Renewable Energy Technologies

This is a subject area which holds a lot of promise for the future and at the same time a lot of mis-representation today. Keep in mind however that renewable energy cannot replace fossil fuel based energy at the rate we are consuming and are expected to consume going forward. Governments and political parties who are too concerned about getting re-elected are unable to acknowledge that we have to change the way we do things if we are to reduce our collective GHG footprint.

Is there a role for renewable technologies? Yes, without a doubt. Renewable energy, combined with effective energy conservation programs and changes to the way we use transportation can form the cornerstone of our energy needs going forward. But that’s only opinion, and some way into the future as well. What about here and now? Which renewable energy technologies should you consider for application at your facilities? What grants and incentives are available? What assessments and application processes are involved? What does my proforma business case analysis look like? What investment capital is available for such projects and what kinds of returns and assurances are they looking for? Would my project qualify for Feed-In Tariff (FIT) rates? What is the process, lead time and costs for submittal and processing of FIT applications?

AERA Energy Solutions can help you navigate these complex waters. We can support your decision making process on such investments. Considering such investments will have one of two outcomes: move ahead to the next step or do not move ahead. Good project management practice suggests that the biggest obstacles get tackled first, that way if the project is no-go, you will have minimized the time and the cost to find out. If the project is still positive, the roadmap becomes much clearer and attracting investment becomes easier.

Technologies with which we have experience and can support your organization include Geothermal/Ground Source energy, small scale wind projects (10 to 2000 kW), Solar thermal and solar photo-voltaic (PV) systems.

There has been a lot of progress in biomass energy systems for non-forest industry applications, and some good product offerings are on the market, including biomass boilers, fuel and ash handling systems  and  syngas generators. Technology in this area is not the road block. A key issue to be resolved for any project to move ahead is the fuel supply and associated contractual issues. It needs to be resolved first.

The single most important reason why you should engage AERA Energy Solutions is impartiality. We are independent of any equipment vendors, we do not represent any third party organization, only your own. If the project proforma is positive: we will tell you. If the project proforma is negative: we will tell you.