UNIDO, Bozcaada Island. Wind-Solar hydrogen project

The International Centre of Hydrogen Energy Technologies (ICHET) of UNIDO was established in 2004 by treaty between the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (MENR) on behalf of Turkish Government and United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). The aim of ICHET is to act as a bridge between developed and developing countries and stimulate appropriate application of the hydrogen energy technologies and related industrial development.
  UNIDO-ICHET planned to implement a Renewable to Hydrogen energy installation on Bozcaada, a Turkish island in the North Aegean Sea: “Bozcaada Island Wind-Solar Hydrogen Progect”. The project involves the installation of a 20 kW Photovoltaic system and 30 kW Wind turbine that will be connected to the island electricity grid. When power from these sources is available, a 25 kW electrolyser will start producing hydrogen that will be stored in a medium pressure tank and then will be compressed and stored in high pressure cylinders. The stored hydrogen will be used as fuel in fuel cell applications and hydrogen gen-set.  On July 2010, AccaGen and UNIDO signed the contract for the supply of the energy system which included in AccaGen’s scope of supply the following:

• System design and layout, engineering and implementation of a hydrogen energy production and storage unit;
• Supply of equipment, connection, installation, commissioning of the complete system;
• Provision of technical documentation;
• Training of personnel
• Maintenance service and spare parts

The energy system has been fully factory tested in AccaGen premises and delivered to site where is currently in commissioning and start-up phase under the supervision of our technicians.

 

 

The use of solar thermal systems has been very popular for a number of years with nearly 40% of buildings located on the island using solar panels to provide domestic hot water. Bozcaada also sits at a prime location for wind energy generation. There are presently 17 wind turbines on the island that produce an estimated 10.2 MW. Four of the turbines supply enough energy for the entire population and the other 13 send excess power through an underground and submarine cable to Cannakale for consumption on the mainland. Care was taken not to use overhead lines and pylons in order not to disturb the scenery of the island. The wind farm is a joint venture between the German company Enercon and a Turkish trust that owns the land. The project was finished in 2000 and was the first wind energy project of its kind in Turkey and remained the largest producer of wind energy in the country until a project in Bandirma by GE Energy that generates 30 MW surpassed it in 2006.

Another unique aspect of the venture is that Enercon sells the energy produced back to the Turkish government at a bulk rate who then distribute this power to local consumers. So essentially, a foreign company recognized the potential of wind energy programs in Turkey and decided to develop this alternative resource. This project was developed Turkish Wind Atlas and basically provided hard data to the Turkish government that wind projects were productive and feasible in the eastern Aegean region. After recognition of this renewable energy was acknowledged and assisted with the 2005 Renewables Law, wind projects began to be sponsored by the Turkish government at a higher rate. Since the release of the Bozcaada results, the Turkish government has begun to support larger and larger wind energy projects throughout the region due to the enormous potential. It is assumed that with proper maintenance the Bozcaada wind farm will stay operational until 2015 or perhaps 2020 depending on the condition of the turbines.
At the end of June 2011, Henry Puna, prime minister of the Cook Islands, traveled more than 11,000 miles on an unusual fact-finding mission to Bozcaada. Puna had come to see the island’s hospital and house of its governor - two of the only buildings in the world partially powered by hydrogen-generated electricity. This unique prototype technology had been generating zero-emissions power for several months prior to his visit. At the governor's house a 20 kW rooftop solar array and a free-standing 30 kW wind turbine produce clean electricity, which is run through an electrolyzer that splits water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen gas gets compressed and stored in tanks on the island and is later converted back into electricity whenever extra power is needed. The gas can also fuel hydrogen cars or vessels. Currently, Bozcaada's system supplies all the electricity at both buildings, as well as a boat and golf cart. Combined, it's equivalent to powering about 20 households in Turkey.
This minuscule amount is emblematic of the uphill battle that hydrogen technologies face in becoming a solution to reckon with in the contest for alternative fuels. Still, experts say the facilities on this small Aegean outpost, 175 miles southwest of Istanbul, illustrate some of the more promising uses of hydrogen as an energy carrier - especially its potential to fill crucial niches within a larger clean energy economy. Today, Istanbul is home to some of the world's most cutting-edge research and development of hydrogen energy applications. That's because the UN International Development Organization located its International Center for Hydrogen Energy Technologies (ICHET) here in 2004. Turkey was chosen for its proximity to both rich and poor countries. For Puna, the visit to Bozcaada was a glimpse at the energy future of his own country. ICHET is currently installing a similar system on Aitutaki in the Cook Islands. Hydrogen energy is particularly suited to islands, which generally have abundant renewable resources but are removed from main grids.