- EFOY Pro was selected after two years of harshest field and lab tests. Integrated solution with fuel cell is a proprietary Russian system developed by LLC Gazprom Georesurs and officially listed on Gazprom’s qualified vendor list.
- In hybrid operation with solar the EFOY Pro ensures uninterrupted power supply in bad weather, enabling optimum system operability and production safety.
- Extremely long system autonomy over a complete year leads to major cost and logistics savings.
Gas production and transportation in Russia depends on reliable power even in the most challenging weather and environmental conditions. Most production and transportation sites operate far away from the grid in areas with boggy surfaces, permafrost or rocky ground, which make trips to the site a major logistic effort. The Gazprom Georesurs autonomous energy source was specifically developed to provide a full year of unattended, reliable power to these sites. The energy source uses a solar panel in hybrid operation with a EFOY Pro fuel cell. In this set-up the fuel cell serves as a back-up power source only in those times, when the solar panel does not produce enough power in winter or in bad weather.
“Our autonomous energy system is the first in Russia with this combination of two alternative power sources”, says Alexander Zhukov, Development Specialist at LLC Gazprom Georesurs. “We needed a system that would operate at least one full year without requiring any user attendance. It also had to be environmentally friendly, as many of our sites are situated in protected areas and national parks. Our energy source will help Gazprom save major logistic and operational costs at their remote production and transportation sites, while ensuring maximum system operability and site protection.”
“We are deploying the new system after an intensive 2-year development and qualification phase at remote control telemetry points”, says Vladimir Leznov, Deputy Management Director at Gazprom. “Based on its excellent, reliable performance we now recommend it as prime off-grid power for SCADA equipment at remote gas production and transportation facilities.”
In addition to the 245 W solar panel and SFC Energy’s DMFC fuel cell the autonomous energy system integrates the required fuel cartridges, lithium batteries, a charge controller and an optional inverter in a compact, weather-proof cabinet. It will operate in any season and weather from -40 °C to up to +70 °C and will deliver 30 W continuous power and 110 W peak power for over a year without any user attendance .
“Gazprom Georesurs tested a large variety of fuel cell technologies to find the ideal power source for their demanding applications. In the end they selected our DMFC fuel cell because of its performance, durability and reliability”, says Dr. Peter Podesser, CEO of SFC Energy. “After the success of our fuel cells in oil & gas applications in North America, we see the inclusion of our EFOY Pro fuel cell in a solution officially listed on Gazprom’s vendor list as another major milestone in our expansion into the Russian and Asian oil and gas markets.”
The official press release by Gazprom Georesurs to the Russian press is available at http://samara-tr.gazprom.ru/press/news/2015/08/107/.
Additional information on the EFOY Pro fuel cell and on SFC Energy’s off grid power portfolio for security & safety, oil & gas, wind, traffic management, environmental and telecommunications applications at www.efoy-pro.com and at www.sfc.com.
