Renewable and Sustainable Energy Technology - International ...

The International Experience107Power ReductionIn order to support and make the investment in renewable energy technology logical, thefirst and foremost action needs to be ‘energy reduction measures’.The Hotel Victoria cannot compromise the comfort of their guests, but they can, andhave, introduced energy efficient appliances, changed light globes, made certain systemsautomatic etc.All the rooms have been equipped with state-of-the-art ‘fuzzy logic’ refrigerators thatutilise 30% less energy than conventional mini-bar fridges. Wherever possible, compactfluorescent lamps have been installed. These lamps reduce electricity consumption by80% compared to the incandescent lamps. Certain areas also use movement sensors anddimmers to better manage energy consumption and control energy waste.Wasteful standby energy is also considered and all room service staff are trained to switchoff all devices with standby energy, such as televisions, and all other unnecessary energyconsuming devices. The hotel also employs a computer-based energy management systemto monitor consumption and cost.Power ProductionThe solar array on the roof of the Hotel Victoria is a 7.6kWp system and generatesapproximately 7,000 kilowatt-hours of solar power per year. This is enough to supply aquarter of the hotel’s rooms. A display panel prominently positioned at reception displaysthe daily/yearly solar energy production. This provides vital educational services to staff,visitors and guests alike.Courtesy: Hotel VictoriaSince solar alone cannot provide the total energy demand, the rest is offset by the owners’direct investment in a wind farm at Ettenheim. They have a share of approximately 70,000kilowatt-hours per annum which comes from the 1.3 Megawatt plant.The deficit of electricity demand is met by paying a small surcharge to their energy distributorto buy ‘green power’. By doing so, this surcharge supports the installation of additionalrenewable power generators in the region.