining them with an existing 3.9-MW diesel power station and advanced control technologies.

The manufacturer from Germany will make the nacelle and rotor blades for its first off-grid endeavour at its factories in Portugal. Construction works at the site are scheduled to kick off in September 2016, with commercial operations due to commence in the second half of 2017.

Earlier this year, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) agreed to help finance the off-grid scheme by contributing up to AUD 18.4 million (USD 13.8m/EUR 12.6m) in grant funding towards it.

In end-May, EDL selected domestic clean energy producer Hydro Tasmania to deploy the off-grid hybrid array that is expected to be able to generate enough electricity to meet up to 70% of the electricity needs of Coober Pedy. In times of very favourable weather conditions, the town could be entirely powered by renewable energy.

(AUD 1.0 = USD 0.752/EUR 0.684)

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