Companies can now produce their own energy in Portugal with “Smartglow”
dstgroup announces completion of the Smartglow project that will revolutionize energy supply networks
National companies will be able to produce their energy in this country thanks to the “SmartGlow” project, an innovative and strategic initiative in the renewable energy sector aimed at developing a scalable renewable energy-based electrical supply system applied to various areas, reducing operational costs and their carbon footprint, completed in Barrancos, as announced today by dstgroup.
Smartglow is based on an electrical energy management system, founded on microgrids, that aims to increase renewable self-consumption capacity through the optimized control of battery-based energy storage systems, as well as the intelligent and integrated control of electrical loads, particularly in remote areas, exploring the concept of hybrid microgrids for the industrial sector.
The final product thus considers the integrated development of high-efficiency conversion solutions, as well as a monitoring and management platform integrated with intelligent load control.
The project, whose development took place over the past two years, meets advanced technical requirements and contributes to sustainability and energy efficiency in the industrial sector while demonstrating the viability of renewable self-consumption technologies in complex and sensitive environments.
This development, which involves telecommunications, RFI, dark sky, SKA (Square Kilometre Array), optical fiber, space, health, and agriculture, among other dstgroup ingredients, will enable the supply of potentially sensitive loads AC and DC – alternating current and direct current, respectively – whose interconnection may occur in remote areas.
The project aims to demonstrate the solution in the context of the SKA-Low pilot in Portugal, whose operation poses a technological challenge, with a significant component of innovation in Information, Communication, and Electronics Technologies, and presents demanding requirements for wave quality and low EMI (Electromagnetic Interference) noise, allowing the solution to be scalable and replicable in other domains, such as health, specifically in imaging or radiology, or agriculture, among others.
For this purpose, Barrancos is the ideal location for the project’s implementation, simulating the real-world implementation conditions of the SKA globally, simulating the entire celestial observation system and consequent celestial data capture.
“This project stands out for several differentiating factors that make it unique and innovative in the field of electrical energy supply for smart microgrids in the industrial sector. Among various factors, we can mention operation in power stations designed to function isolated from the conventional electrical grid, creating ideal conditions in inhospitable locations where access to the conventional electrical grid is unfeasible,” explains Raúl Cunha, general director of dstsolar.
The quality of energy, autonomy, reliability, global applicability, innovation, and advanced technology make the ‘SmartGlow‘ project a revolutionary and differentiated solution in the market, ready to meet the growing energy demands in challenging environments, contributing to global scientific and technological advances.
This project, which involves some dstgroup companies, namely dstsolar, dstelecom, and innovation point, in partnership with INESIS: INESC-TEC (Institute of Systems and Computers Engineering, Technology and Science), IP Beja (Polytechnic Institute of Beja), and IT (Institute of Telecommunications), explores the concept of hybrid microgrids in the industrial sector.
Smartglow consists of a photovoltaic production unit, a storage unit, a next-generation inverter (with digital control and reduced interference footprint, housing with suitable RFI mitigation and connected to a small SKA/LFAA station with up to 16 or 32 antennas), incorporating smart grid equipment.
It is also worth noting that, as part of the project, a pilot was implemented at one of the extremes of requirements in terms of consumption needs and electromagnetic interference created by energy conversion equipment, based on power electronics associated with renewable energy sources and storage.
