ITW Hi-Cone has chosen Electric Ireland, part of ESB, to supply ‘green energy’ generated from 100% renewable sources to its Cork-based manufacturing facility. The 12-month contract, which will see Electric Ireland deliver 3GWh of energy to Hi-Cone’s site, is valued at approximately €400,000. The company also plans to utilise Electric Ireland’s Energytracked Energy Monitoring and Management System to help deliver energy savings.

Hi-Cone is a leading supplier of plastic-based multi-packaging systems for global beer, soft drink and general products industries.

Energytracked is a flexible energy management solution for monitoring all utilities in a business. It is a software package that enables businesses to optimise their energy usage and reduce costs through identifying and cutting out unnecessary wastage and redistributing energy. Operating in real time, Energytracked can be configured in a number of different ways as a web based system, client server system or as a multi-site or standalone system. Energytracked makes energy efficiency accessible and simple and offers companies the benefit of a better understanding of their energy costs.

Liam Molloy, general manager at Electric Ireland, says: “We are pleased that Hi-Cone will be utilising our Energytracked system, which puts the power in our customers’ hands to better manage their energy usage and drive cost-savings.”

In addition to the installation of Energytracked, Electric Ireland will also provide Hi-Cone with annual maintenance contracts backed up with regular customer training to ensure that they gets the maximum benefits from the energy management and monitoring system.

CAPTION:

Pictured making the announcement are Kieran Savage, senior customer relationship manager, business markets, Electric Ireland, and David Brophy, European manager, manufacturing, service & technical, ITW Hi-Cone.

Students from Presentation Secondary School, Thurles are the overall winners of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland’s search for ‘One Good Idea’ with their ‘Generation Green’ entry encouraging the use of cleaner, greener energy. The students showcased their work among twenty competing schools chosen from around the country to exhibit at the prestigious national final which took place today, Thursday May 3rd, in Dublin Castle.

The students from Presentation Secondary School, Thurles not only get the coveted title of national winners of the One Good Idea competition, but they will now go forward to represent Ireland in the U4Energy Awards. U4energy is the first pan-European competition on energy education organised by the European Commission.

The One Good Idea project is organised by SEAI and supported by the Better Energy programme and the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government. The aim of the project is to increase students’ understanding of energy efficiency and climate change by encouraging them to take individual and collective responsibility for tackling these important issues and to highlight how one good idea can make a big difference to our pockets, ourselves and our planet. The winning students were presented with prizes including Eu1,000 for their school, iPod Touches and iTunes vouchers.

The award for the Senior One Good Idea Campaign went to ‘Dublin Area Recycling Team (DART)’ from Holy Child Secondary School, Killiney and the Junior One Good Idea Campaign award went to ‘Communergy’ from Mountmellick Community School, Co Laois. Both teams were awarded Eur500 for their school and iPods and iTunes vouchers for their team. Almost 1,500 students from 85 schools submitted campaigns to this year’s One Good Idea competition. For more information on the One Good Idea project log onto www.seai.ie/onegoodidea, email onegoodidea@realevents.ie or call 01 5224830.

Bord na Mona has increased EBITDA by 12.6% to €72.7 million and profits after tax by 23% to €12.9 million for last year ending March 2011. Turnover was €382.1 million, marginally down 0.6% on the previous year.

“We are on course to meet our growth strategy through diversification. We want to strengthen and streamline our existing businesses and grow further by investing in new long-term sustainable opportunities such as renewable energy and water. We have made significant progress towards achieving these goals during the year,” comments Gabriel D’Arcy, chief executive of Bord na Mona. “The company is in a new phase of diversification with a very clear focus on sustainability and innovation. Significant progress was made on our ‘Strategy for Growth’ for our combined Horticulture and Green Fuels businesses, presenting us with real opportunities to build on our current businesses in Ireland, UK, and mainland Europe.”

During the financial year, Bord na Mona took a number of significant steps in progressing its development strategy including obtaining planning permission for the construction of two major wind farms; 80 MW at Mount Lucas, Co Offaly, and 40 MW at Bruckana on the borders of Laois, Tipperary and Kilkenny, and concluding a joint venture agreement with ESB for the development of the initial phase of a wind farm at Oweninny, Co Mayo, providing a further 172 MW. The company has now received grid connection offers for all three wind projects amounting to some 490MW.

Bord ne Mona also brought into commercial operation its 116 MW peaking plant installation at Edenderry and expanded its programme to use biomass to generate electricity using 130,000 tonnes of mixed biomass in the year.

Another highlight of the year was the publication of Bord na Mona’s Biodiversity Action Plan 2010-2015, setting out projects and activities designed to enhance biodiversity on the company’s lands.

The progress made on both co-firing and wind farm developments is part of Bord na Mona’s journey toward being a leading renewable energy provider, providing up to 800 MW of capacity by 2020. By 2015 the target is to have over 50% of our portfolio from renewable sources which would provide power to over 90,000 homes annually.

For the third year in a row, Airtricity, Ireland’s largest independent energy utility, has won the national Green Energy Award 2011. 66% of the electricity supplied by Airtricity to its 500,000 electricity customers comes from renewable sources.

“We recognise that small changes in the way our customers consume their energy can make a big difference to Ireland’s CO2 emissions as well as to the size of our customers’ energy bills,” comments Kevin Greenhorn, chief executive of Airtricity. “The simplest and most effective way for electricity customers to reduce their carbon footprint is to choose Airtricity for electricity that emits on average nearly 60% less C02 per MWh. However, once this first step is taken, we then work with our customers to help them reduce their energy consumption through practical energy efficiency advice and actions.”

Airtricity is Ireland’s biggest investor in green energy. From its foundation in 1997 to the end of its current financial year (April 1st 2011), Airtricity has invested Eur1billion in renewable energy in Ireland – an investment that is unmatched by any other energy company in the Irish energy sector.

Airtricity is powered from Ireland’s largest wind generation portfolio, which comprises over 500MW of renewable energy from 25 wind farms across the country, including power from Ireland’s largest wind farm – the 72MW Meentycat Wind Farm in County Donegal. In 2010, Airtricity recorded 854 GWh of wind energy output in Ireland – the largest of any supplier in the market.

Airtricity is also Ireland’s largest renewable energy developer with 730MW of Irish onshore and offshore wind farm generation in construction or with consent for development, in addition to over 500MW of generation already in operation.

CAPTION:

Pictured at the Green Awards 2011 was Gerald O’Neill (left) from Amarach presenting the Green Energy Award to Kevin Greenhorn (centre), chief executive of Airtricity, and Jason Cooke (right), head of communications at Airtricity. Picture Conor McCabe Photography.

Pioneers in the recycling of organic effluents and sludges using short rotation willow coppice plantations, Rural Generation, recently played host to a delegation of German and Austrian renewable energy experts and academics from one of the world’s leading biomass boiler manufacturers, KWB Biomass Heating Systems. The European delegation came to Northern Ireland on a special fact finding visit with a view to learning from Rural Generation’s unique holistic model.

“The introduction of tighter EU Waste Management Legislation and regulation has meant that it has become increasingly important for organisations to dispose of their waste in a compliant and environmentally sustainable manner,” says Stephan Jantscher, chief executive of KWB Biomass Systems. The delegation was particularly interested in learning about Rural Generation’s work with regards to the development of willow and its usage in waste management processes.

John Gilliland, chairman of Rural Generation, comments: “Willow has a very high transpiration and growth rate and uses up large volumes of nutrients and water as it grows. This system acts as a very effective biofilter, converting useful nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, contained in the waste streams, and reducing the levels of pollutants in the environment. The willow crop is fertilised by the nutrients and is then harvested for wood fuel energy. We provide advice and assistance regarding soil and waste stream suitability and nutrient management planning together with complete willow crop establishment.”

The Crown Estate, which owns the UK seabed out to the 12-nautical mile territorial limit and around half of the foreshore, has awarded an agreement for lease for the Inner Sound tidal project to MeyGen, a joint venture between Atlantis, International Power and Morgan Stanley. With a capacity of up to 400 MW, the project is one of the world’s largest planned commercial tidal stream energy developments.

The Inner Sound lies within the Pentland Firth and Orkney waters strategic area, between Caithness on the Scottish mainland and the island of Stroma. It is one of the most energetic tidal areas in the Pentland Firth.

With the addition of the Inner Sound, there are now 11 Pentland Firth and Orkney waters projects. The total potential capacity is 1.6 GW. The Crown Estate will now increase the enabling actions fund, intended to accelerate and reduce risks in development, from its current level of £4.0 million to £5.6 million.

“The Inner Sound is known as the crown jewel of the Pentland Firth and MeyGen has the potential to be a flagship marine energy project. The challenge now is to transform that potential into reality,” says Dan Pearson, chief executive of MeyGen.

“This agreement, for one of the world’s largest commercial-scale tidal energy developments, further confirms Scotland as natural home for marine renewables,” remarks Scottish Government Energy Minister Jim Mather. “We will continue to work with The Crown Estate to support low carbon developments, ensure communities can reap the benefits and secure Scotland’s position as the green energy capital of Europe.”

Norwegian oil and energy group Statoil has held discussions with Scotland’s First Minister, Alex Salmond, about the possibility of developing the world’s first floating windfarm off the Scottish coast. Two potential sites, one off the coast of Lewis and the other off Aberdeenshire, have been identified as suitable for a pilot park for Statoil’s Hywind floating turbines.

Statoil’s Hywind concept combines known technologies in a completely new setting and opens up the possibility for capturing wind energy in deepwater environments. The floating structure consists of a steel cylinder filled with a ballast of water and rocks. It extends 100 metres beneath the sea’s surface and is attached to the seabed by a three-point mooring spread. The wind turbine can be placed at ocean depths of between 120 and 700 metres

Statoil has already constructed a full scale prototype Hywind unit, off the coast of Norway, which has delivered power to the grid since September 2009.

Scottish Development International and Marine Scotland have been working closely with Statoil to test the feasibility of a similar project in Scottish waters.

Green Sea Energy

“Scotland has unrivalled marine resources and, with massive offshore wind potential, we are leading the way in the generation of clean, green energy from the sea,” points out Scotland’s First Minister, Alex Salmond. “Our waters are estimated to have as much as a quarter of Europe’s potential offshore wind energy and we are perfectly positioned to develop the technology that will power this remarkable renewables revolution.”

Indeed, a recent study suggests that harnessing just a third of Scotland’s practical resource off the coast by 2050 would generate enough electricity to power the country seven times over.

Scotland has already pioneered the development of deepwater offshore wind with the highly successful Beatrice Offshore Wind Demonstrator in the Moray Firth which enabled the UK Round Three and Scottish Territorial Waters offshore wind sites to be offered in water depths up to 60 metres.

“The Hywind II wind farm project would see a Scotland-Norway collaboration push the boundaries of deepwater offshore wind beyond the 100m mark and open up vast areas of the world ‘s oceans to the development of wind energy for the first time,” adds Alex Salmond.

IBEC, the group that represents Irish business, has announced the Irish winners of the 2009/10 European Business Awards for the Environment. The group said that the number and quality of Irish entries this year reflects the growing importance of environmental issues for businesses of all sizes in all sectors.

The Irish winners are:

• Abbott Ireland for best environmental management;
• JFC Manufacturing in Galway for best environmental product;
• Lagan Cement in Westmeath for environmental excellence.

“These awards showcase the best of Irish innovation in environmental management and practice,” says Neil Walker, IBEC head of environment policy. “The number and quality of Irish entries this year reflects the increasing importance of environmental issues for businesses of all types and sizes.”

Abbott Ireland received the environmental management award for introducing a green plan that improved the environmental efficiency and sustainability of its business activities and products.

JFC Manufacturing in Galway won the product award for converting bottles into a raw material for manufacturing pipes, which are then used as part of a storm water attenuation system that minimises flooding.

Lagan Cement received the environmental excellence award for significantly reducing their carbon footprint by substituting a portion of its non-renewable fossil fuel with green energy derived from solid recovered fuel (SRF).

Established in 1987 by the European Commission, the European Business Awards for the Environment identify and reward European companies that bring together innovation, economic viability and environmental concerns.

South West College, County Antrim, is the first educational institution in Ireland to sign a ‘heat contract’ with green energy company Rural Generation based in Londonderry, which will see the college save up to £25,000 on heat costs annually.

The college, which houses its own Renewable Energy Academy at the Omagh campus, has already been enjoying the benefits of renewable energy for four years. An initial biomass boiler – a 150 kW Austrian KWB boiler, fuelled by wood chip – was installed when the new college was built in 2006 and supplied approximately 25% of the building’s heat requirement with the remaining 75% being provided by oil boilers.

Impressed with the success of this boiler, South West College purchased a second larger – 250 kW KWB – biomass boiler, six months ago, which was also installed by Rural Generation, bringing the total biomass capacity to 400 kW. Now up to 70% of the college’s heat requirement, which includes space heating and hot water for a 15,000 square metre campus, including classrooms, workshops, library, canteens, common areas, corridors and offices, is provided by biomass.

John Moore, curriculum manager – technology at South West College was on the team that was the main driving force behind the college’s investment in renewable energy technology. “Our boilers use approximately 350 tonnes of wood chip from short rotation coppice willow grown locally and they are very reliable. Our heat contract with Rural Generation works very well for us and we are very happy indeed with the savings we have made on heating costs,” he explains. “Using biomass energy has also helped us reduce the building’s carbon footprint, as our carbon dioxide savings are estimated to be over 400 tonnes per year, and is a good learning resource for our students, especially as we teach renewable technology at the college. It also of course provides a local market for biomass fuel.”

Biomass Heat Contract

Tom Brennan, managing director of Rural Generation, comments: “It is great to see a local college lead by example with renewable technology and we are delighted that South West College has signed a biomass heat contract with ourselves. This type of contract works really well for customers such as schools or colleges as it reduces the risk by guaranteeing a long-term wood fuel supply. It also makes the system of supply and maintenance virtually hassle free for the customer, as we look after every aspect and sell them the heat, based on per kWh of heat used. Overall it’s a win-win situation for everyone.”

Tom Brennan continues: “Following an investment of approximately £100,000 in the boilers, South West College is set to make savings on their heating bills of approximately £25,000 per year which gives them a payback on their boilers of just over four years. This is based on today’s price of oil which gives fuel savings of £21,000 annually and £4,800 for carbon savings, based on a value of £12 per tonne for carbon as priced by the carbon reduction commitment framework.”

John Moore adds: “We would definitely recommend a biomass boiler to other schools and colleges and have demonstrated its use to students, other colleges, schools, public and private sector operators and others. We are dedicated to promoting local renewable heat production and very much encourage the uptake of biomass and other renewables for environmental and economic reasons.”

CAPTION:

Celine McCartan, head of corporate services at South West College, signs a ‘heat contract’ with Tom Brennan, managing director of Rural Generation.