RENEWABLE ENERGY
WIND POWER
Wind energy is the energy obtained from the wind. It is a type of kinetic energy produced by the effect of air currents. We can convert this energy into electricity through an electric generator. It is a renewable, clean energy that does not pollute and that helps to replace the energy produced through fossil fuels.
Wind power
Wind energy, based on the use of wind to produce electrical power, is expanding throughout the world. The search for new sources of energy, cleaner and less harmful to the environment, and the costs of traditional fossil fuels have driven the development of this industry. It also seeks to avoid the social cost due to contamination of the ecosystem.
Paradoxically, even though wind is one of the oldest driving sources used by humanity, its use in the field of electricity generation is relatively recent. Commercial models evolved from very low electrical powers (tens of kW, since 1980) to gigantic turbines, currently reaching 20 MW or more, and contributed to its development as a massive industry and stable technology.
The most recent combination with large-scale electrical storage technologies (BESS – Battery Energy Storage Systems), photovoltaic parks and the production and storage of hydrogen through water electrolysis (H2-green) open up possibilities for these systems to compete economically with traditional energy sources.
The importance of wind power in Santa Cruz, AR
Wind energy has become the main source of electricity generation in Santa Cruz. Electric power exchange with SADI (Argentine Interconnection System) evolved from import to green export after the installation of the first large wind parks. After a PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) legislation called RenovAR was established around 2017, projects flourished. The first Bicentenario Wind Farm (127 MW) was installed in 2019, followed by Los Hercules (2021) and Cañadon León (2022) wind parks for a total power exceeding 300 MW. This evolution can be seen in the graphs. Until 2018, generation was purely thermal, and well below the demand acquired from SADI (historically between 1,100 and 1,200 GWh/year). Since 2019, there has been an increase in local generation and at the same time a growing renewable energy component. Generation exceeded demand for the first time in 2021, and in 2022 it was 53% higher, with wind generation contributing more than 85%.
The future
One of the main limitations of traditional wind turbines is the need to connect them to a pre-existing network, with adequate capacity to absorb power. This occurs in most medium to large equipment designed for wind farms. Wind turbines draw a very small fraction of power from the grid to run their computers and auxiliary equipment, and if there is enough wind they automatically synchronize and connect to it. Once connected, they provide active power which is recorded over time through meters as energy sold to the grid. For lower power wind turbines, isolated battery charging systems (combined with PV and gensets) have traditionally been the most common solution, as usually happens in places far from the networks.
This landscape has been changing in the last decade, due to the cost reductions of large-scale electrical storage technologies (BESS – Battery Energy Storage Systems) mentioned above. These systems combine large quantities of batteries (usually lithium cells) and GFI (Grid Forming Inverters) conversion equipment in containers that convert direct current from the cells to the alternating current required by the networks. They allow operation with bidirectional power flow and even the creation of an isolated virtual grid that only works with wind equipment. If there is excess wind energy production, it can be stored in batteries. If grid users increase their consumption, the batteries can be discharged by injecting active power into the grid. Growing capacity has led to cases where, even with general outage or failure of the grid, a wind farm can “cold start” an isolated sector of it, increasing the resilience of the whole. These technologies also enable the combination of wind energy with photovoltaic parks and the production and storage of hydrogen through water electrolysis (green H2). H2-based systems allow for potentially much greater storage and autonomy than current BESS systems.