Owners and occupiers of commercial buildings, industrial facilities and institutions will be required by law to install approved energy efficiency measures, the energy regulator has said. The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has said it will introduce regulations to cut down on energy consumption, wastage and losses in commercial buildings, institutions and industries which are major consumers.
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A disconcerting article in the Washington Post, Sunday, March 9, 2008, raises the alarm about polysilicon manufacturers cutting corners and polluting the environment that their product is designed to save.
The article visits a poor farming village that rejoiced upon hearing that a factory would be built in their neighbourhood, enabling them to finally catch up with the economic boom; the prospect of incomes rising from $200 a year to $200 a month must have been very tantalizing.
Alas, once the factory was up and running, it appears that the haste to produce exceeded the capacity or will to deal with a nasty by-product - silicon tetrachloride. According to the report, this by-product is very toxic and has led to crop failure and rising health complaints. Some concerned villagers have raised the issue with the local environmental authorities but claim to have been ignored.
I hope that this incident is an isolated one, and that the Chinese government will take quick action to ensure that manufacturers handle their waste responsibly. In developed nations, the processes are closely monitored, and producers have to recycle or scrub the waste, even though the result is that their price per ton of pure silicon is unable to compete with the Chinese prices.
China has been at the forefront of an enviable green revolution in the developing world. By sheer determination and hard work, the country has now attained a supreme position in the global PV market. Former competitors now place orders from China and are proud to be associated with Chines partners.
China can maintain the ambitious economic trajectory while also posing as a leader in responsible manufacturing. The green revolution cannot afford to be the target of environmental sceptics who, though they cannot tell us where we will be when the oil runs out, never ignore a chance to shoot down any new alternatives.
Dawn, the sun teases its way up the skies....
The journey from Amsterdam to Hamburg was in an intercity train that reaches the frontier in just 2 hours and enters Germany at Bad Bentheim. After a changeover in Osnabrück, the journey continues in a north-easterly direction, via Bremen and finally in Hamburg.
Late arrival and the distance to my suburban hotel made a visit to the exhibition on day one impossible. I opted to rest my travel-weary bones and attack the event early on Tuesday.
The city of Hamburg boasts an excellent public transport network, consisting of an elaborate underground light-rail system with its heart the Hauptbahnhof, or Central Station, complemented by efficient buses and taxis.
Hauptbahnhof: the nerve centre of city transport.
Since my mission was hardly recreational, I could only marvel at the beautiful architecture and wonder what the city had in store for one with more time…
The Hamburg Messe is a massive world-class conference and exhibition complex right in the middle of the city and only one metro stop from the central station, yet set in the midst of lush green parks and recreational facilities.
Past the conference centre, to the exhibition.
Main entrance.
The conference centre also has its own exhibition halls and a five-star hotel. I was unfortunately not one of the 4,300 lucky conference participants.
Some facts and figures:
Conference & exhibition area
Trade fairs and exhibitions: approx. 50 / year
Exhibitors: approx. 12,000 / year
Visitors: approx. 900,000 / year
Rented gross area: approx. 950.000 M2
Exhibition halls
Capacity: 11 halls
Gross area: 87,000 M2
Hall areas: 2,940 – 12,990 M2
Hall heights: 6.00 – approx. 18.00 m
Outdoor area: 10,000 M2
There were close to 1,000 exhibitors, with roughly 50% from outside Germany, representing every aspect of the photovoltaic industry. The Closing report puts the visitor total at 40,000.
I gawked at machines for the production of solar cells, high-tech robots for the assembly, lamination and testing of panels, and computer-guided equipment that chases the sun across the heavens to suck in every little ray of energy.
Silicone cabide, a high-tech abrasive
There were many cutting-edge exhibitors, boasting futuristic technologies. For instance, US-based Kornarka is developing organic photovoltaics: plastic sheets that can be sewn onto textiles or used as carport roofs to generate electricity. Cost-effective thin film technology also enjoyed as much attention as traditional silicon-wafer based products.
Kornarka's Power Plastic
As expected, the Chinese were there in force, displaying product lines – and prices – to rival the best of Europe and North America.
Asia was further represented by firms from Korea, India, Japan
While there are still production lines that employ manual labour for the soldering process, automation is now very common in high labour cost regions, but also in factories that seek perfection and consistency in the quality of their product.
Italy’s EcoProgetti, represented by Mr. Alide Montanari, who proudly showcased one of their machines and patienly explained the technology involved:
Eco Progetti's turn-key laser soldering machine.
Contacts galore
BP-Solar, Kyocera, Siemens and Q-Cells (the world leader in solar cell production), had very busy stalls; lots of negotiation going on in secluded booths, with busy hostesses keeping refreshments topped up.
Luckily, all sizes were representd and it was quite easy to approach booth-holders and get valuable information and tips.
Also present were development-oriented organizations, such as the Brussels-based Alliance for Rural Electrification (ARE) and the Dutch research outfit ECN . These organizations will be critical in the process of helping less developed regions join the solar revolution.
This event affirmed that solar energy has come of age. My blog covers but a fraction of the activity that took place in Hamburg.
Walking through those vast halls and speaking to solar entrepreneurs of diverse pluimage, I couldn’t help asking myself: where is Africa in all this? Solar energy has come of age, and the continent risks being left behind while the sunshine there surpasses all those nations whose solar technology is charging into the future.
Just before I left, I managed to talk to two visitors from Nigeria and Cameroon. Both share my opinion that Africa seriously needs to enjoin the solar revolution, be it through participation in the ambitious Desertec intitiative, or by promoting off-grid solutions in a scale appropriate for the continent.
Clock tower by the Hauptbaanhof
All in all, a very worthwhile and timely trip!
