The problem of growing energy shortages today reaches the level of the problem of climate change, and, as you know, the history of mankind is the history of the struggle for energy resources. A similar situation is observed in the XXI century (for example, the war in the Middle East for oil). But there is a more worthy way to solve the problem of an increasing shortage of energy resources - alternative energy sources. In Belarus, this issue is very relevant and is being worked out by state bodies.
Renewable energy sources in Belarus
United Nations (UN) terminology defines the term “renewable energy” and its sources. Renewable energy sources include the sun, air masses, water, the heat of the earth's interior, biomass, wood, peat.
Since Belarus is provided with less than 20% of its own traditional energy sources, naturally, there is a need for such sources in order to somehow compensate for the lack of its own energy resources.
Meanwhile, the issue of renewable energy sources (RES) is dealt not only with countries with energy problems. For example, countries such as Germany, Sweden, France (more than twenty states in total) have created the International Society for Solar Energy.
According to experts, by 2040 global energy production from non-traditional RES will account for 82 percent of the world's energy consumption. The global trend has contributed to the fact that non-traditional (alternative) energy sources in Belarus have also been developed.
Studies have shown that in the republic, solar energy is most suitable, since more than half a year there is variable cloud cover, and only one hundred and fifty days (on average) are cloudy. The highest efficiency of the luminary is observed in the period from April to September.
Alternative energy sources are ...
These are understood as sources that do not pollute the environment, as is the case with the use of energy sources known and widespread today: oil, coal, nuclear fuel.
First of all, it is the sun, the wind. The sun is the most reliable and environmentally friendly source of energy, because our luminary will exist for many millions more years. Its energy can be accumulated by devices called solar panels.
Wind as a source of energy is used quite widely, as it is very profitable. Wind energy is prevalent mainly in countries that are limited in classical energy resources and advocate for a clean environment. These countries include the Republic of Belarus.
Significant role is played by significant wood reserves in the state, the cost of which is four times less than exported hydrocarbons.
RB and its fuel and energy complex
The fuel and energy complex of Belarus (FEC) does not have its own energy resources in the right amount. In this regard, the state is pursuing an energy conservation policy, expressed in the development of both local energy carriers and alternative energy.
The fuel and energy complex is regulated by the Ministry of Energy of Belarus. It is a relatively young governing body in the republic (established in late 2002). During this time, targeted state programs aimed at improving the country's energy efficiency have been adopted and implemented.
According to the Minister of Energy of Belarus Vladimir Potupchik, since 2014 the republic has been saving annually more than $ 200 million due to lower consumption of fuel energy resources, which account for about 70% of energy costs.
In the near future, the Ministry of Energy of Belarus intends to tackle an important task - the creation of a completely new base for the development of the fuel and energy complex, effective and environmentally acceptable in modern conditions. These plans are fixed in the “Main directions of the energy policy of the Republic of Belarus for the period until 2020”.
In particular, the document provides for the following principles of operation of the country's fuel and energy complex:
- energy saving enhancement;
- ecological cleanliness;
- Strengthening scientific work on alternative energy and introducing its results;
- small energy development;
Energy resources of the Republic of Belarus
The fuel and energy resources of Belarus are not very diverse: they include peat (fuel), oil, gas (associated), firewood, etc. More than nine thousand peat deposits have been found in the republic. Currently, only a quarter of all proven reserves of this fuel are used.
The fact is that the lion's share of peat deposits is located in areas occupied by agriculture or nature conservation, which makes the wider use of deposits unrealistic.
Deposits of oil and associated gas are available in the Pripyat depression. Deposits were discovered in 1956. The extraction of these resources is the concern Belneftekhim. However, according to experts, these deposits will last only 30-35 years. True, the prospect of oil and gas production in the Orsha and Brest depressions is considered, but it is quite distant.
The richness of forests allows Belarus to carry out centralized procurement of firewood and waste from lumber. But the volumes of these resources are so small that the energy demand of the republic is provided by them by less than 15%. The rest is made up by energy imports, which makes the Belarusian economy very vulnerable. In such a situation, the republic is forced not only to comply with the energy saving regime, but also to intensively search for possible alternative energy sources.
Alternative Energy
Alternative energy appeared much earlier than they were forced to talk about it everywhere. People, including Belarusians, used solar energy, the energy of water, wind for their energy-intensive needs more than two hundred years ago. But then these sources were not considered something special. Humanity lived in complete harmony with nature, without disturbing its balance. The use of coal was as natural as wind energy, water for mills, sawmills for sawing timber, threshing crops and even for the production of textiles.
In Belarus, the production of such “windmills” and “vodka”, which could be both stationary and mobile, was established. They did not need special dams, that is, nature was not harmed. And “windmills” could be placed anywhere, if only there was a wind. Such energy sources even constituted the “export” of Belarus, whose consumers were Russia and Ukraine.
Modern Belarus from alternative energy sources has only a dozen small hydroelectric power stations (HPS). Belarusian scientists engaged in wind power installations (wind turbines) since the Soviet Union have not created anything competitive. This can be confirmed by Vetromash in Zaslavl, which demonstrates wind turbines similar to western developments half a century ago, which have long been outdated.
Meanwhile, alternative energy was subject to some restrictions by the state: from August 19, 2015, a decree of the President of Belarus provides for quotas for installations with alternative sources of electricity. Restrictions relate to the total electrical power of installations located in Belarus. The standards apply to all those wishing to engage in alternative energy, including foreign companies.
Energy of Belarusian water resources
A change in the situation in the fuel and energy complex of Belarus (the high cost of fossil energy resources, environmental degradation, forcing the state to assume certain obligations to reduce harmful emissions into the atmosphere, etc.) entailed the need to revise views on the industries that make up the republic’s energy balance. One of these areas was hydropower. In Belarus, as you know, there are the Dnieper, Western Dvina and Neman rivers. They flow along the plain, but in some places are surrounded by high banks and have rapids. All this accompanies the construction of hydropower plants, which, given the current shortage of oil, coal, gas, gives an important chance to reduce it. Alternative energy has come to the fore in the fuel and energy sector of Belarus.
On this basis, the Cabinet of Ministers of Belarus approved the state program for the construction of hydropower plants. According to this document, it was planned to build a hydroelectric station on the Neman (above and below the city of Grodno), the Western Dvina (Verkhnedvinskaya, Beshenkovichskaya, Vitebsk and Polotsk).
The Dnieper, as the slowest river, was considered last for the construction of a hydroelectric power station. By 2020, it is planned to build four low-power hydroelectric power stations, including Orshanskaya, Shklovskaya, Rechitskaya and Mogilevskaya.
Undeservedly forgotten
In the Republic of Belarus, a total of more than twenty thousand small rivers flow, the length of which is 90 thousand km. And this huge water and energy potential is used only by 3%.
This resource began to be developed in the 50s. Small hydroelectric power stations began to be built in the republic. The first was built in 1954, the Osipovichi Hydroelectric Power Station on the Svisloch River. Its capacity was only 2.25 MW. By the way, hydroelectric power station operates today.
However, by the 60s, small hydropower had faded into the background in connection with the emergence of state power systems. The rural consumer was transferred to powerful new systems, and the need for small hydropower plants disappeared by itself.
In this regard, most of the small hydropower plants built were decommissioned, since the cost of the facilities was too high. As a result, by the end of the 80s in Belarus there were only six hydroelectric power stations, which generated a little more than 18 million kW per year.
But further life turned the power engineers back to small hydropower plants (SHPPs). At the same time, it turned out to be possible to obtain similar alternative energy sources in Belarus by restoring previously decommissioned ones, and also thanks to the construction of new SHPPs. At the same time, flooding of agricultural land was not required.
It is also possible to use reservoirs of other, non-energy, purposes, which are available on small rivers. It is quite appropriate here to build a SHPP with a capacity of 6 thousand kW, while its payback is five to six years.
Representatives of the "green" confirm the absence of any pressure on the surrounding nature from SHPPs.
By 2020, the Belarusian authorities plan to double the total capacity of such hydropower plants. In this regard, a certain interest in the construction of small hydropower plants in the country is shown by foreign investors, who incur 78.4% of the cost of building small-scale energy facilities.
The wind continues to serve man
Wind power in Belarus contributes to the solution of many issues of power supply of small facilities in hard-to-reach places. Therefore, the issue of using the energy of air masses remains relevant for the fuel and energy complex of the republic.
In recent years, about 1,840 places have been identified in the country where a wind turbine or wind turbine can be installed. Basically, these are hills up to 80 m high, on top of which the wind speed reaches five or more meters per second.
Currently, such systems are located in the Minsk, Grodno, Mogilev and Vitebsk regions. The most powerful wind turbine (1.5 MW) serves the residents of the village of Grabniki (Grodno region). The district center of Novogrudok in the same region provides electricity to a state-owned windmill (one of a kind). It is planned to install five more wind generators.
A whole fleet of windmills is planned to be built in Luzhishche, a village in the Oshmyany district. Construction is carried out at the expense of investors and will continue until 2020.
Green house
In this concept, mankind includes a building, the energy supply of which is carried out only through non-traditional energy sources.
Alternative energy for the home can be obtained from the flow of sunlight, wind, as a result of the operation of micro hydroelectric power stations and the processing of biomass to produce biogas.
The use of solar energy is of particular interest for creating an environmentally friendly home, however, some factors make serious amendments to the plans of the owner of such real estate. First of all, these are costs: solar collectors, installation of equipment, a control system and maintenance will cost a considerable amount (a 3 kW solar battery for an average house will cost 15 thousand euros).
Nevertheless, houses built with a method called “solar architecture” are of some interest. Its essence is that the house must have a roof, the area of ​​the southern part of which is at least 100 m 2 . At the same time, the house should be located on the latitude of the capital of Belarus. This is quite enough even for heating rooms in winter.
However, such use of solar energy has not received due attention in Belarus. Currently, only one building has been built on this principle - the German International Education Center. Meanwhile, the construction of such facilities could reduce heat consumption to 80 kW / m 2 per year.
Using windmills gives the home a similar chance of being green. But we should not forget that in Belarus the average wind speed is not more than 5 m / s, and for normal operation modern systems require speeds of up to 10 m / s. Therefore, according to experts, a wind turbine installed in this country will pay off only after forty years.
However, this all applies to electricity, but the renewable energy of the sun can very well be used in a private house in the form of a solar water heater. The system is very efficient, independent of weather and climatic conditions. With its help, you can even partially heat the room. In addition, it consumes no more than 45 watts and costs 3.8 thousand euros (with installation). Its payback is no more than four years.
Conclusion
Unfortunately, alternative energy sources in Belarus (and not only there) today and in the foreseeable future will not be able to fully replace traditional energy sources.
Solar energy is not able to become such a source on an industrial scale for a simple reason - the low density of the solar energy flow. Given that in Belarus only a third of the year happens to be solar, calculations show that more than 30% of the republic’s territory must be devoted to solar power plants in order to satisfy its need for electricity. But even if this condition is met, one should not forget that these calculations were made taking into account the efficiency of the stations, which is 100%. In fact, today this indicator is at the level of ten to fifteen percent.
It turns out that in reality, solar power plants will require an area of ​​all of Belarus and part of the territories of its neighboring states. In addition, the construction and operation of solar stations will require enormous costs.
A similar situation is observed with the use of wind energy, rivers, geothermal sources.