energize renewables 01/2010 - GL Group

consulting & engineering interviewCSP. ConcentratedSolar Power systemsuse lenses or mirrorsand trackingsystems to focus alarge area ofsunlight into asmall beam.ENERGIZE: Consultancy and certification from onecompany? Does that fit together? As a customer I want tohave an impartial certifier.PAASIVAARA: You’re right, the special role of certificationrequires an impartial body. It is for precisely this reason thatwe are going to keep our certification activities separatefrom our other activities in the field of renewable energies.ENERGIZE: How are you going to get this across to yourcustomers?PAASIVAARA: There is a sort of “Wall of China” betweenthe technical services and the certification department. Thecertification unit is managed separately with different personnel,different systems technology and different processmanagement. We believe that we can hold up the integrityof the certification unit in this way. We have obviously alsospoken with our customers about this. They have said thatit is alright, GL may do consulting and certification at thesame time. GL was already doing this before the takeoverof Garrad Hassan, by the way.ENERGIZE: Garrad Hassan has recently expanded its expertiseto include solar power, with the focus onConcentrated Solar Power (CSP). This is newterritory for GL – what are you going to do withthe solar section of Garrad Hassan?PAASIVAARA: We have renamed the WindPower section at GL to GL Garrad Hassan".We will thus no longer just look at windpower, but at all forms of renewable energy in the future.We see a lot of potential in Concentrated Solar Power.Apart from solar power, we are involved in manyresearch projects looking at energy generation from the seas,for example wave and tidal power plants. But if you considerthe achievable medium-term yields, then solar and wind powerwill certainly play a leading role for years to come.ENERGIZE: Have customer structures changed at all in thelast few years?PAASIVAARA: In wind power, large companies are operatingwith large investment volumes. With further sinkingproduction costs, wind power will become an increasinglyattractive energy technology. This is bringing in the largeenergy suppliers and infrastructure companies around theworld, whether it be EDF, E.ON, Iberdrola, Florida Light orVattenfall. These are our customers.ENERGIZE: Are you shifting your regional focus points?PAASIVAARA: At the moment we have a regional balancein the onshore wind power sector. The USA, Europeand India plus China each have around one third of theworld market. China is also growing very strongly this yearand we can see that China will take the lead in terms ofinstalled capacity by next year at the latest. It’s a differentsituation in the offshore sector. Europe will continue to playa very strong role here. Although there are big offshoreplans in China and the USA, implementation is going totake several years.ENERGIZE: What components of an offshore turbine doesyour certification business cover?PAASIVAARA: Our certification service covers all componentsof a wind power system, such as the turbine andfoundation structures. In the last few years we havestrengthened our competences. We are bringing in ourservices for measurement, engineering and environmentalanalysis, from Garrad Hassan comes expertise in softwaresolutions, and Noble Denton is bringing in over 100 yearsof experience in the offshore field, e.g. know-how in un-10 energıze renewables