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https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/clean-industry/in-a-first-a-solar-microgrid-will-directly-power-an-industrial-plant>
"For half a century, a sprawling lot in Ravenswood, West Virginia, was home to
a giant aluminum smelter. But in 2009, Century Aluminum idled the facility,
then permanently closed it six years later, and the 2,000-acre site became an
empty expanse along the bending banks of the Ohio River.
Now, a different metal-making plant is getting underway on the property — and
it will run primarily on renewable energy when it starts operations next year.
Titanium Metals Corporation, or Timet, recently began construction on a
facility that will melt titanium to be shaped into parts for airplanes and
other uses. Just next door, BHE Renewables is preparing to install arrays of
solar panels and large battery systems, which will form a solar microgrid that
connects to the titanium facility. Both companies are part of Berkshire
Hathaway, the conglomerate run by Warren Buffett.
The project is perhaps the first to directly power a large industrial facility
using solar-plus-storage technology. Developers say they hope the setup can
serve as a model for future manufacturing plants — especially as the United
States ramps up domestic production of electric cars, solar panels, batteries,
and the steel, aluminum, and other essential materials used to make them.
The Ravenswood development “demonstrates the ability of a microgrid to meet
industrial customers’ demands, including … delivering renewables where and when
they are needed, and driving economic revitalization through manufacturing
backed by clean energy,” said Dan Winters, vice president of communications and
public relations for BHE Renewables."
Via Susan ****
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*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
