Friday, April 4, 2014

1,000 postings and counting

I realised that I've reached another tiny milestone today with my 1,000th post, which, unfortunately talks about the last thing you want on a hot dry afternoon - load shedding by SESB.

Right now, though, I'll talk about blogging.

Writing, and in particular, blogging has become a passion as it has taught me more than I has imagine when I first started about five years ago. It made me read more to get my facts right and along the way I get the benefit of learning new things everyday.

Think of it this way - when you write, you learn something but when you read to get your facts right, you learn ten times more.


My header for the past one year. Mt Kinabalu taken from a suspension bridge at Kg Damat, Tuaran Sabah.


Green living?

I started of with 'green living' concept at the back of my mind and with the data explosion that was to inevitably happen, I also had one tool of interest - mobile device. Technology that dictates the way data (and information) are shared move forward at  exponential pace especially one that concerns development of mobile devices. That is why I'm a gadget guy who keep himself updated with the latest that the technology has to offer (although I wont be able to afford them, LOL).

In 'green living', I am talking about sustainable lifestyle, sustainable sources of energy, energy efficiency, and saving mother earth from early demise. Okay, the last one will happen eventually no matter what, but I sure can contribute something to delay the inevitable, can't I?

My earlier postings were (...how I should put it) a bit hasty perhaps, but I have matured into (I hope I have) a more responsible blogger now. And I intend to keep it the way it is now - 'blog responsibly'.


Renewable Energy in Malaysia

I have kept myself updated with Malaysia's path in making renewable resources significant part of the nation's energy generation mix.

5% of the total electricity generation capacity is our target for Renewable Energy in the generation mix come 2015. With the current pace of RE development, this seem a tall order but with the right strategy it is not an impossibility.

SEDA Malaysia is on the right track with its dynamic approach to the implementation of the FiT mechanism. Too rigid a policy and we would be outdated in our approach before we realise it, so SEDA has to revise its strategy often (which it currently does) and keep itself alert of the changes in the critical success factors along the way.

My team had an attempt at bringing solar PV project into the state a couple of years ago hoping Sabah would be included in the coverage of the Renewable Energy Act 2011, only to find ourself disappointed at the exclusion then. Now that Sabah and FT Labuan are in, we would try again to get things moving and mobilise our resources towards winning some quota.


2 percent surcharge in your electricity bill?

Next thing that SEDA (the statutory body administrating and managing the implementation of the feed-in tariff mechanism in Malaysia) need to do is to ensure there is sufficient fund to keep the Renewable Energy industry going.

I can see that you'd hate me for this but I believe that 2% levy will be the way to go, not too far in the future already. Two percent is still very low compared to other countries with FiT implemented but it is also one of the hardest variables to get people into agreement.


TheGreenMechanics conclude: I will keep writing, if not for others, I'd do it for myself as it'd in a way 'force' me to keep abreast with things of interest and in a small way the advertisement on this website help me pay for my subscription with web-hosting provider, GoDaddy. I've received a couple of cheques from Google for my participation in AdSense.

Load shedding due to Pangi Hydropower plant under capacity

If you've been experiencing power supply disruption the last couple of days, you probably were located within the area where load shedding was being carried out.


The current 22MW turbines at Pangi hydropower plant. Pictures taken by The Borneo Post during working visit at the plant November last year.


SESB said that load shedding had to be carried out on Tuesday due to Pangi Hydropower plant in Tenom unable to generate optimal power. Dry weather during Tuesday's peak hour had resulted in slow water flow at Sungai Padas, hence affecting Pangi's power generation capability.

Power generation went down to only 35MW, whereas the full capacity of the power plant is 66MW.

Apart from that, several other independent power producers also faced outage such as in Libaran, ARLT and SBPC. Load shedding began at the peak hour of 12.50pm while power supply was restored in stages beginning 2.50pm on the same day.


Two days in a row now, and counting

Already on Monday, SESB had to resort to load shedding as it observed high demand for power by consumers. If it was not due to failure of its generators then you can only deduce that we are now in the critical stage of power deficiency.

The commissioning of the 100MW IPP by SPR Energy Sdn Bhd in May this year and the first block of Kimanis Power Sdn Bhd generating 95MW in June, may not be sufficient in the medium term! SESB gave assurance this will help solve the problem, but it wont be for long.


The Green Mechanics' two cents:

We've read that Pangi hydropower plant is currently undergoing sprucing up project and a bit of upgrading which would increase the generating capacity from 66MW to 75MW. That's good, but that may be only good enough for the surrounding area.

The utility company is also looking at building a non-destructive 180 MW hydropower plant at Ulu Padas, Kuala Tomani and this, I think would be a better bet at solving the acute power shortage, compared to the small, ageing Pangi hydropower plant. This should (at the least) put Tenom area in a 'safe island' during islanding mode of operation due to major power disruptions.

On IPPs with fault-prone generators, someone should really look at the procedures on how IPP monitoring by SESB is being carried out, if there was one. Well, it's crazy to assume there's none, but can you help but think something is not right with the preventive maintenance after several major blackouts in a span of just a couple of years?

Look at some of my articles pertaining to blackouts and power supply issues in Sabah:

  • SESB offers explaination on the 30 April 2012 total blackout - Link
  • Sabah power blackout due to Shutdown of 4 turbines by IPP - Link
  • IPP Shutdown: SESB load shedding on the card - Link
  • Power outage: SESB vs SEB - Link
  • Fancy a long Earth Hour this weekend? - Link
  • Privatisation of SESB a failure? - Link


On a positive note, one must appreciate the efforts put in place by SESB to address the power supply issues in the state. Several bigger power plants are currently on the pipeline and some of them are nearing completion (in stages), plus, the utility company is also looking at getting better control over the IPPs, especially the upcoming ones once the terms of the existing ones expire.

Also, don't forget; SESB is also spending a lot on upgrading its transmission grids.

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Consumer demand for LED lighting rises in 2014

Overall demand for LED chip or also called semiconductor chip is expected to grow from 17 billion in 2012 to 61 billion in 2014, according to NPD Display Search.

LED chip is the integral part of the fabrication of LED bulbs.



Locating the LED chip: The heart of an LED is the semiconductor chip of which one side is attached on the top of an anvil (attached to negative power lead), and the other side connected with a whisker/post (attached to positive power lead). Photo source


More than three-fold in demand growth

Although demand for LED chips for backlight applications in display screens is expected to decline, LED lighting sales are growing, and total shipments of LED chips are on the rise. According to the latest NPD DisplaySearch, worldwide LED lighting chip sales reached $1.1 billion in 2013 and are predicted to reach $3.4 billion in 2017.


Source: NPD DisplaySearch Quarterly LED Lighting and Display Supply/Demand Report


Demand for display back-lights slowing but demand for LED lighting to increase

While consumer demand for LED lighting will continue to increase in the coming years, the demand for LED backlight chips for TVs and other display applications will start to decline after 2014.

Demand from backlights is falling due to a combination of slower growth in LED-backlit LCD TV sales and efficiency increases that have resulted in a reduction in chips used per backlight. LED backlight chip sales reached $2.0 billion in 2013, but are forecast to decrease to $1.4 billion in 2017. By comparison, consumer demand for LED lighting has increased since 2012 and is expected to keep growing through 2017.

Significant growth in consumer lighting is helping to keep the LED market on an upward trajectory, even with ongoing declines in backlight demand.


LED fluorescent tubes

As costs fall for LED fluorescent tubes, they continue to replace traditional fluorescent lighting, especially in certain offices and garages, where lighting is required on a 24-hour basis. DisplaySearch noted that, the LED tube is currently the most popular LED lighting product because, unlike traditional fluorescent lighting, LED tubes do not contain mercury, are 50 percent more energy efficient, and boast a longer lifespan.

Source: NPD Display Search


TheGreenMechanics: Very well. The Mayoy's pledge to install more LED lamps in and around Kota Kinabalu city is indeed timely. The lower power tariff for public lighting should also incentivise more lamps at strategic places.