Solar Cells Info

14 Oct, 2007
Source: 7Days.ae
http://www.7days.ae/en/2007/10/14/sold-on-solar-power.html

Environmentalists, politicians and the media have been focusing on global warming and the necessity for us to be ‘greener’ for some time now, but how many of us have actually done anything to try and make a difference? A glance around this emirate quickly shows that over-sized 4×4 gas-guzzling cars are still the motor of choice on Dubai roads and that Dubai’s public is determined to continue its love affair with plastic, despite the fact that reusable grocery bags – the ‘greener’ option – are widely available.

With the UAE’s carbon footprint getting larger, and the country second largest emitter of CO2 per capita in the world, we would probably all be doomed pretty soon if it weren’t for the likes of Phil Barnett, the Grand Hyatt Dubai’s director of engineering. In what started off as a small project to test the probable feasibility of using modern solar technology, Barnett has now converted the Grand Hyatt’s main water heating system from diesel oil-fired to solar-powered in a bid to reduce climate change and running costs. The impressive solar panels have been installed on the roof of the Grand Cineplex, next to the hotel, with each solar panel producing up to a kilowatt of energy each per hour. The plant as a whole produces between 800 to 1,000 kilowatts of energy per hour.

“This is the first commercial installation of its kind in the UAE, and probably the largest in the whole of Europe, the Middle East and Africa,” says Barnett. “The success of this initiative will become proof that Hyatt throughout the world takes climate change seriously and will be taking action to protect the environment and ensure healthy clean air and energy waste reduction.”

Up until September of 2007, diesel oil-fired generators that emitted toxic chemicals into the atmosphere were responsible for the energy needed to operate the hotel’s kitchens, laundries, guest rooms and pool and spa areas. Today however, with the completion of the new environmentally friendly solar plant, the kitchens, laundries, guest rooms and pool and spa areas of the Grand Hyatt Hotel are purely solar powered.

Apart from wanting to help protect the environment and reduce energy waste, the spiralling cost of fuel in the UAE was another reason behind the solar plant. “The spiralling cost of diesel – which has doubled in price in two years – was another factor in our decision to install the plant,” says Barnett, who also adds. “We expect the plant to pay for itself in just three years.”

So why isn’t everybody in Dubai switching to clean solar power? We have this great big ball of fire directly above us 365 days of the year – shouldn’t we be using it?  As Barnett explains the reluctance to use solar power, the usual objection shows its face – cost. First of all it’s expensive to initially install a solar powered energy system, so it seems those responsible for buildings will not consider it in their start-up costs. Despite the fact that solar power is more energy–and-economically efficient in the long run, the initial costs still act as a deterrent.

“There is a reluctance in the industry to go with solar power, because the technology is still quite new and many construction companies are too stuck-in-the-mud to deviate from normal practices. As builders get more knowledgeable, however, hopefully this will change,” says Barnett. On top of reducing emissions with the solar power heating system, the Grand Hyatt Hotel has also dropped its water consumption by 120,000 gallons a day.

“Sewage effluent from the hotel goes through a purification system, and we then use it as the water for our cooling towers,” says Barnett.  “We used to put drinking water in our cooling towers as a cost of 35 fils per gallon. The cost of using treated sewage effluent for the purpose has reduced the cost to ten fils per gallon, but more importantly has saved more than 800,000 gallons of drinking water a week. ”

“People are busy building without an ounce of consideration to the environment. We need to see a lot more environmental controls in place in this country. We also need to get people clued into the fact that there is a great big natural energy resource in the sky here that can be used to create clean energy,” adds Barnett.