ITP MEDIA GROUP / BUSINESS SEPTEMBER 2020• VOL. 14, ISSUE 09 What should be done to limit the damage of Covid-19 on power utilities? RECOVERY PLANIn Second More than 100,000 substations are optimizing their transmissions across the globe. Huawei’s Leading New ICT is helping over 170 electricity enterprises build smart grids. Contact Us: enterpriseME@huawei.com e.huawei.com/aeCONTENTS www.utilities-me.com September 2020 / Utilities Middle East 3 Volume 14 | Issue 09 Contents Like companies in other sectors, utilities are having to speed up the adoption of new technologies as the coronavirus crisis forces them to use software, not people, to steer critical infra- structure including plants and grids. The pandemic has created advantages for businesses immune to shutdowns and restrictions, allowing staff to work remotely and providing technology to keep service fl owing. Utilities that started digital programs before the crisis have been more resilient. In the post-COVID 19 world, many will need to reconsider their technology priorities, according to consul- tancy McKinsey. Using remote supervision could help grid operators mini- mize the risk for their workforces while simplifying operations, according to a new McKinsey report. The creation and use of new technologies is a step change in running infrastructure and retail businesses more effi ciently and could boost valuations. It builds more resilience in your business when you can operate from multiple locations. Meanwhile, organizations are shifting toward a fl atter, more agile model in which teams collaborate remotely across busi- ness functions and geographies—and now fi nd this process to be more productive than physical meetings were. Changes have taken place along all segments of the value chain; there have been cases in which engineers and project designers have worked more productively remotely than when they were physically together. In other instances, executives have been able to discover new talent to keep operations run- ning, such as with multiskilled workers in power plants. As lockdowns ease, utilities will want to maintain organiza- tional agility and prioritise remote capability building. Utilities executives indicate growing interest in hybrid work- ing models. They will need to plan carefully because diff erent roles and teams have diff erent virtualisation potential. Leaders will therefore need to embed remote working in their organisational cultures. One way to do so is to work remotely themselves; another is to involve employees in the planning process. Remote working also opens new possibilities: utilities can hire talent in diff erent geographies, possibly enhancing both their diversity and their resiliency. Accelerating change Baset Asaba, Editor Email: baset.asaba@itp.com View point RECOVERY PLAN A look at possible measures that industry experts believe can help limit the damage of Covid-19 on power utilitiesCONTENTS 4 Utilities Middle East / September 2020 www.utilities-me.com GCCIA awards three year contract to Hitachi ABB Power Grids for new Rel- Care solution As part of their three-year agreement with Hitachi ABB Power Grids, GCCIA will use the RelCare solution to remotely monitor the maintenance of all their substations across the six Gulf countries 02 Oman registers 2.6% elec- tricity production drop in fi rst half of 2020 Oman’s electricity production during the fi rst half of the current year decreased by 2.6% to reach 17,501.8 GW per hour compared to the total production of 17,968.3 GW per hour in the fi rst half of 2019 03 Saudi Arabia’s SWCC signs MoU for innovation in water desalination According to the MoU, SWCC aims to benefi t from a modern device to recover energy in the desalination process by reverse osmosis in desalination plants, which could potentially reduce energy use by more than 50% 05 25 20 05 UPDATES 08 NEWS ANALYSIS 16 INDUSTRY TRENDS 22 COVER FEATURE 25 SPECIAL REPORT 32 PRODUCTS 08 16 18 Nawah Energy Company, in part- nership with TRANSCO, has success- fully connected Unit 1 of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant to the UAE grid, and it is despatching its first megawatts of clean electricity to the nation SPECIAL EDITION ALSO THIS MONTH 08 SMART ENERGY A new whitepaper by ABB shows that Datadriven energy management solutions are gaining traction for optimizing energy effi ciency, avail- ability and environmental sustainability 22 RECOVERY PLAN While the Covid-19 pandemic appeared to have created some op- portunities for the global renewable energies industry, the path to recov- ery for the conventional power sector is likely to be slow and painful 18 SMART METERING Gabriela Gil, Product Marketing Specialist at Comarch, explores the need for smart metering across water, gas, heat, and other utilities in the future 25 DESAL NATION’S HOPE A look at how advancements in technologies are driving operational excellence in large-scale seawater desalination plants as off takers aim to cut down operational expenditure and boost effi ciency 20 TRINA VALUE With technology as its main driver, Trina Solar has over the years become the world’s leading PV and smart energy total solu- tions provider that is now shaping the future of PV 16 CLEAN WTE Emirates Waste to Energy Company will generate up to 30MW at its waste to energy plant under construction. But besides producing electricity, it has found ways to extract value from the plant’s residual waste Most popular news stories on www. Utilities-me.comitiesNews The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corpora- tion, ENEC, last month announced that its operations and maintenance subsid- iary, Nawah Energy Company, in part- nership with the Abu Dhabi Transmission and Despatch Company, TRANSCO - a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Energy Company - has safely and successfully connected Unit 1 of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant to the UAE grid, and is des- patching its fi rst megawatts of clean electricity to the Nation. During the process, the generator in Unit 1 was integrated and synchronized with the require- ments of the UAE’s national electricity transmis- sion grid. Unit 1 connection, also referred to as ‘grid syn- chronisation’, marks the fi rst time that clean elec- tricity produced at the plant is delivered to the UAE national grid. This follows the safe and successful start-up of Unit 1 at the end of July 2020 by Nawah. Since then, the operations team has run a series of tests, steadily increasing the power levels to ulti- mately generate the fi rst megawatts of baseload electricity produced by the Barakah plant, located in the Al Dhafrah Region of Abu Dhabi. With clean electricity from peaceful nuclear energy now being delivered to homes and busi- ness across the UAE, this milestone is a signifi cant moment in the continued safe, secure, and qual- ity-led delivery of the UAE Peaceful Nuclear Energy Programme and its cornerstone, the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant. With the integration and connection complete, Unit 1’s nuclear operators will begin the process of gradually raising the power levels, known as Power Ascension Testing, PAT. Throughout this process, the Unit 1 systems follow international best practice to safely progress and test the unit as it proceeds towards full electricity production. Once the pro- cess is completed, Unit 1 will deliver, at full capacity, abundant baseload electricity to power the growth and prosperity of the UAE for decades to come. This testing will be conducted under the contin- ued oversight of the UAE’s independent nuclear regulator, FANR, which has now conducted more than 280 inspections since the start of Barakah’s development. This is in addition to over 40 mis- sions and assessments by the International Atomic Energy Agency and World Association of Nuclear Operators. “The safe and successful connection of Unit 1 to the UAE grid marks the key moment when we begin to deliver on our mission to power the growth of the nation by supplying clean electricity, around the clock. Grid connection of Unit 1 really is the beginning of a new era in our project, which is built upon years of preparation and adherence to the highest international safety and quality stan- dards,” said Mohamed Ibrahim Al Hammadi, Chief Executive Offi cer of ENEC. “We are confi dent in our people and our technol- ogy to continue to progress to reach commercial operations, and the completion of the remaining three units, with the goal to power up to 25 percent of the UAE’s electricity needs for at least the next 60 years. This project, in addition to the UAE’s eff orts made in implementing other forms of clean power generation, delivers one of the most ambitious clean electricity transformations in the region and the world, setting the Nation on a new track of sus- tainable development and electrifi cation.” ENEC recently announced the construction completion of Unit 2, with operational readiness preparations now underway by Nawah. Construc- tion of Units 3 and 4 of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant are in their fi nal stages, with Unit 3 being at 93 percent completion, Unit 4 at 86 percent comple- tion, and the overall construction completion of the four units now standing at 94 percent. “The successful delivery of electricity to the nation is the result of strong and sustained collab- oration with our local and international partners. We extend our full appreciation to TRANSCO, and our Prime Contractor and Joint Venture partner, the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), as well as the many other UAE-based stakehold- ers and numerous international nuclear organisa- tions who have worked closely with us over the past decade. Their experience, and that of the wider global nuclear energy industry, has supported our adherence and commitment to ensuring the high- est safety, quality, security, transparency, and non- proliferation standards throughout the develop- ment of the programme,” said Al Hammadi. REGIONAL UPDATE // ESSENTIAL INSIGHTS FOR MIDDLE EAST WATER, GAS AND ELECTRICITY PROFESSIONALS UAE nuclear plant connected to national grid Unit 1 of the Barakah Nuclear Energy plant is already dispatching electricity to the UAE transmission grid Nuclear www.utilities-me.com September 2020 / Utilities Middle East 5TAQA appoints news CEO for TRANSCO Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) has appointed Dr. Afi f Saif Al Yafei as Chief Executive Offi cer (CEO) at its subsidiary, Abu Dhabi Transmission and Despatch Company (TRANSCO). In his new role, effective today, Dr. Al Yafei will reinforce TRANSCO’s vital role in the transformation of Abu Dhabi’s power and water sector. Jasim Husain Thabet, Group CEO & MD at TAQA, said: “We are pleased to welcome Dr. Afi f on board as CEO of TRANSCO. With a strong track record of achievements in the energy industry, substantial technical expertise and solid leadership experience, Dr. Afi f will further strengthen TRANSCO’s role in guaranteeing the security and stability of the sector to ensure it remains a reliable, effi cient, sustainable and value- generating system that is fi t for the future.” Commenting on his appointment, Dr. Al Yafei said: “I am excited to be taking on the leadership role at TRANSCO. I look forward to supporting the sector’s ongoing transformational efforts, and in achieving the company’s vision and commitment to sustainability and operational excellence.” Dr. Afi f joins TRANSCO from National Central Cooling Company PJSC (Tabreed). “As remarkable achievements in standardising company’s func- tional areas, ELIPS’ has succeeded in obtaining international certifi ca- tions on Environmental Management System and Occupational Health & Safety Management System,” said Ahmad Bin Shafar, Chairman of ELIPS. “ELIPS’ Environmental Man- agement system is based on ISO 14001:2015 standards, detailed Envi- ELIPS gets ISO 14001:2015 on Environmental Management Empower-Logstor joint venture, ELIPS, the leading manufacturer and provider of insulated pipe systems has succeeded in aligning its produc- tion and operations with high inter- national practices and standards, by obtaining two new international cer- tifi cations, ISO 14001:2015 on Envi- ronmental Management System and the BS OHSAS 18001:2007 on Occu- pational Health and Safety Manage- ment Systems and renewing ISO cer- tifi cation on Quality Management System (ISO 9001: 2015). ELIPS has also renewed success- fully the Euroheat & Power certifi ca- tion, which is granted in accordance with the guidelines for quality assess- ment of pipes and continuing its com- pliance with the specifi cations and standards of the European Interna- tional Network for District Cooling. ELIPS Desalination Egypt set to add 19 new desalination plants by 2022 The desalination plants worth $690mn will have a total daily production is 550,000 cubic meters ELIPS also receives BS OHSAS 18001:2007 on Occupational Health and Safe- ty Management Egypt is set to boost its water pro- duction capacity with the addi- tion of 19 new desalination plants in a period of 18 months. The desalination plants worth a total of LE11 billion ($690mn) will have a total daily production is 550,000 cubic meters. They will be built in Nabq, Ras Sidr, Abou Zanima, Dahab, Nuieba, Arish 1, Arish 2, Arish 3, Arish 4, Sheikh Zowayed 1, Sheikh Zowayed 2, Sidi Barani expan- sions, western Port Said, Dabaa, Marina 1, Marina 2, Marbella, and New Mansoura. The projects are constructed within a strategy to increase Egypt’s water resources, and secure water for irrigation. The value of the strategy – launched in 2020 - is LE435 billion, and is scheduled to be accomplished by 2050. Egypt is expected to have 65 desalination plants distributed among six governorates that are Matrouh, South Sinai, Suez, Ismailiyah, North Sinai, and the Red Sea. The total daily produc- tion of those is 750,000 cubic meters. Matrouh is planned to house 14 plants having a daily capacity of 250,000 cubic meters, while the Red Sea is expected to have 18 plants with a capacity of 109,000 cubic meters per day. North Sinai and South Sinai will be home to 21 and nine plants whose capacity ronmental aspect impact analysis is conducted and necessary control measures are implemented for the entire process from raw materials to fi nal production and to the execution processes at client’s project sites. ELIPS yielded outstanding environ- mental gains and economic suc- cesses, as it is the only insulted pipe systems company in the Middle East that uses zero-emission materials in its manufacturing processes”. Bin Shafar stated; “ELIPS’ Health & Safety Management System is based on OHSAS 18001:2007 stan- dards. Detailed Occupational Health & Safety risk assessment is con- ducted across the production pro- cesses of ELIPS and its project sites. Control measures are implemented holistically to ensure the health & safety of its staff. per day is 20,000 cubic meters and 75,000 cubic meters, respectively. Only one plant will be established in Ismailiyah, and two others in Suez. The government of Egypt is partnering up with the private sector to build four desalination plants in Matrouh’s Hamam dis- trict, and three others in the Red Sea’s towns of Safaga, al-Qusair, and Marsa Alam. AHMAD BIN SHAFAR, Chairman of FLIPS NEWS 6 Utilities Middle East / September 2020 www.utilities-me.comTRANSMISSION & DISTRIBUTION POWER GENERATION RENEWABLE ENERGY ENERGY CONSUMPTION & MANAGEMENT DIGITALISATION www.middleeast-energy.com | info@middleeast-energy.com Explore. Empower. Energise 15 - 17 March 2021 | Dubai World Trade Centre, UAE 8 Utilities Middle East / September 2020 www.utilities-me.com NEWS ANALYSIS Most companies today are lacking an eff ective strategy to manage their energy consumption and keep costs under control. A new whitepa- per by ABB shows that Datadriven energy manage- ment solutions are gaining traction for optimizing energy effi ciency, availability and environmental HOW TO REDUCE YOUR OPEX WHILE ACHIEVING SUSTAINABILITY Most companies today are lacking an effective strategy to manage their ener- gy consumption and keep costs under control. A new whitepaper by ABB shows that Datadriven energy management solutions are gaining traction for opti- mizing energy efficiency, availability and environmental sustainability. sustainability. The buildings where we live, work and entertain absorb more than 42% of the world’s energy con- sumption due to heating, cooling and lighting sys- tems. Over the next 25 years, worldwide energy demand is expected to grow by over 40%, calling out an urgent need for energy effi ciency and sus- tainability. This strong growth in energy demand is shaping the complexity of power distribution sys- tems at all levels. Power grids are becoming more dynamic in order to manage distributed energy resources (DER), while private and public companies are www.utilities-me.com September 2020 / Utilities Middle East 9 NEWS ANALYSIS taking up the challenge by creating environments capable of self-sustaining. Additionally, more than half of power-outage events in buildings, both commercial and indus- trial, can be attributed to problems with equipment and poor electrical distribution systems that absorb more power than required. Given this situation, the need to optimize energy consumption and costs along with power reliability is more prevalent now than ever. This especially applies to critical sectors such as public health buildings, data centres, public infra- structures and continuous-process manufacturing facilities. Digitalization enabled by the IoT is pivotal to support the growth of energy demand and the challenges associated with it. Turning data into productivity gains while low- ering consumption and costs could help organiza- tions achieve environmental sustainability through reduced emissions. The growth of energy consumption To compete eff ectively, organizations must adopt revolution- ary plans to manage and optimize their operational performance, utilizing cutting-edge digital tech- nologies and leveraging the power of the Internet of Things (IoT). MEASURING AND MONITORING ELECTRI- CAL SYSTEMS Often, organizations do not have control over their energy consumption, nor an accurate methodol- ogy to inform them on how their site or building is operating. In order to reap the full benefi ts of digita- lization, organizations must fi rst understand how much energy is being consumed and how it is con- sumed. Thus, the fi rst and most important step in energy management is to clearly identify a baseline and the behavior of the electrical system. Metering provides energy managers and opera- tors reliable information, real-time or aggregated, on energy usage. Most often, an energy data and analysis backbone coupled with a robust plant- energy model will reveal patterns of energy waste that would be impossible to see otherwise. Moreover, depending on the organization’s needs, adding more measuring points can signif- icantly increase the accuracy of the reading, thus providing better insights about installation and more data on which to base optimization actions. Meters should be installed at diff erent levels of the installation to enable the measuring of individ- ual loads or group of loads (homogeneous) to cover at least 70% of power consumption. Improvements based on metering have been shown to reduce energy consumption by as much as 45%.2 But while most organizations understand the importance of measuring and monitoring, only a small number of organizations implement an eff ec- tive strategy for energy management. In fact, orga- nizations typically undertake independent and uncoordinated projects, mostly small and short- term, due to lack of knowledge and methodology. Such an approach leads to outcomes that are well below expectations. Energy monitoring is seen of little value, even though a well-organized system of measuring and monitoring would pay back in a short period of time due to lower energy and main- tenance costs and negligible power outages. Measuring technologies, applied to the moni- toring of a building for effi ciency purposes, can be extended to water, gas and heat metering, providing a comprehensive visualization that could give an overall picture of operating conditions. Sensors that read conditions such as tempera- ture, pressure or humidity, coupled with analytics and in some cases machine learning (ML) technol- ogies, are also starting to play a crucial role, unlock- ing the potential to understand more in-depth, unexpected behaviors. Benchmarking energy consumption and electri- cal-system parameters is generally based on annual history, while observation is most relevant in a year- over-year comparison. Short-term analysis, such as month-over-month comparison, could also be valu- able for identifying specifi c events occurring in a determined period. But benchmarking cannot be accurate without constancy: continuous monitoring is necessary in order to tell if a sample represents a good or poor status. Such an approach is also the base for energy- effi ciency processes and strategies in production environments. For example, Energy Performance Indicators (EnPI) used mostly to acquire certifi cations, or as a base for energy audits, provide the highest poten- tial to identify paths and the eff ects of interventions - but only if they are continuous and structured. In numbers, let’s assume that a 5% energy effi ciency improvement - quite easy to achieve with a metering system installed3 - can reduce electricity consump- tion by approximately 5%. Let’s assume as well that the organization’s indus- trial production site (which include a solar rooftop) incurs an average energy cost of EUR 800.000 per year. By measuring and monitoring the electrical distribution system, the organization can save thou- sands of Euros, if not hundreds of thousands annu- ally. In our hypothetical example, the cost savings on the energy bill amount to EUR 40.000 per year. Without access to data, organizations are subject to ineffi ciencies in diagnosing and fi xing problems. For example, if a piece of equipment is not behav- ing correctly, the plant or energy manager sends a maintenance crew to investigate the issue. If the problem with the equipment is mechanical, it can be fi xed. But if the nature of the problem is dif- ferent (such as voltage imbalances), it could lead to a lot of guesswork, as well as eff ort and money wasted without results. Data accessibility and reliable infor- mation will decrease the time it takes to identify the problem and remediate the issue. Intelligent Energy Optimization Energy moni- toring is not the only solution to maximizing energy effi ciency. Intelligent energy optimization also plays an important role. In general terms, energy optimization means optimizing energy usage to maximize benefi ts for people as well as the envi- ronment, and consists of three concurrent strate- gies: saving energy, managing demand response and using renewable energy sources. Thus, energy optimization solves multiple challenges that impact Next >