Nidec Industrial Solutions animates the debate at the Innovation for Cool Earth Forum in Tokyo

Franck Girard "Without storage systems, renewable energy can cause stability problems in existing networks"

Milan, 11 October 2018 - The second day of ICEF, Innovation for Cool Earth Forum, was held today in Tokyo, Japan. The annual event, now in its fifth edition and launched by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, brings together all the most important personalities committed to addressing the problems linked to climate change through technological innovation in the aims of solving the most important environmental challenges of the 21st century.

Nidec Industrial Solutions participated in the debate on the most significant technological innovations for the evolution of the energy sector. Franck Girard, General Manager of Nidec Industrial Solutions France, spoke at the Renewable Microgrid and Energy Access conference, where he discussed what and how the microgrids could contribute to the diffusion of renewable energy in the world.

"Today's world is experiencing an epochal transition that will lead us all towards a new concept of energy. In fact, more and more nations are preparing political, economic and environmental incentives to increase the production of energy from renewable sources, gradually promoting the de-carbonizing of the energy sector in favor of a more sustainable development; even in the most remote areas of the planet, "said Franck Girard. "This transition, however, can cause stability problems to existing networks if the energy produced by intermittent sources such as wind or solar is not stored correctly, through the use of new technologies, such as battery energy storage solutions (BESS) and advanced software. "

The expertise of Nidec Industrial Solutions in the realization of projects tailored to the needs of each territory, with particular reference to areas characterized by difficult climatic and environmental conditions, was highlighted by Franck Girard through two important success stories in Chile and in Chad, demonstrating just how much microgrids and renewables offer fundamental contributions to reducing pollution and improving people's lives, while supporting the economic growth of the territory.

In particular, in Ollague, Chile, at an altitude of 3,700 meters, Nidec Industrial Solutions installed an integrated microgrid solution that combined wind turbines, photovoltaic panels and BESS for a total power of 250kW / 750 kWh. The microgrid that guarantees the supply of electricity to the population 24/7 transformed the life of the town’s 200 inhabitants. In fact, the solution made it possible to make public lighting more efficient - with a positive impact on safety - and to heat homes and conserve food and medicines - generating benefits for public health - but above all it has launched new economic opportunities, such as the creation of 6 small businesses and a new hostel.

In Amdjarass, a village of about 500 inhabitants in Chad, located in the Sahara desert and over 50 km from the nearest inhabited centers, Nidec Industrial Solutions was responsible for the installation of a hybrid system with wind turbines, diesel generators and battery energy storage systems connected to a 1MW / 3 MWh microgrid that is able to supply a continuous energy flow to the village. This solution not only reduced pollution and noise, since diesel generators will now only be used as back-up, but above all brings water into the houses of the village. It was also possible to connect the hospital to the microgrid contributing to a significant improvement in local health care.