Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction announced on August 31 that is has constructed a solar energy & storage hybrid power plant by integrating a 300kW solar generation system with a 1MWh energy storage system (ESS) on the rooftop of its Changwon head office.
Hybrid plants that combine renewable energy, such as solar power, with ESS are in high demand, for the storage system helps to overcome the limitations of renewable energy, which is subject to weather or natural conditions. By offering a reliable and stable power supply, operating companies may also be able to gain higher profits. ESS is a solution that helps increase energy efficiency by storing the excess power in batteries and enabling energy supply during periods of peak demand.
Doosan Heavy carried out the project as a turnkey EPC project, completing the design, installation and commissioning processes of the power plant using its own technologies. The company will also be in charge of the operation & maintenance (O&M) of the facilities going forward. Notably, the advanced control system software that was used for the storage system was developed by the US-based 1Energy Systems, a company acquired by Doosan Heavy last year and which was renamed Doosan GridTech.
One hundred percent of the generated power will be sold to Korea Electric Power Corporation(KEPCO). Doosan Heavy obtained the Renewable Energy Certificate(REC), a certificate required in the renewable power business, with which it will be able to trade the generated power in the energy market.
“Starting with this new hybrid plant, this coming September, we will be installing more plants that integrate solar generation with ESS at five of Doosan’s worksites, including Doosan Infracore’s Incheon Plant and Iksan Plant of Doosan Corp’s Electronics BG. Going forward, Doosan seeks to become the frontrunner in the delivery of optimized products and maintenance services for hybrid plants by capitalizing on the experience and know-how gained from operating these systems,” said Yongjin Song, head of Corporate Strategy at Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction.
Meanwhile, the company estimates that the solar-ESS hybrid system market size will grow to become 900 billion won in 2017 and 2018, accounting for about 80 percent of the domestic ESS market. In collaboration with Korea South-East Power Co., Doosan Heavy has been developing a microgrid system that combines a 4.2MWh ESS with a 100kW solar generation system for Doosan Engine’s Changwon Plant, which is planned for completion in September. Microgrid is a stand-alone power grid that can self-supply power within a small region.
