Northern Region wins centers of excellence

The Eletrobras and the Federal University of Pará (UFPA), inaugurated on April 7 the Center of Excellence in Energy Efficiency in the Amazon (Ceamazon), Belém (PA). The goal is to stimulate the Ceamazon research on energy efficiency and encourage the training of professionals in the practice of energy conservation, contributing to the technological and economic development of the North. The inauguration is part of the actions of Procel Education subprogram of the National Program for Energy Conservation (Procel).

The Ceamazon, part of the Park of Science and Technology Guarner, UFPA, began construction in 2006 and had investimemo from $ 3 million of Eletrobras. The center is the second national unity of research in energy efficiency that has the support and encouragement of Eletrobras / Procel. The first was the Center of Excellence in Energy Efficiency (eccentric), located in the Universidade Federal de Itajubá (Unifei) in Minas Gerais, opened in 2006.

Another state that also has the support of Eletrobras in research projects in energy is the Acre. The Eletrobras signed on April 15 an agreement for technical cooperation in partnership with the Federal University of Acre (UFAC), to implement the Energy Centre of Excellence, which will meet the demands of research in energy, especially those involving generation of energy with turbines "bulb" and power transmission DC, to environmental management that these new developments require.

The center will meet the need for qualification of skilled labor, enabling professionals in engineering and information technology, not only in degree, but also offering master's and doctorate.

Acre was chosen for being close to major undertakings, like the mills of St. Anthony and Jirau beyond their transmission lines. Being a fairly flat region, with low head and large flow of water, the plant model has been chosen the "trickle" in which the turbine "bulb" has better utilization. Moreover, the issue of transfer must take into account the existence of forests and large distances between the place of generation and consumer markets. This requires the use of technologies to maximize the amount of energy carried.

The works of construction of the center - which would be on the campus of UFAC - began in May and the first course in electrical engineering will begin in the second half of this year. It will be constituted as a Civil Society Organization of Public Interest (Oscip) and also has a partnership of special-purpose entities Sustainable Energy, San Antonio Energy, Electrical Interconnection of the Madeira and North Brazil Energy Transmission and companies Alstom, Siemens, Voith Hydro, and Impsa Andritz Hydro.

Source: The Electricity Sector