WINGAS is new interest. BD has said that they are in negotiations with many of the utilities for substantial orders.
Some info on WINGAS from their site.
"WINGAS GmbH & Co. KG is a joint venture of Wintershall Holding AG in Kassel, Germany's largest crude oil and natural gas producer, and Russia's OAO Gazprom. Wintershall has a stake in WINGAS of 50 percent plus one share, the Russian natural gas producer 50 percent minus one share.
WINGAS has been active in gas distribution since 1993 and supplies natural gas to public utilities, regional gas suppliers, industrial companies and power plants in Germany and other European countries. The pipeline network of its subsidiary WINGAS TRANSPORT GmbH now extends to over 2,100 kilometers.
WINGAS, WINGAS TRANSPORT and OPAL NEL TRANSPORT GmbH are planning to expand the European gas infrastructure with investments of around three billion euros by 2015. The investments are mostly earmarked for the expansion of the transport system on the German mainland - particularly the onshore connections for the Nord Stream Baltic Sea pipeline - and the construction of new natural gas storage facilities in Europe."
Good to have their interest. I don't think it will take them two years to sort it out. I notice on the site an incentive program just released recently at a trade fair in Essen.
"WINGAS promotes CHP technology with "CHP Partner Bonus" / Successful launch of eco-gas." 8/2/2011.
Energy company WINGAS is strengthening the role natural gas plays in the energy mix and as a partner of renewable energies. It has launched an incentive program worth millions of euros to promote the use of energy-efficient decentralized CHP technology (combined heat and power) in the consumer market over the coming years. WINGAS just announced this news at the E-world energy trade fair in Essen. "The CHP Partner Bonus is aimed at our municipal utility customers that market small CHP systems in the regions they supply or who wish to enter this market," the Managing Director for Sales at WINGAS, Dr. Ludwig Mohring, explained. The WINGAS incentive program offers either a one-time investment grant per micro-CHP system of up to 2,500 euros, or an annual operating grant for newly installed systems until the year 2020. In the case of the latter, WINGAS is doubling the special natural gas or eco-tax refund by up to 0.55 cents per kilowatt hour depending on the system capacity. The incentive scheme covers systems with a capacity of up to 20 kilowatts. WINGAS is one of the largest natural gas suppliers in Germany and supplies municipal utility companies, regional gas suppliers and large industrial users.
Half of the natural gas consumed in Germany is supplied to households and small users such as retail companies and service providers; and so far it was used almost entirely for heat generation. "If we want to meet the climate protection goals set by the government we have to make energy consumption more efficient. And we see considerable potential to increase energy efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions substantially with decentralized combined heat and power technologies," the WINGAS Managing Director explained. Small natural-gas powered CHP systems that generate heat and electricity at the same time can attain efficiency levels of over 90 percent and represent one of the most efficient methods of energy generation - partly because they are installed on the user's premises and therefore avoid any transmission losses. In recent years WINGAS has supported field tests and trials with small CHP systems (micro-CHP) on a wide scale together with various utility companies across Germany and helped promote the development of this technology.
"Combined heat and power systems have now become marketable products in the low capacity segment as well," Mohring underlined in Essen. But as with every new form of energy generation, financial incentives were necessary at the beginning, he added. "Even if CHP technology is only mentioned in passing in the German government's energy concept - we believe in this technology and have decided to promote it together with the municipal utilities that we supply," the Managing Director explained. "Small CHP systems not only have the potential to save energy effectively, and thus reduce CO2 emissions, in existing buildings, they also fit in perfectly with the concept of decentralized electricity and district heating generation." By connecting many small CHP systems, for example, a so-called "virtual power plant" could be created which could then be used to balance out fluctuations in electricity generation from renewable energies, which is a growing sector. Current studies now forecast that regenerative energies and combined heat and power will together supply more than half of the electricity consumed in the EU by the year 2020. "That gives natural gas an even more important role as a natural partner of renewable energies," Mohring commented.
I notice on the Smertfamilyhome site the owners mention a gas consumption of 220MJ per day for the BluGen at a cost of $4.10 per day. This equates to 80,300MJ per year. And at the gas price being suggested by the owners (1.863c per MJ average price - dividing $4.10 by 220MJ) this equates to $1495.99 per year gas cost ($374 per qtr). I'm not sure what's being exported back to the grid etc. The specs given for the BluGen says 12.6MJ per hour (at full capacity). 12.6MJ x 24hrs = 302.4MJ per day, or 110,376MJ per year. At the same MJ rate that is given above (1.863c per MJ, this equates to $2,056.30 p/y or $514.08 per qtr. At full capacity I would say power is going back to the grid that will lower this cost - but not gas usage.
My point is not the running costs of the BluGen.
The average yearly gas consumption for the average Australian home, seems to vary. (Keeping in mind only heating, hot water, and cooking can be attributed to this consumption.) Some I found were 23,000MJ p/y, 21,400MJ p/r 23,200MJ p/y, 29800MJ p/y, for 1-2 person 13,400MJ p/y. A government source said WA 23,000, Vic 57,000, NSW 23,700, SA 24,000, ACT 48,000, Qld 12,600, the average being around 31,000.
For mathematics sake let's use the average consumption for the average home - of 26,767 MJ per year ($498.63 per year or $124.67 per qtr), and the Smarthome useage of 80,300MJ per year ($1,495.99 per year or $374 per qtr).
I have mentioned before that gas fuelled electicity generation is a godsend for gas companies. I write this out to highlight this. In this example, as rough as it may be, I only try to point out that gas utilities will not enjoy an increase in consumption from their customers of 5 or 10%, but perhaps somewhere in the region of 200-300%. A threefold increase is suggested by this example. Or.. for every "new customer" signed to a gas supply (something they pay millions in advertising to achieve), is equivalent to "3" customers signed. Quite incredible.
Gas utilities will now (hypothetically) being receiving from their customers $1,495.99 instead of todays $498.63. A threefold increase. A $1,000 p/y difference per customer. Or over 10 years, $10,000. On top of sales already being achived on todays usage.
Just some figures to make my point.
If anyone is going to benefit from gas fuelled eletricity generation it will be the gas companies. They would be aware I am sure that this product, sells bucketloads of their product. Gas companies will see this is a huge opportunity especially in todays market. I think we will see more and more incentives like the one WINGAS has released.
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