(Teleborsa) - Enel, through its subsidiary Enel Green Power Chile, has launched the first commercial "plug-and-play" micro-grid, totally "emission-free" and powered by solar photovoltaic and hydrogen storage systems and lithium.
The plant meets part of the energy demand of the base camp which hosts over 600 technicians operating at Enel's Cerro Pabellón geothermal plant, in Ollagüe, in the Antofagasta region.
The micro-grid is a cutting-edge innovation project, developed by Enel with the technical support of EPS (Electro Power Systems), a technological leader in energy storage systems and micro-grids. The plant is based on a hybrid storage system (HyESS) which includes: a 125 kWp solar photovoltaic system, supported by a 450 kWh hydrogen storage system and 132 kWh lithium batteries. The joint activity of the photovoltaic solar system with the storage system ensures a capacity exceeding 580 kWh and transforms the intermittent solar energy into a constant energy source, increasing the flexibility and stability of the micro-grid.
Furthermore, an innovative control system optimizes the electricity flows produced by the photovoltaic modules and ensures that these flows are shared efficiently between the two storage systems to guarantee the continuous availability of energy. In this way, the micro-grid is able to supply zero-emission energy 24 hours a day, without having to resort to diesel generators, unlike other plants of this type.
The plant can operate both on-grid and off-grid: that is, it can be connected to a network, as is now the case to support the supply of electricity to the Cerro Pabellón base camp, or it can operate independently. Furthermore, it represents a “plug-and-play” solution, as its components can be easily disassembled, reassembled and installed in a new location, a feature particularly useful in remote and low electrified areas.
