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Created in 1985, Shandong Yanggu is one of the largest power cable manufacturers in China. The Chinese firm will retain a 25% stake in the power cable business, which generated revenue of CNY1.3 billion, or EUR150 million in 2010.

Global miner Rio Tinto Ltd is ready to commit funds for an exploration drive in Central Asia that it hopes could unearth the world's next giant copper deposit, a company official told Reuters. The company hopes to start drilling in Uzbekistan this year and is ready to proceed with a joint venture in Kazakhstan to explore multiple copper targets, Rio Tinto's general manager for exploration in Central Asia Chris Welton said.

According to a study by the Metatech Corporation, commissioned under Executive Order 13407 for assessment of vulnerability to geomagnetic storms, manufacturers presently have a backlog of nearly three years for all extra highvoltage transformers (230 kilovolts and above). Only one plant exists in the U.S.A. capable of manufacturing a transformer up to 345 kV. There is no manufacturing capability in the U.S.A. for 500 kV and 765 kV transformers, which represent the largest group of at-risk transformers in the U.S. power grid. The 500 and 765 kV transformers are the backbone of the grid that extends into regions that contain nearly 80 percent of the U.S. population, according to John Kappenman of Storm Analysis Consultants and Metatech Corp.

The company has three manufacturing facilities producing extra and high voltage, medium voltage, and low voltage power cables and employs approximately 1,200 people. The company has also recently completed a major investment program to enhance its industrial capability. Shandong Yanggu is fully qualified by the State Grid Corporation of China (“SGCC”) to produce 110kV and 220KV cables. The company supplies energy infrastructure cables to SGCC, power generation groups and various other industries.

That would mean a fall from the current level of up to 43p per kilowatt hour generated, to as little as 9p per kWh – a move which the industry claims would be devastating. If the government follows past precedent, any change would not affect homeowners with existing solar panels.

For buyers of plant and machinery who appreciate that the cost of ownership is more significant than the purchase price, energy efficiency is a very important factor. Alistair Rae reports on the European Minimum Energy Performance Standard scheme for electric motors, and highlights some of the most efficient motors currently available.

In the future, utility customers will have real alternatives to grid power available to them. Energy efficiency and distributed generation are rapidly taking their place alongside traditional energy sources. Add in electric vehicles, and future customers may present a far different (and at times negative) load profile to the utility serving them. Already delivery systems with high concentrations of solar are experiencing adverse operational impacts today.

One such segment that is growing on account of increasing infrastructure investments is high-voltage transmission cables, also known as conductors, which are used for connecting power generation sources with substations, subsequent to which electricity is distributed in cities and towns.

Making such concepts affordable enough for general use remains a challenge but a new way of working with copper nanowires and a PVA “nano glue” could be a game-changer.

The industry trend is clearly moving towards an increased need for higher capacity transmission at high voltage levels.

It is an immense flow of energy – and one that currently goes to waste. But need it? Not if a bright idea from a group of researchers at Harvard University works out. They think we can use some of this heat radiation as it passes out into space to generate electricity.

Something as large and venerable as a national power grid comprises millions of long-lived components spanning generations of evolving technology.  At every stage of its past and future life, newer and older technology work together in a state of perpetual recapitalization.  It is not a realistic proposition to bring the entire system “up to date” all at once any more than to tear up all the nation’s roads and repave them all at once.  As long as technology innovation keeps marching on, there is always going to be a mix of technologies incorporated into something of such a scale that it can only be recapitalized over decades. 

In the future, investments in power transmission infrastructure will reduce while that on ESS and distributed power generation such as microgrids will grow by leaps and bounds.

In an attempt to reduce costs and cut emissions, manufacturers are increasingly turning to energy efficient technologies. Almost two-thirds of companies surveyed planned to increase investment in energy management during the next 12 months, in areas such as renewable and self-generation technologies. The aerospace industry leads the way, with more than two-thirds investing in energy efficient technologies, compared with 41 per cent in metals and aggregates.

Just last week, a report by Swiss bank UBS showed how the linked development of energy storage, solar power and electric vehicles is changing the economics of power generation. UBS predicts that by 2020, a return on investment for an unsubsidized purchase of an electric vehicle, coupled with a rooftop solar installation and battery storage, will drop to just six years in much of Europe. Smart distribution networks would precisely manage the usage and allocation of electricity, allowing for an electric car to be charged at night, for the sun to power a house during daylight hours and for improved batteries to store power for other residential uses. While such news might not be met with cheers in the offices of national grid operators, it shows just how the quest for "The Holy Grail of Energy Storage" is doomed to fail.