Renewable energy - what price, what gain?

We know that something must be done to control emissions to the atmosphere. An economy which relies entirely on oil to drive it is not a sustainable one. This is why 25 countries across Europe have decided to set targets for producing clean energy from renewable sources.

Reducing dependence on oil by turning to renewable sources of power increases the security of our supply, in addition to the health and environmental benefits it brings. The objections on environmental grounds revolve around habitat and biodiversity while social impact regarding noise and land use must also be considered.

We cringed when it was suggested by a member of government that in the case of alternative energy we might attempt to wriggle out of an EU directive obliging European states to meet their targets. It is true that fossil fuels are cheaper in the short term but this fails to take all costs into account. By the narrow reasoning of some of our short-sighted policymakers the calculation is just too shallow to meet today's green perspectives.

So far the Enemalta Corporation has only been calculating the savings on fuel that could be had from renewable energy while not counting the true costs of fossil fuel use versus renewable energy. (This is energy from a source which is continuously renewed, such as the sun or wind.)

The two power stations as they are running today do so at great environmental costs, through CO2 emissions and their contribution to climate change as well as the effect of acid rain caused by sulphur emissions. There are also health costs as we very well know.

It would be encouraging if all those concerned could finally agree to a tangible direction forward since Legal Notice 186/2004 came into force nine months ago. This has set the target for electricity consumption from renewable sources at five per cent. Europe wants to see 12 per cent renewable energy by 2010.

When it comes to achieving the EU target for renewable energy Enemalta states bluntly that it is not responsible and is quick to pass the buck to the Malta Resources Authority. A spokesman for AmpAir Co Ltd, the company set up to develop a wind farm on Marfa Ridge comments:

"Companies such as Playmobil, SGS, Maltacom, MIA, BOV, HSBC, Middle Sea, Vodafone are doing more than their share to help our environment. EU targets must be achieved by the country. The objective is now owned and must be managed by the people and companies that make up this country. We are all paying to achieve these objectives. How can the main player (Enemalta) be left out from such responsibility?

"Apart from EU targets there is also corporate and social responsibility. Large and small companies are being forced to take responsibility and assist in attaining environmental objectives and goals. Enemalta too has a duty and responsibility to do what is environmentally correct even if this comes at a cost. They should do all they can to improve and give back to the environment, just like the above mentioned companies. They should not be allowed to pass on the buck to MRA and Government (in other words the Maltese population)."

MRA are to be held responsible but this does not free Enemalta from responsibility. Yet Enemalta corporation, the energy provider, insists that the EU targets ball is in the MRA's court. A spokesman for Enemalta sheds some light:

"We are told that the MRA is currently developing a strategy for the exploitation of renewable energy sources in Malta. This strategy deals with legislative, administrative, economic and marketing aspects for the orderly introduction and exploitation of renewable sources of energy. The strategy will seek the establishment of the appropriate receptive business environment that would facilitate the implementation of the feasible technical measures while taking into account existing constraints and limitations in Malta."

The drawback is that the strategy for renewables has been narrowed down to solar and wind energy while other renewable sources such as biogas appear to have been left out. This is surprising since, with the rehabilitation of landfills and other projects in the pipeline, the use of energy produced from biogas has a fairly certain future. Recovery of energy from waste through incineration is not popular with environment groups. They prefer wind, solar and other sources which do not generate problematic by-products.

It has taken the MRA four years since its launch to build up the necessary administrative capacity. The EU Commission has been monitoring the need for more staff and urging the authority to be "more assertive" in its role. The National Energy Plan has been reworked many times and is due to appear some time this year. Recently a call went out for the post of Director for Energy Resources whose job it will be is to implement policy and meet objectives. According to Chief Executive Officer at MRA, Anton Riolo, the authority is still considering applications received.

Pricing the wind

An outline application for a wind farm to supply clean renewable power to the national electricity grid has been filed with MEPA. It will be reviewed by the Malta Resources Authority, the licensing body. The Planning Authority is waiting for the results of the Malta Resources Authority study. Enemalta is confident that the resources authority is competent to review and comment on the application in the light of the energy strategy now being discussed.

Enemalta also concedes that as network operator it would have to provide access to the grid. The corporation says that the number of turbines required to achieve Malta's commitment to the EU target depends on several factors which are currently being considered by the MRA and its consultants.

The applicant for a wind farm at Marfa Ridge claims that the ten turbines are all it would take to supply five per cent of our energy, achieving nearly half the European target for use of renewable energy by 2010.

Questions about noise levels, together with the possible impact on landscape and bird populations, all need to be carefully looked at. Before any discussion on these begins the first hurdle to be overcome is cost. Private enterprise has already offered to meet the cost of purchasing and installing the wind turbines. The price at which electricity generated by wind or other renewable sources may be sold to the grid is a decision that must finally be taken by MRA.

A prominent concern in the minds of Mellieha residents and hotel owners is the noise aspect. Noise levels in high winds was a problem in the earlier days of wind technology but have improved greatly due to better design. The sound of waves breaking in the bay and traffic hum from the arterial coast road are expected to negate the 45 decibels created by the swish of the turbine blades as they rotate slowly.

A preliminary site plan shows the base of the ten turbines, each about five square metres in footprint, located along existing roads and tracks with an extension onto the garigue allowing for two more turbines. For environment groups it is a difficult thing to judge how much garigue habitat we can afford to sacrifice for one-twentieth of the energy supply to come from a clean source.

The impact on the landscape is an even more difficult thing to determine, with landscape being such a subjective matter based on the perceiver's attitude. For some, these wind towers are hideous and disruptive to the scenery. They may not be placated by mitigating measures such as painting the towers in natural colours.

Then there are others who still admire the plain white structures as majestic architecture set off strikingly by the natural background with aesthetic appeal due to their gracefulness and sustainability function. As things stand today, large steel pylons can be seen carrying grid cables across Marfa Ridge near the Red Tower to join Mosta and Marfa.

Some of these setbacks might be overcome by siting the wind farm offshore although it is difficult to find the ideal seabed in waters at 12 metres depth and construction costs are double.

On land or at sea, the wind towers are not popular with bird lovers, as with aircraft. There are casualties when a bird meets a blade. There is some evidence that birds learn to fly around the turbines. High-frequency devices may also be used to repell migrating birds. Lattice towers, which were used in the past for wind turbines, are a greater danger to birds than the solid poles widely in use nowadays.

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds recently stated: "There is a need to determine the geographical scales at which impacts may aply.

The present unknowns hamper effective decision-making." RSPB advises that Natura 2000 sites and national sites for nature conservation or "other areas with large concentrations of birds especially species of conservation concern" should be avoided for wind farm development as a precautionary measure.

Use of Marfa Ridge for recreational purposes may have been another conflicting issue but fears that the site would be fenced off to keep the public out have turned out to be unfounded. A proposal to set up an observation tower on one of the turbines as part of the wind farm project would serve to encourage visitor access.

Selling to the grid

Solar water heating does not contribute directly to the renewables target since it is not putting energy into the grid but used at source. However this type of energy use will help reduce emissions and make the targets easier to obtain by bringing down the growth rate of electricity requirements and making the contribution from renewables more significant.

Electricity can be fed back into the grid from wind turbines or photovoltaic panels down the same service cable which supplies electricity. Solar energy generators range from small domestic type photovoltaic units installed on rooftops to large scale plants which occupy significantly large areas, typically desert areas. In Malta there are already a few domestic type installations. Wind generators are normally quite large and are installed in open areas or offshore. Generally it may not be practical to have a wind generators installed on Maltese rooftops.

The renewable energy solution for Malta may be found in wind or solar or both. Before it can happen Enemalta must invest in the necessary transformers and accompanying software which will allow producers of clean energy to hook up to the grid.

The initial outlay could run into tens of thousands of liri. But in the long run it will cost more not to invest. Also needed are a dedicated high voltage line to a convenient point in the grid and control systems to ensure voltage stability and other factors. A high voltage cable already passes by Marfa Ridge where the wind farm is proposed.

If Enemalta must find a way to make it possible for renewables to feed the national grid then private enterprise promises to take care of the rest. Wind turbines can be regulated to provide the appropriate output levels, Enemalta would still need to make sure that what is being loaded onto the grid is at the right voltage.

With the two power stations situated in the southern half of the island, Enemalta acknowledges that a wind farm at Marfa Ridge would result in some reduction in transmission losses when the wind turbines are generating electricity. There is also a gain to be had through renewable energy certificates which Government will have to produce for the EU emissions trading scheme.

Enemalta claims that it encourages the use of renewable energy but hastens to add that the corporation will still need to have enough plant available to meet demand when renewable energy sources are not generating any electricity.

AmpAir Co Ltd points out that wind and gas turbines combine well because a gas turbine can be switched on within minutes.

"Renewables do not mean that we can do away with steam and gas turbines. Enemalta will have to maintain these even though alternatives are generating electricity but this is no excuse not to act. It is all about limiting damage to the environment in which we live."

At the beginning of last year Enemalta started to absorb the cost of switching to low sulphur fuel oil without passing it on to the consumer.

This resulted in reducing the corrosion effect on buildings and monuments of acid rain. More efficient generation by the combined cycle plant at Delimara has reduced carbon dioxide emissions considerably. Dust emissions from Marsa power station have been curbed with the use of precipitators. Enemalta is now looking into how it can reduce NOx emissions by carrying out modifications to the boilers. These two actions have been prompted by an EU directive which comes into effect this year.

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