Hi all! Long time investor, first time poster. Still in awe of the projected numbers of QMC/Solterra when you compare to what everyone else is doing and the money being spent on old silicon based technologies. Need some help deciphering but seems incomparable.
Fluor develops master plan for South Africa's 5,000-Megawatt solar park
Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas) South Africa's 5,000-megawatt (MW) solar power project is progressing toward the first phase of construction, and Fluor South Africa, a division of Fluor Corporation (Irving, Texas), is developing a conceptual master plan for the project following the completion of a prefeasibility study in 2010.
The project's base will be in the town of Upington, which is on the banks of the Orange River in the Northern Cape. The river traces a fertile agricultural ribbon through an area close to the Kalahari Desert.
USD 20 billion project, infrastructure to be delivered by Eskom
Upington has one of the highest levels of solar radiation in the country and receives about 8.17 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per square meter per day. The USD 20 billion project is already spawning solar manufacturing projects, which will serve the solar park corridor and be available for other projects nationally.
State-owned power utility Eskom has plans to supply the necessary 400-kilovolt (kV) infrastructure by 2012 to provide transmission for 1,500 MW of power, Industrial Info Resources reports. The specific power additions during the phases of construction will not be confirmed until the publication of the master plan. Eskom has said that meeting all the environmental impact assessment (EIA) requirements could take as long as seven years.
Four long transmission lines would carry the power to the national grid from the solar park. Eskom already has applied for the EIAs, and now will have to move on approvals from landowners. But the utility has plans to build transformers by 2014 and two further 400-kV lines by 2016. The development of the first 1,500 MW will be incremental and could be reached by 2016/17, when Eskom will build two more 400-kV lines.
Large Chinese PV companies involved in South African market
Renewable energy company Solairedirect (Cape Town) has plans for the production of roof-integrated solar photovoltaic (PV) modules. Suntech Power Holdings, China's largest maker of solar panels and the world's largest crystalline silicon PV module manufacturer, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the local Umsimbithi Holdings to develop a 100-MW solar energy plant.
China's Yingli Solar is developing a 10-MW solar project in the Northern Cape, which will expand to 100 MW. By the end of 2012, Italy's Italgest Energia will be operating a PV panel factory with an initial capacity of 110 MW. Eskom will use a portion of its $3.75 billion World Bank loan to build a 100-MW concentrated-solar power plant, which will be incorporated into the Upington project.
PV, CPV, and CSP
Multiple solar technologies are now favored for the $21 billion project; they include PV, concentrated PV, concentrated solar power, and variations as this would assist in the development of a solar industry in South Africa.
Fluor, which is already a central player in the project as the concept planner, will need the inside track position for the overall engineering, procurement, construction and management (EPCM) contract, when it comes, as the company could bring a wide range of experience of the total supply chain of renewable projects. It is currently working on solar power projects in other countries.
For more information, see September 23, 2010, article - South African Renewables Finding Place in the Sun with 5,000 MW Proposal.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is a leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. "IIR's quality-assurance philosophy, the 'Living Forward Reporting Principle', provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities," the company emphasizes.
2011-02-28| Courtesy: Industrial Info Resources (IIR) | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH
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