Vestas, a Danish company has announced its participation in the AREH project, a “pioneering initiative”, which aims to provide electricity to Indonesia at a competitive cost and that, of course, this energy comes from renewable energy.
In addition, in a statement, the company explains that the ultimate goal is for this country to be able to meet the growing demand for electricity from its approximate 260 million inhabitants at the same time that it can meet the international commitments on greenhouse gas emissions.
According to Vestas, another of the great benefits that Indonesia offers with this type of project of these characteristics is its contribution to the long-term security of supply with stable prices.
Something that according to the Danes explain, solar and wind energy can do since they are not exempt from the oscillations of the global market for fossil fuels.
Location of the perfect place.
The aforementioned Danish company, together with CWP Energy Asia and InterContinental Energy work together to make this project a reality, AREH or better known as Asian Renewable Energy Hub, which involves the installation of 6.000 megawatts of solar and wind power in the Pilbara region (Western Australia).
For this, they have spent 2 years traveling the northwestern coast of Australia to find the most suitable location for the site where the hybrid project will take place.
Pretending in this way, combine / complement the use of solar energy (during the day) with that of wind energy (during the evening-night) and thus be able to obtain the maximum possible stability as the graph below indicates.
Alexander Tancock, Managing Director of InterContinental Energy says:
“The first key step of this initiative has been linked precisely to that item: the location of the site where AREH will be executed […]
[…] We invested two years in traveling the entire northwest of the Australian coast to find this incredible location […]
[…] The geography and topography are unique and will provide us with wind and solar resources far superior to those registered in the area, resources that are also complementary, as there will be plenty of sun during the day and high-speed winds during the afternoon and evening. the night. This is how we will be able to provide competitively priced electricity to Indonesia. '
AREH details
To give you an idea of the size of the project, some key data are:
- The facility is being designed to operate for 62 years.
- The AREH project will basically make energy production twice that of the Cofrentes nuclear power plant. This means + 15TWh, that is, more than 15 terawatt hours exported each year.
- Australia, Jakarta and Singapore will be connected by 2 submarine cables.
- In a matter of solar energy will be installed 2.000 MW of power, on the contrary, when it comes to potency of wind energy will be 4.000 MW.
Vestas explained that AREH's proximity to Indonesia, adding advances in submarine cable technology, will make possible "the economically efficient transmission of electricity over very long distances, all of which results in an opportunity to connect the Southeast Asian region."
These great advantages suppose a cost of more than US $ 10.000 billion, 10.000 million that are exclusively the initial cost of the first phase of the Asian Renewable Energy Hub project, AREH, as explained by the Danish multinational.
On the other hand, the European company has already announced that, after this initial phase, the idea is "to supply renewable energy to other countries in Southeast Asia."
The socio-labor impact of this project in the region
In a statement, Vestas announced that AREH is large enough for the excuse of factory facilities in Indonesia, thus increasing "the creation of an important industrial base aimed at reducing the cost of electricity throughout the country and, likewise, in neighboring nations."
"The installation of renewable industries in the region also promises the creation of thousands of highly qualified jobs."
Feasibility studies (both terrestrial and marine) have already started to be elaborated by the promoters. And right now they are looking for industrial partners and investors.
To this initiative of such a great dimension have already joined Prysmian, Swire Pacific Offshore (from Singapore) and the governments of Australia, Indonesia and Denmark.
Vestas claims that the Prysmian union is good news as it is the number 1 brand in submarine cables and they literally say:
"Its new HVDC technology cables can transmit more than 1,5 gigawatts of electricity with losses of less than 6% over distances of more than 2.000 kilometers."
CWP Energy Asia Managing Director Alexander Hewitt reported that;
"Together, wind and solar have enormous potential to supply renewable energy reliably and at a fully competitive price throughout the region."
In addition, Hewitt has also highlighted the socio-economic dimension of this project, which will induce - he assures - the installation in Indonesia of industries in the renewable energy sector.
In the same vein, the president of Vestas, Asia Pacific, Clive Turton, has stated that “renewable energies are not only able to beat fossil fuels in the race for competitiveness, but also“ are increasingly attractive as a source of employment and investment ”.
At the moment, AREH officials have already sent the environmental study to the Australian authorities.