Taipei Gongguan Water Treatment Plant to be Powered by Solar Engergy

Situated in the 17-ha Taipei Water Park at Siyuan Road of Taipei City, the
Gongguan Water Treatment Plant (the Plant) has been operated since 1977. With the
daily treatment capacity of 520,000 tons, the Plant featuring the conventional
treatment process was equipped with the units, such as diversion well, rapid
mixing, flocculation and coagulation, sedimentation, rapid sand filters,
disinfection, sludge dewatering, etc. Over the past years, the Plant has been
expanded and remodeled for several times to maintain efficient operation. It has
also been increasingly threatened by the potential pollution brought along by the
visitors of the Park.

Recently, Sinotech, the initial planner and designer of the Plant, was selected by
the Taipei Water Department (TWD) to render the consulting services for the
Plant’s renovation. The aim of the assignment is to provide safe, reliable, non-
toxic and easy operation covers on the top of treatment units, including eight
flocculation basins, eight sedimentation basins, fourteen rapid sand filters, and
two water collection chambers, with the total area of 13,000 m2, for ensuring the
efficiency of water treatment and preventing water against pollution from
visitors. Another important objective of the assignment is to develop the green
energy for operating treatment facilities and ultimately, contributing the
reduction of carbon emissions in the city. As a consultant of TWD, Sinotech was
entrusted to perform the planning and the design of the solar energy system with
photovoltaic panels (2,570 m2 in area) to be mounted on the top of Nos. 3&4
sedimentation basins and the rooftop of the operation room. According to the
preliminary plan, a number of 1,600 photovoltaic panels is planned to be installed
for having the total capacity of 264 kWp. The annual solar power generated will
thus be 484 MWH, which equals 6.82% of the overall electricity the treatment
consumes yearly. The solar power generating system will be designed to the Plant
in parallel with the existing electricity sourced from Taiwan Power Company, with
the reservation of connection for possible future expansion. The estimated total
cost of the project is about USD7.2 million.

The primary services provided by Sinotech for this assignment are basic design,
detailed design of structural engineering/electrical work/landscaping, tendering,
technical consultation during construction, assistance with client in request for
subsidies given by the city government to cover the cost of photovoltaic panel
installation, etc. To successfully fulfill the requirements, Sinotech will
thoroughly consider the key issues, such as the impacts on the structures from
additional covers built on the existing basins, the style of the remodeled rooftop
of the operation room, the layout and the inclination of photovoltaic panels to
maximize the production of electricity and to harmonize the landscape of the
surroundings, etc.

The renovation of the Plant is anticipated for completion in July 2009. Once
completed, the TWD will be able to secure the water supply quality and save
operating cost of the Plant. Being the first corporate to pursue the clean energy
at the water treatment plant, the TWD will certainly gain its credit for the
efforts devoted to the promotion of the environmental protection and
sustainability. The Plant will also become a real-life example to educate people
about better respecting the environment.