self generation -- stop gap solution to "power crisis"?

[badkuk]

i read his column over lunch. One reader presented an interesting (stop gap) solution to any looming power crisis.

What do you guys think? But then...tama ba, the real cause of the looming "power crisis" is the government capping the price hike? If so, i doubt if the self generators will sell you power unless you pay them market-rate prices.

Still, i find the setup intriguing.



Finally, something is moving!
DEMAND AND SUPPLY By Boo Chanco (The Philippine Star) | Updated January 17, 2014 - 12:00am

<snipped>
:
Self generation and the grid

Roland M. Lorilla sent me an e-mail reacting to our column last Monday on the power situation. He doesn’t believe a power shortage is inevitable because “there is a huge amount of standby generating capacity, already installed and available just waiting to be utilized.”

He continues: I am talking about the thousands of standby diesel generators installed everywhere, in malls, factories, buildings and business establishments. There could easily be 1000 megawatts (mw) available capacity and perhaps much more.

ShoeMart easily would have 100mw. Every Jollibee and McDonald’s has a 100 kw and there are a few thousand of them and similar other establishments. Most high rise building would have 500kw to 2000 kw and there are hundreds of them too.

If no new power plants come on line and the power situation becomes critical, P-Noy must tap this source of power.

But there is a need to allow private generating sets to connect with the power grid via net metering. This will allow gensets to link up with the grid and make possible the import and export of electricity. The idea is for establishments (power consumers) to generate their own electricity and export the excess to the grid.

Net metering is akin to using a bidirectional kilowatt hour meter. When one is a net importer of power from the grid, the meter goes one way and when he is exporting power to the grid the meter goes the other way. He only pays for his net consumption.

Tying up with the grid is the crux of the matter here for it will allow the gensets to operate at optimum condition of load thereby maximizing its utility and efficiency.

Tax credit must be given to diesel genset operators. The amount of tax credit must be the amount of taxes levied on the consumed diesel and lube oil to generate power. Further tax credit can come from rebates of import duties and taxes when the gensets were imported as well as tax exemption from other taxes that can be levied on operating a generator. Simply said, make the operation tax free.

The implementation of all environmental laws and regulations (e.g. Clean Air Act) pertaining to operation of diesel engines for power generation must be suspended. The cost of complying with these laws and regulations are a huge hindrance to making small scale power generation feasible.

We have to make small scale power generation a profitable endeavor for many. The power consumers become stakeholders in power generation. It will also stimulate innovations in power generation.

More importantly, it will stabilize the cost of power because consumers can now generate their own electricity whenever grid power is deemed too expensive. In effect the cost of self generation becomes the limiting price of grid power.

So there it is: a quick fix solution to the impending power shortage. I did some rough computations and assuming a 100 kw base load genset operating at full load of 100 kw, with the cost of diesel fuel at P45/liter, the total cost of generation is roughly at P14.82/kwh.

[niky]

The question is... who will pay the cost for conversion to net metering? The system upgrade cost is no small matter, and, in the end, unless the government subsidizes that cost for the small-scale power generators, it won't be worth their while to go for it.

[Retz]

Mga standby generators lang sa mga malls, condominiums and restaurants sir. It could not operate continously mabuti kung mga base load gensets yan.

[shibby75]

I have a 1.5kw grid tie panel and I have a surplus of 1.2kw everyday if i dont run the aircon.

Problem is net metering is still more beneficial to meralco than to me. I have to pay 10k to 200k
Just to apply for netmetering and they will only buy the surplus energy for 40% of the price they sell
electricity to us.

Patayin ko na lang ibang panels at Gamitin ko na lang solar ko kung kelangan.

[userfriendly]

Is this even economically feasible for the owner of the diesel generator?

I did a quick google search and found out that a Cat 3508 diesel generator running at 1800 rpm producing 910 kw of 480 volts 60 Hz 3 phase power uses 179 liters per hour of fuel at 75% load. So if diesel is 45 pesos per liter, cost to produce power = 8,055 per hour. 75% load is 682.5 kw. So fuel cost per kwhr is already 11.80 pesos. You have to add maintenance items like oil, filters (oil, fuel and air), operator salary, parts, cost of net metering device etc... The 3508 generator needs an oil change every 500 running hours. Lube oil capacity is 227 liters.

So is this even feasible?

[111prez]

There is a shortfall of electricity available for real market sale because most of the power generated has already been contracted out, i.e. committed already

If I am not mistaken, only about 10% of all the electricity generated is available for sale in the WESM

Kaya pure and simple collusion in creating the "shortage" and real competition

[yebo]

what the author forgot is the gen sets need to be synchronized with the grid. i doubt very much if those gen sets have synchronizing hardware. even if they did it will only be to synchronize with another stand-by generator, not with the power grid.

and yes userfriendly is correct. diesel generators are not very efficient/cost effective in producing power. that is why establishments only use them as stand-by systems. fuel cost plus maintenance and repair costs do make those systems very costly to run, costs that are much higher than power from the grid. the only thing that beats a steam turbine when it comes to generating electrical power is hydro.

[wowiesy]

when I did 1 year OJT before at Nestle in Laguna (that was in the 90s) they had a huge diesel genset na mas malaki pa sa admin building ng business namin...

at that time, the logic then kaya nag genset sila.. was because of the power crisis that hit us post Aquino I admin... at that time... pupuwede daw sila mag generate ng electricity to sell outside.. however... they had a contract daw with Meralco... even if they use their own gensets.. they still have to pay Meralco (not sure ano yung technical basis.. baseload perhaps)... pero it was clear to me then that even if they have the capacity to do so, hindi pupuwede mag benta yung Nestle ng power to the area...

perhaps that was then... wala pa yung EPIRA noon...

[wowiesy]

what the author forgot is the gen sets need to be synchronized with the grid. i doubt very much if those gen sets have synchronizing hardware. even if they did it will only be to synchronize with another stand-by generator, not with the power grid.

and yes userfriendly is correct. diesel generators are not very efficient/cost effective in producing power. that is why establishments only use them as stand-by systems. fuel cost plus maintenance and repair costs do make those systems very costly to run, costs that are much higher than power from the grid. the only thing that beats a steam turbine when it comes to generating electrical power is hydro.

synchronizing.. tama din yan... a few years ago... we were planning genset capacity sa factory namin.. and came into the idea of synchronizing requirement between our 2 -3 gensets... hehe.. di ko alam at that time paano i justify... kaya basic na lang kami.. a certain genset intended for a certain section of the plant...

at that time nagkaproblem yung isang genset namin.. walang backup na naka ready sa backup... patay din kami...