Canary Islands Institute of Technology

Objectives

The main objective of ITC’s Renewable Energy Department is to support the Government of the Canary Islands in the definition of the regional energy policy, especially regarding the promotion of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) and energy efficiency.

Areas of Intervention

Locally, ITC manages public programs with national Spanish and regional funding, for promoting RES and energy efficiency, and supports the seven Islands Authorities and 88 municipalities in their local efforts for promoting renewable energies, energy savings and reduction of CO₂ emissions.

ITC has been strongly cooperating with all European island regions, promoting RES and energy efficiency projects for more than 20 years; an example of which is the ISLE-PACT project, where together with many EU islands we managed that the EU approved the Pact of Islands European Initiative. ITC also has a strong active collaboration and leading role promoting RES and energy efficiency together with all the European Outermost Regions, to which the Canary Islands belong.

ITC also supports efforts to transfer clean energy technologies to neighbouring countries of the Western African Coast. ITC has more than 15 years’ experience designing and installing RES-hybrid systems in rural areas of these countries.

Activities

The Canary Islands Institute of Technology carries-out R&D activities in renewable energies; work which is very focussed on islands.
ITC’s main expertise is centred on technical solutions to overcome the challenge of maximizing variable and intermittent Renewable Energy Sources (RES) penetration in small and weak insular electrical grids (useful expertise that has also application in the “energy islands” found in remote rural areas of less developed countries).
Of particular interest to ITC, for advancing in the goal of development islands 100% energy self- sufficiency models (with exclusive use of RES),  is the dynamic study of the grids (stability) towards increasing RES injection; the development of high RES penetration microgrid concepts for urban or rural areas and even for entire islands; the development of specific energy-climate models to reliably forecast wind or solar power production; implementation of Demand Side Management and Demand Response, as a means of peak-shaving of the electrical demand curve of islands.

The main fields of research of the Renewable Energy Department are:

• Development of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) system for stand-alone operation
• Electricity production from renewable energy sources
• Fresh Water production (water desalination) using renewable energy systems
• Cold and ice production using renewable energy systems
• Development of small to medium-sized wind energy systems (incl. wind-diesel)
• Development of testing platforms for determining performance and output of RES system components under real operating conditions.
• Testing of solar thermal collectors and systems
• Testing of PV system components
• Testing of small power wind turbines
• Electrical grid stability analysis aimed primarily at determining maximum RES penetration levels in small and weak island electricity systems, and solutions to increase RES penetration.
• Grid modeling using PSS/E
• Development of power electronic components to optimize RES integration in weak and small electrical grids
• Study of energy storage solutions based on the use of technology
• Production of hydrogen by renewable energy systems
• Different battery technology; ultracapacitors; flywheels
• Wind-pumped-hydro systems
• Assessment and characterisation of renewable energy resources in the Canary Islands
• Wind, solar and biomass maps
• Development of reliable forecasting models to estimate output of wind and solar systems (numerical analysis based on Climatic model WRF)
• Design of micro-grids integrating a variety of technologies related to renewable energy production, energy storage and Demand Management
• Demonstration projects on innovative technologies based on the use of renewable energies: combined wind and hydro power plants, wind-diesel systems and hydrogen technologies
• Energy savings and efficiency
• Waste to energy
• Sustainable mobility
• Energy planning to promote low carbon, circular economies in islands