CompositesWorld

MAR 2017

CompositesWorld

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MARCH 2017 36 CompositesWorld This young, up-and-coming wind blade manufacturer was founded to serve the Brazilian wind energy market, but it's poised to do much more. » To get to Aeris Energy, you very likely will pass through Fortaleza, a sunny coastal city of about 3 million people located in the northeast of Brazil in the state of Ceará, just a stone's throw south of the equator. From Fortaleza, you'll drive west on Highway 222 for about 45 minutes, and then turn north on to CE-422, which takes you to the Complexo Industrial e Portuário do Pecém (industrial park), just a few kilometers south of the Port of Pecém, one of the largest in Brazil. You will pass an electrical substation, on your left, before approaching Aeris Energy on the east side of the road, readily identified by a large number of wind blades lined up in expansive, open yards next to the facility's largest buildings. You will park in the lot next to the security station, and as your passport is checked and verified, you notice three things: It is hot, windy and you are, you believe, very far from civilization. It's poor preparation, indeed, for entry into Aeris Energy and the education you're about to receive about its beginnings, the people who work there, the up-close look at its opera- tions and how important this out-of-the-way location is to Aeris, local wind turbine manufacturers and to Brazil. The wind in Brazil To understand the genesis of Aeris Energy, you must first understand the Brazilian wind energy industry. e profile of electricity generation in Brazil is unlike that of other major countries. Brazil is the second largest producer of hydroelectric power in the world (behind China), relying on it for more than 75% of its electricity. Most of the hydropower, naturally, comes from river systems in north and northwestern Brazil, which is far removed from major population centers and thus presents a challenge from an energy transmission and reliability perspective. To stabilize the hydropower situation, Brazil is constructing the 14,000-MW Belo Monte dam on the Xingu River in northern Brazil, which Plant Tour: Aeris Energy, Caucaia, Brazil By Jeff Sloan / Editor-in-Chief

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