Hospital to maximise the power of the sun in Hervey Bay

ABB has officially signed a contract with Queensland Health to design, supply and install a 266-kilowatt roof-mounted solar panel system at the Hervey Bay Hospital located on the Fraser Coast in Queensland. The system will generate around 385 megawatt-hours of renewable energy each year, saving an estimated $20,000 on electricity costs and reducing carbon emissions by approximately 400 tonnes annually.

The contact was awarded in January 2012, with the $1.3 million project expected to be compete in mid-2012.

ABB’s scope of supply includes the design and installation of a complete photovoltaic (PV) system that will deliver a world-class system for the hospital, enabling the system to operate at high efficiency and maximising the amount of electricity generated. The solar system will be interfaced into the hospital’s existing building management system for control and monitoring purposes, and include an interactive web kiosk and large-screen television in the foyer to display performance data as an education tool for visitors.

“The hospital project is a personal favourite of mine,” said the Hon Stephen Robertson, Queensland Minister for Energy. “The hospital is probably the biggest user of electricity on the Fraser Coast and the environmental savings from this initiative forms an important step in our target of creating a greener, clean energy future for Queenslanders.”

Jason Venning, ABB’s Power Generation Manager in Australia, said, “When complete, this will become the largest rooftop PV system at any hospital in Queensland and will mark a significant milestone for ABB in Australia. The hospital has already reduced its energy consumption significantly by implementing a number of energy-efficiency initiatives, and with the addition of the renewable energy from this system, they will become more self-sufficient.

“Drawing from our global expertise in the solar industry gained by our involvement in many of the world’s largest turnkey solar projects and coupled with our innovative technology, enables us to provide a solution which operates at high efficiency, providing a lower cost per kilowatt production.”

ABB will supply solar panels manufactured in Australia by Silex Solar. The system includes electrical meters, low-voltage DC isolation equipment and inverter technology all made by ABB and specifically designed for solar applications. The PVS-300 string inverters will cost-effectively convert the direct current generated by the solar panels into high-quality alternating current, making it available for direct use by the hospital’s electrical system.