Page 180 - CW E-Magazine (13-2-2024)

Special Report Special Report

Electrifi cation as an accelerator towards net-zero and tracking of carbon intensity in mand; advanced situational awareness objectives. This move forward provides
fi nished products (produced via renew-
for operators and managers; as well a bright future for electrifi cation and
ith climate change at the top responsible for 50% increase in global RON BECK able energy); as well as the issuance of as enhanced grid support for smarter offers new opportunities to organisa-
of everyone’s mind, even energy demand by 2050, and 75% in- Senior Director green certifi cates. meters, generators and storage nodes. tions in the energy sector.
Wfood choices are impacted. crease in electricity demand. Countries Aspen Technology, Inc.
According to a Boston Consulting like India, China, Japan, Indonesia and Email: ron.beck@aspentech.com A greener and better grid However, to maximise value from Across multiple industrial sectors,
Group (BCG) report in 2022, each dol- Malaysia are incentivising electrifi ca- Organisations with their fi nger on distributed power a reality, develop- organisations have the chance to carve
lar invested in the production of meat tion of mobility (with electric vehicles nised; enabled to rapidly evolve to sup- the pulse are already exploring renew- ments in digital software will be re- out a competitive edge and achieve true
and dairy alternatives resulted in seven on a steep regional growth curve) and port distributed (renewable) power and able solutions, such as energy storage quired. For example, enhanced trans- market differentiation. For example,
times more greenhouse gas reductions heavy industry alike. power storage; as well as be more resil- technology, direct air carbon capture, parency into systems will better enable power and utility companies can har-
than green buildings and 11 times more ient in the face of cyber threats. As part wind and solar farm optimisation, distribution to monetise their opera- ness the move towards electrifi cation
than zero-emission cars. To meet this growing regional mar- of this strategic move to electrifi cation, hydrogen fuel cells and distributed tions, while also helping them to better by increasing investments in generation
ket demand, it is necessary to ramp up more organisations are decarbonising generation and distribution. With the maintain, price, as well as optimise dis- and transmission assets. Other compa-
Beyond lifestyle changes that indi- electricity resources, particularly from assets to achieve carbon abatement proliferation of distributed renewable tributed power and storage. Connection nies can bring in new equipment and
viduals can make, industry is tackling renewable origins. An estimated invest- pledges and utilise electrical power. power sources, grids need to be more of smart home and commercial devices processes to achieve greater effi cien-
the dual challenge across Asia, namely ment of over $1-trillion a year in capa- Advanced power distribution manage- digitally enabled. In doing so, these will help incentivise consumers to prefe- cies. Overall, this approach can help
meeting the increasing demand for city; grid improvements; low-carbon ment and distributed energy manage- grids can dynamically manage the vari- rentially use available power during reduce operating costs, as expensive
resources from a growing population generating capacity; as well as trans- ment (DERMS) through digitalisation ability of supply and demand to ensure surplus, low price, periods. fossil fuels give way to electricity. With
with rising standards of living, while mission and decentralised distribution is crucial to keep electric power supply 100% availability, as grids begin to more resilient and stronger grids being
addressing sustainability goals. Today, will be needed to enable suitable elec- reliable for all consumers and works in operate increasingly in a bi-directional Power generation gaps are also deployed, developing regions can side-
energy accessibility and affordabi- trical generation. In planning, energy favour of the trend toward distributed mode. The primary objective is to being fi lled by the rapid growth and step traditional approaches to power
lity are critical issues. Projections from companies will need to consider the renewables (solar, wind, geothermal ensure complete network reliability. uptake of microgrids. The right digital and take on full-scale adoption of
the United Nations (UN) indicate that current situation, that approximately and hydro) and storage (battery arrays solution enables optimised development renewable power for cheaper, wide-
the world population will hit 9.7-bn 770-mn people cannot access afford- in the grid). For critical assets, micro- Data incorporated in both genera- of microgrids, integrated with regional scale access to energy.
in 2050, up from 8.0-bn today. able electricity today, most of them in grids can optimise and reduce carbon tion and storage solutions should be part grids and developed in cohesive, intel-
the sub-Saharan Africa (IEA, 2022). footprint of the asset owner, as well as of an intelligent digital system to pre- ligent way. This approach promotes To harness this strong electrifi ca-
As Southeast Asian economies lead ensure that vital assets do not suffer dict load and demand, as well as route and enables entrepreneurial investment tion market opportunity, digital soft-
world growth, the growing middle- Tapping into electrical power sudden electric supply loss. power effi ciently. Digital upgrades are and innovation in new power genera- ware provides the foundation for
class is emerging to comprise almost The move towards electrifi cation is an essential to support new pricing and tion strategies and connected storage widescale adoption of electricity as a
half of the world’s population (at 48%) opportunistic one for organisations across Globally, many initiatives are revenue models for electricity, certify- innovation. Microgrids give local power source, while providing choice –
or 3.8-bn people today. This burgeon- sectors, including chemicals; mining; implemented to enable the ability to ing an organisation’s green invest- concentrations of power users to maxi- in terms of technologies deployed to
ing economic power places massive conventional and green energy; as well as ensure traceability and accountability ments. Intelligent distribution solutions mise their reliability. enable regional and microgrids, on a
strain on power demand in the energy power generation and distribution. How- (in terms of audit requirements). This encourage price-based usage during global scale. In closing, the adoption
industry. According to the U.S. Energy ever, there are challenges ahead. enables the industry to track green periods of surplus supply, while removing Global march towards net-zero of electrifi cation by fertiliser and food
Information Administration (EIA), this power content through their value chain barriers to the expansion of distributed Without any doubt, the global production industries can reduce the
demographic group is also likely to be Grids need to be expanded; moder- and further understand its impact on the generation and storage nodes. They march towards net-zero carbon emis- carbon intensity of food production,
carbon-intensity of products. This is also enhance cyber security. In both sion is gathering pace, as more coun- hence giving the consumer a broader set
particularly crucial in gaining increased transmission and distribution networks, tries commit to stringent targets and of choices to follow a greener lifestyle.
access to capital for decarbonisation the ability to forecast weather-based
investment in economically develop- peaks and valleys in renewable power ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ing regions and for auditing outcomes. supply can optimise the utilisation of
Investments in renewables and intel- renewable capacity. It also helps to Ron Beck is Marketing Strategy Director, Aspen
ligent grids – go together with carbon avoid overloading lines and effectively Technology, Inc. During his 10 years at AspenTech,
trading, in order to monetise decarboni- uses storage (battery array) capabilities. he has been responsible for oil and gas and engineer-
sation efforts. ing and construction industry marketing, as well
Other benefi ts can also be derived as engineering product marketing. He has over 30
Digital solutions supporting distri- from utilising advanced distribution years’ experience in providing software solutions
buted generation sources and grids play management solutions, which includes to the process industries and 15 years’ experience
a crucial role. This includes tracing car- confi gurable capacity; visibility into in chemical engineering technology commerciali-
bon emissions (from renewable source distributed generation; resiliency amidst sation.
to industrial end use); the calculation increasingly dynamic supply and de-

180 Chemical Weekly February 13, 2024 Chemical Weekly February 13, 2024 181

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