Iberdrola and National Grid (transmission system operator in Great Britain) have awarded the EUR 1 billion contract for building the first ever subsea transmission link between Scotland and England to Siemens. The new subsea link will increase the available transmission capacity by about 2 GW, and create conditions for the development of more renewable energy projects in Scotland.
Ormat Technologies has been awarded its first well head power plant in the Menengai geothermal field in Kenya, as part of the country's tender for geothermal development concessions. The project is to be executed on a build-operates-transfer (BOT) principle. The geothermal field is located about 180 km West of the country' capital of Nairobi.
JinkoSolar, based in China, has added a new subsidiary in Australia. JinkoSolar Australia is based in Queensland, and will serve as a sales and delivery hub for the Australian market, housing about 5 MW of modules for the region.
Mitsubishi Corporation has purchased a 49% stake in two German offshore cable transmission projects from TenneT Holding BV. The two projects are BorWin1 and BorWin2. Total costs of both projects is about EUR 1.2 billion. Two grid connections will be developed by TenneT, with 1.2 GW of capacity. TenneT and Mitsubishi will maintain and operate about 400 km of cables and tranformers for 20 years, as regulated under German laws.
The Centre for Wind Energy Technology, located in Chennai, India, has published an onshore wind energy map of India, detailing the regions with the most abundant wind resources. The map is the result of measurements and data collection at various locations throughout India at 50 meter heights above ground, with validation, as well as estimations for 80 meters above ground, without validation. The findings show potential for almost 103 GW of wind capacity at 80 meters above ground, with the northern most parts of the country, at the slopes of the Himalayas, showing the largest potential by far.
The US Department of Interior and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management have announced the progress of the department's renewable energy initiative, having successully passed an important environmental review. This means the offshore wind energy leases planned for waters near Maryland, Virgina, New Jersey and Delaware can now move forward.
GDF Suez is continuing its expansion in the wind energy markets in East Europe with the development of two new wind farms in Romania and Poland, totalling in 100 MW of new wind capacity.
The UK Department of Energy and Climate Change recently announced it has named the South West as the region to host the country's first Marine Energy Park. The South West Marine Energy Park will cover an area from Bristol to Cornwall, and will reach further out to the Isles of Scilly. The initiative will bring together various entities including the national and local government, Local Enterprise Partnerships, University of Plymouth and University of Exeter, but also the industry including the Wave Hub (South West RDA).
Petra Solar and Enviromena Power Systems have entered into a partnership to pursue solar energy and smart grid development in the Middle East and North Africa region. This partnership will draw its strength from Petra Solar's Smart Solar technology and Enviromena's renewable energy development expertise.
German private investment funds, Terra Nex and Middle East Best Select (MEBS) are planning to invest USD 2 billion in Oman for the development of 400 MW of solar power capacity. Additionally, this investment will also cover manufacturing facilities for solar panels, which will produce solar panels for both domestic needs and for exporting to other markets.
