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Description
Siemens d.d. Croatia is part of the Siemens Group. The subject of Siemens'' business in Croatia is engineering, development, execution of works and trade in products of the parent company. Recently, the business is shifting to areas of environmental protection and renewable energy sources, which is in focus of this particular project.
Only in Croatia, there are approximately 50 small inhabited islands that could benefit from the solution. Currently, their infrastructure is bad (old, dependent on terrestrial systems). The result is depopulation, low economic activity and low interest of investment into islands. To revive its islands, Croatian government has created National Island Development Program, and this project should create conditions for implementation of the program, making islands independent from classical onshore energy and water resources.
The solution would come in the form of generic model for Microgrid, for production of electricity from renewable (solar) sources and Water Supply System, with Water Treatment Plant ensuring desalination. Solar energy would replace the existing electrical energy sources and old Diesel generators (which are mostly used for electrical energy backup supply), thus stability in the energy supply would be ensured, while water supply would also be done locally, by Water Treatment (desalination) Plant.
The model is intended to work as a system, with inputs and outputs. Inputs to the system would be current electrical energy and water consumption, insolation – historical analysis of sunny hours, number of inhabitants during the year and during touristic season, current infrastructure status – condition of equipment for electrical energy and water supply (undersea cable and water pipes), etc. Output would be general design of new electrical energy and water supply infrastructure showing the main components, dimensions of it in terms of power, capacity, footprint, possible micro-locations of new installations, etc.
Summary of project results
Currently, the infrastructure on Croatian Islands is bad (old, dependent on terrestrial systems). The result is depopulation, low economic activity and low interest of investment into islands. To revive its islands, Croatian government has created National Island Development Program, and this project aimed at creating conditions for implementation of the program, making islands independent from classical onshore energy and water resources, by creating the model for production of electricity from renewable sources and water supply system with water treatment plant ensuring desalination.
In Croatia, there are minimum 50 islands that could benefit from this solution.
Through this project, the project promotor and its partner developed the generic model for microgrid, for production of electricity from renewable (solar) sources and Water Supply System, with Water Treatment Plant ensuring desalination (this is the output - new to the market).
Solar energy is replacing the existing electrical energy sources and old Diesel generators (which are mostly used for electrical energy backup supply), thus through this project stability in the energy supply is ensured, while water supply will also be done locally, by Water Treatment (desalination) Plant.
The model works as a system, with inputs and outputs.
Inputs to the system are current electrical energy and water consumption, insolation – historical analysis of sunny hours, number of inhabitants during the year and during touristic season, current infrastructure status – condition of equipment for electrical energy and water supply (undersea cable and water pipes), etc.
Output are general design of new electrical energy and water supply infrastructure showing the main components, dimensions of it in terms of power, capacity, footprint, possible micro-locations of new installations, etc.
To develop the solution, project partners carried out the following activities:
1. Solar plant based Mircrogrid and Water Treatment Plant technology validation on typical Small Island
2. Solar plant based Mircrogrid and Water Treatment Plant technology demonstration on typical Small Island
3. Technological process demonstration of Microgrid and Water Treatment plant during operation on typical Small Island
4. Microgrid and Water Treatment plant technological system establishment on typical small Island
This project is estimated to generate the increase of revenues of 15% and increase of profit of 11% in 2024, in comparison to 2019. It is also expected to generate 6 new employments by 2024, in comparison to 2019, and 1 new intellectual property right application.
Since 2024 has just started it is still not possible to report on the business results achieved. However, the solution (output) has been successfully developed and the application for IPR is in progress.
Therefore, the beneficiaries of business results are partners of this project - Siemens d.d. Croatia and Ravel d.d. Croatia.
The project is also expected to have a green impact.
It is expected to save 3351 tons of CO2 (Following the construction of a system for the production of energy from renewable sources and water through desalination on an average small inhabited island, CO2 emissions resulting from the production of energy from conventional sources will be reduced by 90%). Main beneficiaries will be inhabitants of islands with this solution implemented, but the society in general as well.