The smart grid will allow more wind to be integrated
Qatar – Siemens and Iberdrola have announced that they will work together on smart-grid infrastructure in the Middle East to allow for the integration of more wind and solar energy.
The two companies will develop smart-grid technology, allowing wind energy to be integrated into the grid more effectively, for Qatar and the region as a whole.
Additionally, the firms will work on a demand response management system to balance supply and demand for energy.
In a statement they said: “New technologies allow for an improved integration of outage management and an advanced level of grid automation. This enables utilities to operate their grids more reliably and more efficiently.”
The region’s wind market has seen a sharp upturn in activity over the last year, with a number of countries moving towards utility-scale projects.
A report in June found that there are more wind projects in the pipeline than any other renewable technology in the Middle East and North Africa, despite the region’s abundant solar resource.
In Jordan, the 117MW Tafilah wind project is close to becoming a reality, with the developers having secured a $221 million loan from the International Finance Corporation.
Last month, Kuwait, one of the world’s biggest oil producers, launched a programme to install 2GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030, amounting to 15% of the country’s electricity supply.
Source: WindPower
