Power Trends 2009

Launched in 1955 by the Department of Energy (DoE) and the National Power Corporation (Napocor) at the height of the energy crisis in the Philippines, the exhibition Power Trends aims to gather under one roof the major international energy players to introduce them to the Philippine market and the relevant government agencies and private companies.

From its first staging, the international exhibition on energy, power, and electrical technology has expanded its list of exhibitors and partners. The year, Power Trends 2009 is held at the World Trade Center Metro Manila, Philippines.

Power Trends 2009 will be held concurrently with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) Ministerial Conference on “Managing the Transition to Resource-Efficient and Low-Carbon Industries in Asia.’’ Also with Power Trends 2009 are Energy Expo 2009 and Electech 2009.

The main exhibition, Power Trends 2009, will showcase technologies that address climate change concerns, including those that improve power energy, and lighting efficiency. Seveal companies and experts are expected to discuss ways to upgrade and build new plants to meet growing market demands for an expanding economy and growing population, covering the extraction or production of fossil fuel, natural gases, and eco-friendly products that are existing and under development.

The parallel events focus on other areas. Energy Expo 2009 covers oil and gas, offshore and onshore exploration, coal mining, renewable energy, alternative energy, energy management, logistics and storage, consultancy and services. Electech 2009 covers controls and instrumentation, conductors and insulators, other electrical equipment, lighting technologies, equipment and accessories, and consultancy to improve power, energy, and lighting efficiency.

As in the past, Power Trends 2009 and its accompanying Powertech Business Forum is expected to provide a venue for those in the power and energy industries to network and negotiate business opportunities to meet the market demand in the Philippines and around the region.

The event is a regular biennial event supported by the Department of Energy (DoE), the National Power Corporation (NPC), and relevant industry agencies and industry association to update the stakeholders of the local power industry on technologies and the concerns that have to be confronted by the industry.

We congratulate the participants and organizers of Power Trends 2009 and wish them success in all their endeavors.

French firms in renewable energy to try to penetrate RP

AS government and private firms are expected to fully engage in environment-friendly sources of energy following the passage of Renewable Energy Act, heads of French energy companies advocating sustainable sources of energy will visit the country to try to penetrate the Philippine market.

The French Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines (Le Club-FCC) said at least 14 French energy companies would participate in the Powertrends International Fair later this week to promote the alternative sources of energy for the Philippines.

The companies are engaged in the energy sector, such as power generation, engineering, technology and solutions.

The French trade fair from September 9 to 11 at the World Trade Center coincides with the United Nations International Conference on Green Industry in Asia to be hosted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

The French companies participating in the trade fair include Novergy, which provides renewable-energy technology solutions that include biomass power plants, waste-heat recovery, as well as solar and wind power.

Vergnet SA provides expertise in providing wind power that will last for 30 years.

The Bureau d’Etude Molinet, meanwhile, said its services include raising a better awareness with each user of energy in favor of sustainable development through citizen behavior.

Enertime, an engineering firm, provides consultancy on renewable- energy development, particularly on bioenergy and solar power.

Another French energy expert, Transformer Protector Corp. (TPC), meanwhile, provides advise in the transformer explosion prevention.

FCC said other French engineering and technology companies that aim to market their products and services in the Philippines include Alstom-Philippines, Areva Renewable, Basler Electric, ETDE International and MS Resistances.

Paris-Manila Technology Corp. (Pamatec), meanwhile, intends to showcase its high/medium and low-voltage equipment and services and power distribution to sub stations, telecommunication power systems and rural electrification.

Other French companies in the trade fair also include SDV Philippines Inc., which provides freight forwarding and international logistics. TMC France SAS sells cast-resin distribution transformers up to 52KV.

Proposed nuclear body gets Congress nod

The proposed Philippine Nuclear Regulatory Commission (PNRC) is gathering steam as the congressional committees on government reorganization and science and technology approved House Bill 03254 for plenary debate.

The proposal aims to form the PNRC and consolidate all agencies involved in nuclear energy research and regulation.

Among those that would be absorbed if the bill becomes law are the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI) - Nuclear regulations, Licensing and Safeguards Division (NRLSD), and the Radiation Regulation Division (RRD).

The PNRI is under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) while the RRD is under the Department of Health's (DOH) Bureau of Health Devices and Technology.

The PNRC will also be led by one commissioner and two associate commissioners and will have five technical divisions and two non-technical divisions.

Like most government commission, the PNRC would be directly attached to the Office of the President.

Representative Joseph Emilio Abaya (1st District, Cavite), who chairs the committee on science and technology, explained that the PNRC would be tasked to regulate and control the use of nuclear energy and ionizing radiation sources.

Abaya, who co-authored HB 03254, added that the PNRC will also create guidelines for regulatory actions related to nuclear technology in the Philippines, in particular, public health concerns and environmental issues.

Abaya is also one of the proponents to re-commission the controversial Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, which has been at the center of numerous debates over its technical and commercial viability after being mothballed for 25 years.

Kepco to use ‘smart grid’ in RP

THE LOCAL SUBSIDIARY OF SOUTH Korea-based firm Korea Electric Power Corp. (Kepco) yesterday revealed it was eyeing to use the so-called “smart grid” technology in the Philippines, through its planned renewable energy projects.

Smart grid refers to the incorporation of information technology into an existing power network, making a two-way information exchange between suppliers and consumers possible.

With this setup, electricity from suppliers is delivered to consumers using digital technology to save on energy, reduce cost and increase reliability and transparency. Energy usage can also be monitored more efficiently through the smart grid.

“It can predict mechanical and technical problems even before they occur, thus preventing large-scale power outages. More importantly, it allows renewable energy sources to be integrated into the existing network, therefore contributing to greenhouse gas emissions reduction,” Kepco Philippines said in a statement.

According to Kepco Philippines, it targets to incorporate the smart grid technology into its planned wind and hydro power projects, backed by its parent firm’s know-how.

Its parent firm had been tapped at the G8 Summit’s Major Economies Forum (MEF) on Energy and Climate, to spearhead the research, development and commercialization of smart grid technology, which has been named as one of the seven technologies that may “help change the world.”

The sole provider of electricity in Korea, Kepco is set to pilot a smart grid project city in Jeju Island by 2011. The company targets to complete the consumer-side smart grid by 2020, and implement this in the whole South Korea by 2030.

The Korean firm is also expected to prepare a detailed map of its smart grid, and a plan on how to develop the technology, which will be submitted to the MEF in November this year.

Kepco Philippines plans to give the Philippine public a glimpse of how a smart grid works as it showcases the technology at the PowerTrends 2009 Exhibit on Sept. 9 to 11.

Locally, the Manila Electric Co., the country’s biggest power distributor, has already been planning to implement smart grid technology once the necessary infrastructure has been set in place.

In an earlier interview, Martin Lopez, vice president and chief information officer of Meralco, said the utility will pilot test its broadband over power lines (BPL) project within the year. The BPL project is part of the company’s bigger smart grid project.

“BPL is just a means, a subset of the whole project,” he earlier said.

He explained that the smart grid technology would allow utilities like Meralco to be able to remotely monitor all the facilities on the field and check transformers and transmission lines, with the use of power lines as means of communication.