Although the Faroe Islands are isolated from their nearest neighbours by hundreds of kilometres, the island nation has set an example for the rest of the world with its progress towards reaching an audacious goal of 100 percent sustainable energy by 2030. Accomplishment of this goal is being driven by Faroese utility company SEV, which has partnered with Hitachi Energy to meet the challenge of sourcing reliable electricity while integrating multiple renewable energy sources and safeguarding energy security.
“How do we free ourselves from oil and how will we manage to provide secure and stable electricity based on Faroese resources by 2030?” said Hákun Djurhuus, Chief Executive Officer of SEV. “We cannot look to others for solutions to copy, we need to come up with our own solutions and adjust them to our natural resources. That is our challenge.”
SEV has installed the Hitachi Energy e-mesh PowerStore battery energy storage system (BESS), a 6.25 MW/7.45 MWh battery that provides full backup for the Porkeri Wind Farm on the archipelago’s southernmost island, Suðuroy. The Hitachi Energy BESS installation is the largest of its kind on the Faroe Islands. This has delivered a number of significant improvements in power availability and quality:
Frequency variations have significantly improved.
Wind utilisation improved from 38 percent to 77 percent during the first 3 months of BESS in operation.
Even with multiple days with only inverter-based generation (wind and PV), SEV had several days with 100 percent sustainable energy generation on Suðuroy. That number continues to grow.
The storage capability has allowed SEV to take its thermal power plant on Suðuroy temporarily offline and reduce emissions from thermal diesel generation, while powering the island using only energy derived from a mix of renewable sources that include wind, hydro, and solar.
SEV has plans ahead to integrate additional BESS facilities in the country to support integration of multiple types of renewable energy sources into its grid and gain higher utilisation with storing and accessing electricity.
Automation and digital services also will take on greater importance as utilities evolve and expand BESS installations and integration of various sustainable energy assets. Hitachi Energy solutions such as e-mesh EMS and SCADA allow personnel to manage their various energy assets more easily, intelligently, and efficiently.
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