Powering a renewable future
As the world grapples with climate change and seeks sustainable solutions, electrical utilities, energy companies and industries are increasingly adopting renewable energy as a pivotal and viable component in the transition towards a net zero future.
Web Story
6min
2024-11-20
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Global annual renewable capacity additions increased by almost 50% to nearly 510 gigawatts (GW) in 2023, the fastest growth rate in the past two decades. (IEA)02
The world needs resilient and intelligent grids that can anticipate fluctuations, store excess power, and route it to where it's needed.03
By helping utility companies and energy suppliers build a smart, stable and cleaner energy infrastructure, ABB helps the industry outrun leaner and cleaner.Renewables are gaining momentum
Renewable energy is energy that is generated without depleting any of the earth's natural resources faster than they regenerate. Renewables generation creates far lower emissions than burning fossil fuels - the fastest growing part of humanity’s global ecological footprint.1
The deployment of renewables in the power, heating, cooling and transport sectors is one of the main enablers of keeping the rise in average global temperatures below 1.5°C. Renewables allow electricity generation to be almost completely decarbonized. From a recent report, in 2023, the world added nearly 510 gigawatts (GW) of renewable electrical capacity, almost 50 percent more than in 20222. This is predicted to rise to more than 5,500 gigawatts (GW) by 2030, with almost all of that growth coming from solar and wind, followed by hydropower. Although the growth is not fully in line with the goal set by nearly 200 governments at the COP28 climate change conference in December 2023 to triple the world’s renewable capacity this decade – the report forecasts global capacity will reach 2.7 times its 2022 level by 20303.
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Integration challenges
But integrating renewable sources into electricity grids poses challenges, as they are dependent on the sun shining and the wind blowing. Furthermore, grids do not always have the capacity to transmit power when it is available in relation to consumer demand. Therefore the transition to renewable energy requires a smarter grid that can integrate distributed energy sources, manage bi-directional energy and communications flows, and store excess power to help balance supply and demand.
Electrification, Automation and Digital solutions
ABB enables this transition, providing electrification, automation and digitalization technologies that support the effective end-to-end ramp up of renewable power : from the production of solar panels and being the leading global supplier of electrical components for the offshore wind industry, to enabling smart, stable and resilient grids and flexible energy storage systems.
Many organizations are also turning to integrating renewables into microgrids to optimize energy consumption, ensure continuous power supply, reduce Co2 emissions and enhance network security. Deploying ABBs smart grid technologies enables the microgrids to export or import power, to or from the national grid, helping to balance supply and demand.
Our fully digitalized energy storage portfolio raises grid efficiency with factory-built, pre-tested solutions, which can be deployed directly to customer sites for fast installation e.g. ABB’s distributed control systems (DCS), allows operators to utilize data insights from all areas of the plant, delivered in real time, to drive efficiency and optimize production.
Solar – harnessing the sun’s energy
With control and electrical solutions for solar power plants, ABB supports the growth of solar power on the ground, in water via ‘floating panels’ and even in the desert. For example, ABB provides components for TSS4U's off-grid solar power systems that replace diesel generators in remote locations with sustainable energy.
Key solar projects
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Belgium
Indaver, a European leader in sustainable waste management, has partnered with ABB to implement a power management system (PMS) at its Hooge Maey site near Antwerp. The system ensures grid compliance and optimizes the integration of 32,000 solar panels, generating 21 GWh of green electricity annually, enough to power approximately 8,000 households. The project not only supports Indaver’s sustainability ambitions but also contributes to the resilience of the local industrial ecosystem by providing a stable, grid-supporting, renewable energy source.
Denmark
In the southern Jutland town of Broager, CO2-neutral district heating is produced by, among other things, extracting heat from the local groundwater.
Indonesia
ABB’s medium-voltage switchgear will enable the Cirata floating solar power plant in West Java to generate 192 megawatt peak (MWp) of clean energy, enough to power 50,000 homes. The 250-hectare floating solar power plant is set to avoid up to 214,000 tons of CO2, and contribute to Indonesia’s target of 23 percent renewable energy generation by 2025.
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Australia
ABB synchronous condensers are enabling the Darlington Point Solar Farm in New South Wales to feed a large amount of clean electricity into the local power network while maintaining grid stability and reliability. The 275 megawatts (MW) (AC), 333 MW (DC) solar photovoltaic (PV) farm commenced operation in August 2020. With a projected annual output of 685,000 MWh it is currently the largest solar farm connected to Australia’s grid.
India
In Hardoi, Uttar Pradesh, a cold storage facility has significantly reduced its energy costs - by up to 65 percent - by installing ABB’s solar pump drive to harness clean, renewable energy. India, as the world’s second-largest vegetable producer, faces challenges in preserving fresh produce due to unreliable power in rural areas. Bala Ji Cold Storage, which stores 8,800 tons of potatoes, previously relied on diesel generators during frequent outages. Now ABB’s solar solution ensures seamless and reliable operations, and reduces grid power consumption.
Abu Dhabi
The Al Dhafra PV2 solar project – the world’s largest single-site solar plant, for which ABB supplied automation and optimization power generation solutions – uses four million solar modules to generate enough electricity for 200,000 homes across the UAE per year. It will also help reduce Abu Dhabi’s annual CO2 emissions by more than 2.4 million metric tons, the equivalent of removing approximately 470,000 combustion cars from the roads.
Wind – from turbines to wind farms
ABB has a broad portfolio of technologies for offshore wind to help energy operators harness this power through smarter production, storage and distribution, accelerating the global energy transition.
As an example in 2023 ABB secured an order to deliver an integrated bridge-to-propeller solution for Havfram Wind’s two new wind turbine installation vessels. The vessels, incorporating the latest battery-hybrid drivetrain technology, and ABB’s Azipod ® electric propulsion will be among the most energy-efficient designs to operate in the offshore wind industry. (Image below)
Key wind projects
United Kingdom - Dogger Bank Wind Farm
At the Dogger Bank Wind Farm located more than 130 km off the northeast coast of England, ABB’s technology and engineering solutions act as a central gateway that unlocks the offshore wind process, allowing the electricity generated by wind turbines to flow through to the national grid and into peoples’ homes. ABB also supplied a grid-scale battery energy storage solution for Ecotricity’s wind farm in Gloucestershire, which will help pave the way for the National Grid’s goal of reaching net zero by 2050.
United Kingdom - Statkraft
ABB has completed a major turnkey project for Statkraft, Europe’s largest renewable power generator, to help restore the missing system inertia vital for the stable operation of the UK power grid. This is essential as the country switches from fossil fuels to use more renewable energy such as wind and solar. The project features two ABB high-inertia synchronous condenser systems installed at the Lister Drive Greener Grid Park in Liverpool.
Estonia and Lithuania
The biggest wind energy producer in the Baltics, Enefit Green, avoids up to 79% of CO2 emissions and improves uptime with ABB’s reconditioning services. ABB converters (ACS800) are utilized in 24 wind turbines at Enefit Green’s Aulepa and Aseri wind farms with a total capacity of 72MW and an average yearly capacity of 160 GWh, accounting for almost a quarter of Estonia's wind energy output.
Geothermal – clean energy from deep inside the earth
ABB's technologies such as high-performance synchronous generators play a crucial role in ensuring efficient and reliable geothermal power plant operation. Our partnership with Indonesia-based Kaishan Group to increase the geothermal potential of Indonesia is one such example.
Key geothermal projects
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USA - Fervo Energy
We have signed an agreement with Fervo Energy, a Texas-based leader in enhanced geothermal systems, to supply advanced motor control solutions for the Cape Station geothermal project in Southwest Utah, USA. By combining precision drilling with our drives, motors, generators, switchgear and modular eHouses, the project once completed will add 500 MW of round‑the‑clock clean energy to the U.S. grid. Which is, enough to power approximately 355,000 US homes annually.
USA - Geopressured Geothermal Systems
We also recently partnered with Sage Geosystems to develop Geopressured Geothermal Systems for low carbon energy storage and geothermal power generation. The scope will include delivering geothermal power to support data center growth.
USA - Ormat Technologies
Ormat Technologies has been partnering with ABB for more than ten years and has sourced ABB generators for major geothermal plants in the U.S. One of Ormat’s most significant projects in recent years using ABB generators has been the McGinness Hills geothermal complex in Nevada. It consists of three power plants with a total generating capacity of around 146 MW gross, making it the fourth largest geothermal complex in the United States.
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Indonesia
Wayang Windu geothermal power plant has played a pivotal role in Indonesia’s electricity supply in the last few decades. Operated by Star Energy Geothermal, the Wayang Windu geothermal power plant has played a pivotal role in Indonesia’s electricity supply, powering millions of homes across Java, Madura, and Bali. ABB modernized the plant with ABB Ability™ Symphony Plus DCS and upgraded the Human Machine Inter-face (HMI), enabling more efficient operations while maintaining a reliable power supply.
Poland
The local Podhale Geothermal Plant is one of the largest geothermal systems in Europe. It supplies heat to almost two thousand buildings in Zakopane, Biały Dunajec, Poronin and Szaflary, satisfying 40 percent of the heating demand of the capital of the Tatra Mountains. In order to increase the reliability of the recently expanded network, Geotermia Podhalańska has decided to modernize its control system: ABB Symphony Plus. It is a solution that supervises the entire process – from extracting hot water from several wells in Podhale, through heat production, to its distribution to customers.
Italy
Enel Green Power has upgraded its 60 MW geothermal plant in Farinello, Tuscany with ABB's VD4G MV state-of-the-art generator circuit breakers. The site, which has been active since 1995, is part of the oldest geothermal complex in the world. The facility’s 34 geothermal power plants supply more than 30 percent of the energy needed for the people of Tuscany.
Hydropower
Hydropower is a renewable energy source that uses the power of water flows to generate electricity. ABBs automation and digitalization solutions have helped some of these customers around the globe.
Key hydropower projects
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Austria
Tiroler Wasserkraft (TIWAG) has awarded ABB the distributed control system ABB Ability™ System 800xA® (DCS) contract for its Kuhtai 2 project. TIWAG is an Austrian energy company specialized in generating electricity from hydropower. Once running, it will provide the function of a green battery with a capacity of 12 GWh and an additional production of about 220 million kWh of electricity each year, supporting Austria's clean energy transition.
Spain
The multi-energy company Repsol selected ABB to install a new SCADA solution at its five hydropower plants. The energy firm looks to enhance plants’ life cycle, while standardizing and supporting sustainable operations, in line with their sustainability goals and net zero emission targets by 2050.
Switzerland
ABB has supplied Axpo-the largest producer of renewable electricity in Switzerland with ABB Ability™ Smart Sensors and ABB Ability™ Condition Monitoring to convert the motors at one of their hydropower plants into smart, wirelessly monitored devices. With increased efficiency in its plant, Axpo is better able to provide sustainable power for its customers.
Finland
Two of Finland’s major hydro power plants from customer Kemijoki Oy , located in the freezing Arctic Circle, are now SF6 ‘greenhouse gas’ free thanks to ABB’s turn-key generator circuit breaker retrofit that gears them up for a more resource-efficient future.
Islands Transitioning to Green energy
With more than 730 million people living on 11,000 permanently inhabited islands across the world, and with the number of natural disasters rising sharply in recent decades, it is crucial to find solutions to these issues and meet the energy needs of island residents in a secure, stable, and sustainable manner.
In 2024, ABB won four orders from Red Eléctrica to supply synchronous condensers in the Canary and Balearic Islands in order to maintain stable power supply on the islands as they absorb increasing levels of renewable energy. The integrated solution, which also includes automation and electrical equipment, will play a vital role in helping meet Spain's energy transition goals. The technology also plays an important role in helping the Faroe islands transition to 100% renewable energy and will enable Jeju island in Korea to achieve its clean energy goals.
As the world keeps embracing alternative energy solutions, ABB will continue building upon our technologies, expertise and services to help utility companies and energy suppliers build a cleaner future for all.
Engineered to Outrun
At ABB, we are on a mission to help industries outrun – leaner and cleaner. With our leading technologies in electrification and automation, we help all industries run at high performance and become more productive, efficient and sustainable so they can outperform.