Parat Halvorsen AS brings boiler benefits to German renewables market

Photo by Parat Halvorsen AS

Nordic innovation in managing the peaks and troughs of renewable energy generation is being brought to Europe’s largest energy market, following the announcement by PARAT Halvorsen of the pending launch of its electrode boiler in Germany.

Nordic innovation in managing the peaks and troughs of renewable energy generation is being brought to Europe’s largest energy market, following the announcement by PARAT Halvorsen of the pending launch of its electrode boiler in Germany.

The Flekkefjord-based company, Norway’s leading supplier of steam and heat solutions, will launch its ‘renewable power to heat’ range of electrode boilers onto the German market at the Hannover Messe (April 8-12, 2013). Germany accounts for approaching 20% of the renewable energy produced by the 27 EU countries, according to 2012 figures issued by Eurostat.

“The smart use of boilers creates opportunities to exploit the overproduction that renewable energy sources inevitably generate,” says Johnny Svindland, Marketing Manager, PARAT. “Energy from the grid can be tapped into at lower cost using the PARAT Electrode boiler, which acts to balance the frequency of the grid or to convert cheap electricity to hot water/steam without any polluting consequences at all.”

Potential customers take in a full range of industrial users, including small and large power producers, district heating plants, utilities, construction and chemical companies, breweries and dairies.

Available for 20 years in Norway, the electrode boiler was launched in Denmark two years ago, where it has since been put into operation as part of seven installations. “This has demonstrated there is a substantial appetite for the Parat electrode boiler, given the impact renewable energy is starting to have on grids in Europe,” says Mr Svindland.

Photo by Parat Halvorsen AS

As one of 11 international Tradeshows, Hannover Messe 2013 includes a dedicated Energy event which identifies ‘Smart grids’ as a significant trend, as Germany makes increasing use of distributed forms of energy generation. “Optimising efficiency of the most environmentally friendly energy sources available is about as ‘green’ as you can get,” observes Mr Svindland.

PARAT has supplied boilers for use on land and at sea all over the world, but its electrode boiler for renewable energy applications has only been available in Scandinavia to date. Changes to the way electricity grids are regulated have persuaded PARAT to offer the proven product more widely to exploit renewable energy overproduction opportunities.

Offered in steam and hot water versions in the 3-50MW capacity range, the electrode boiler is distinguished by its small footprint. It operates on high voltage networks between 6-15 kV, handles pressures of up to 30 bar and does not require low voltage transformers or power cabinets. In line with German market requirements, the boiler takes less than 30 seconds to regulate from minimum to full load. The technology will be launched elsewhere in Europe in the near future.

PARAT Halvorsen was awarded the prestigious offshore contract of delivering the complete Heating Medium System for the M90 Power Module onboard the latest BWO FPSO, BW PIONEER. Where our Electrode boiler is a vital part.