A privately-owned Iranian company is planning to introduce a cutting-edge wind power generation system that could mark a turning point in the country's renewable energy sector.
Watt-Wind said on Tuesday it plans to import the INVELOX wind delivery system which operates at a high production efficiency of between 60-90%.
“Low production cost, easy maintenance and repair, quick returns on investment and clean energy are the advantages of INVELOX technology over regular wind turbine systems,” Masoud Sedehi was quoted as saying by IRNA.
Sedehi added that while power efficiency in regular solar plants is at 10-20% and in wind plants at about 40%, INVOLEX converts 60% to 90% of its energy input into electric power, depending on the wind speed and the area of installation.
The existing wind turbines need at least a wind speed of 3-4 meters per second. However the new turbines can operate with wind speed of below 1 m/s and as high as 120 km/h.
This is while the current turbines are only compatible with wind speeds less than 25 m/s, he noted.The new turbines can be made from a wide range of materials, namely fiberglass, fabrics and cement.
Sedehi said the regular turbines require very long blades, and huge towers and are relatively expensive to construct and repair.
“But INVELOX technology does not have any of theproblems like the regular turbines, in addition they need not necessarily be installed in windy areas,” he said.
Inexpensive Technology
Sedehi noted that average cost for setting up a 100-megawatt power plant is $1,000 per kilowatt-hour by Chinese companies, $1,500-$2,000 per kWh by Europeans and $2,000-$2,700 per kWh in the US. "The cost for establishing power plants with INVELOX technology is $750-$1,000 per kWh."
Data has it that the investment returns on INVELOX wind power farm takes less than a year. In addition, repair and maintenance costs are halved with the new technology.
According to Sedehi, INVELOX turbines can be designed to produce milliwatts of electricity or hundreds of megawatts. The new turbines can be installed on rooftops as well as in parks and public places and be used if natural disaster (earthquakes and floods) strikes.
