[Presentation] Business Intelligence for Solar Power Electronics

15 Pages·2012·0.489 MB·English

by  Sumit Chakraborty

Business Intelligence for Solar Power
Electronics
SUMIT CHAKRABORTY
FELLOW (IIM CALCUTTA), BEE (JADAVPUR UNIVERSITY)
INDIA, MOBILE : [phone]
15.8.2012
Sequence
 The problem in energy sector
 Suggestions at a Glance
 Business objectives and constraints
 Business intelligence (BI) strategies
 Promotion
 Product / Circuit intelligence
 Standalone system
 Grid connected system
 Hybrid system
 Process
 Pricing
 People
 Policy
 Appendix 1 : Arguments
 Appendix 2 : Solar power for rural development
 Appendix 3 : Quiz
The Problem
 The people in today’s world are faced with significant challenges in energy
sector such as shortage of energy, high cost of power generation and
distribution, power distribution loss, environmental pollution, greenhouse
gas emission and rural electrification.
 We must set an efficient national and global energy policy to promote the
development of a sustainable energy system which should be viable
environmentally, socially and economically based on solar power.
 The sustainability in energy not only requires the development of
renewable energy but also encourage the use of energy efficient system
(e.g. LED lighting system) which slows down the growth of energy demand
and promotes the concept of clean energy that can cut down the usage of
fossil fuel significantly.
 The basic objective of this presentation is to highlight BI strategies of solar
power electronics for technology diffusion; necessary initiatives in future
trade fairs, energy and industry summits, conferences, seminars and
workshops and also formulation of an intelligent sustainable energy policy.
Suggestions at a glance
 Technology management for solar power electronics requires discriminatory,
fair and rational pricing mechanisms; incentive and subsidy policy, economies of
scale of mass production, strategic cost reduction, product life-cycle
management (PLM), quality policy and intelligent cost-benefit analysis.
 Solar power electronics face two critical constraints ; these areas should be
improved through innovation, strategic alliance and intelligent technology
management in future :
 High cost of production and
 Low efficiency in conversion of sun light into electrical energy.
 Business intelligence should be explored in terms of promotion, pricing,
products and services, circuit intelligence, people ( i.e. skill) and policy.
 It is essential to explore intelligent business models and applications of solar
power such as rural electrification. It can be a blue ocean space in energy
business.
 Solar power is the modern trend of sustainable energy which requires flexible
use of standalone, grid connected and hybrid system. It is required to build solar
thermal power plants with medium and large capacities. But, standalone
systems are also required in remote zones such as desert, forests, rural and hilly
areas.
 Solar power electronics is an initiative in transformation of old, traditional
energy system which requires fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of
as-is policy and technology.
Business Objectives
 Business Objectives : The people of today’s world want Energy Security
through Solar Power Electronics.
 It requires a new business model in energy trading .
 It is essential for the growth of rural zone.
 It can create significant number of new job opportunities in erection,
installation, testing, commissioning and maintenance of solar power
system.
 Solar power system can be used intelligently in various industries such as
lighting of streets, public and religious infrastructures, education,
healthcare, hotels, restaurants, dairy, biotechnology, food processing ,
agriculture and space science.
 Solar cells / systems can be used in intelligent applications like car lighting,
mobile phone, watch, tablet, laptop, torch, emergency lamp, LED,
calculator, radio, consumer electronics, home appliances, heaters, fans,
inverters and green IT.
 Sustainable, efficient energy system requires the support of solar power
electronics, green lighting system & intelligent architecture.
BI Strategies : Promotion
 An intelligent marketing strategy is essential for proper technology management
and enhancement of the awareness of new technology in India.
 Trade fairs and energy summit : The expectations are as follows .
 Live product demonstration and interactive brainstorming sessions
 Audio and video display of solar power plants and standalone systems already in
use in various places of the world
 Invite national and international technical experts and scientists from industry
and also academic institutions.
 Invite energy policy makers, consultants, engineers, students, strategists,
architects, construction and infrastructure project managers, entrepreneurs,
traders, venture capitalists, banking & financial institutions (e.g. NABARD,
national banks).
 Invite Business Intelligence analysts to discuss possible growth roadmap.
 Well- designed product catalogues and brochures
 Event management : workshops, conferences and seminars should encourage
exchange of innovative ideas.
 Training sessions of construction and infrastructure firms, power generation,
transmission and distribution companies and contractors;
 Advertisements in popular business and industry magazines and daily newspapers;
 Intelligent broadcast through TV, radio and corporate communication channels;
 Pilot projects in villages, hilly areas, forests and deserts;
 Active involvement of gram panchayat and municipal corporations in solar power
system awareness and installation programmes.
BI Strategies: Circuit Intelligence
 Photovoltaic (PV) is the most direct way to convert solar radiation into electricity
and is based on the photovoltaic effect, which was first observed by Henri
Becquerel in 1839.
 The basic components of a standalone system are :
 Solar / Photovoltaic (PV) panel
 Inverter for AC load
 Meter / load manager
 Protection : relay, earthing electrode, lightning arrester
 Load : Energy efficient light load like LED / green lighting system, AC / DC fan
 The strong points of solar power electronics are direct conversion of solar
radiation into electricity, no mechanical moving parts, no noise, no high
temperatures, no pollution, PV modules have a very long lifetime, the energy
source: the sun is free, ubiquitous, and inexhaustible,
 PV is a very flexible energy source, its power ranging from microwatts to
megawatts.
 Solar power can boost the growth of various types of industries like photovoltaic
cells or modules, power electronics devices (e.g. converters and inverters),
battery and energy storage devices, intelligent load managers with power
tracking capabilities, intelligent micro-grid, steel and aluminum panels. It can
reduce the cost of power generation, transmission and distribution and power
distribution loss significantly.
 Technical constraints : Maintenance issues ; cleaning of dust, dirt and moisture
from solar panels; the negative impact of natural disasters ( e.g. storm, rainfall,
snowfall).
BI Strategies : Process
 Sustainable Photovoltaics: Develop next-generation materials, devices,
and manufacturing processes suitable for global needs, environment and
resource availability.
 Photovoltaics
 Advanced manufacturing process
 Multi-scale modeling and reliability
 Solar Energy Integration: Identify and assess key technical, economic,
environmental, and policy barriers in the adoption of solar power globally.
 Roadmapping and assessment : Analyze the market research, policy, and
technical data .
 Solar energy integration and storage Analysis
 Multi-scale Concentrated Solar Power: Overcome critical technical
constraints for reliable multi-scale ( e.g. 10 - 500 kW) concentrating solar
power systems.
BI Strategies : Pricing
 The diffusion of solar power requires a rational, discriminatory and fair
pricing mechanism, incentive and subsidy policies.
 Industrial power play may be a serious threat against the adoption of solar
power system. Existing power generation, transmission and distribution
companies are comfortable with traditional thermal power technology. The
coal mining and oil industries are also not comfortable with the emerging
trends of renewable sustainable energy. They do not want to save precious
fossil fuels and oil. That is why, the old power generation and distribution
firms are not serious in R&D and deployment of solar power system globally.
 Solar power is a real transformation initiative and the old firms are trying to
resist against this change. Our society needs fundamental rethinking and
radical redesign of energy policy.
 The pricing policy of solar power system ( e.g. energy service charge, price
of standalone solar power systems) should have necessary competitive
intelligence to conquer the aforesaid threats.
BI Strategies : People
 Active involvement, knowledge sharing and optimal human talent
utilization is essential for the diffusion of new technology such as solar
power electronics.
 New skill should be developed in erection, testing, commissioning,
operations, maintenance and trading of solar power system.
 Technology management is not a trivial simple problem. Efficient solar
energy system encompasses over multiple domains: electrical engineering,
power electronics, materials science, mechanical engineering, physics:
photonics, chemistry, chemical engineering, nano-technology and business
intelligence.
 National and international technical experts and scientists from industry and
also academic institutions should execute knowledge management through
a collaborative platform.
 Energy policy makers, consultants, engineers, technicians, strategists,
construction professionals, architects, infrastructure project managers,
entrepreneurs, traders, venture capitalists, banking & financial institutions
(e.g. NABARD, national banks) should provide necessary support to the
industrial member organizations and trade fair committees / organizers.
 The social media and TV broadcast can play a responsible role.