Clean energy startup idea from Finland

[IslandMode]

Actually no. This is a forum and members are permitted to post whatever they want within the rules. Not sure how pointing out I disagree this your assertion is bullying or harassment. That's the whole point of a discussion.

I am interested in the whole energy sector (especially as my clients are in that business). But I'm not at all clear how you are involved and how it can help me here in the UK.

If you're commenting off topic and attacking my person with only malicious intention, it's harassment. I'm not here to discuss cultural differences, but sure it's always a fascinating side topic, which I'm aware of. I was called a robot so I just commented that I am doing my best to give an professional impression, so that might be the reason why I seem robotic like AI. In my culture it's respectable to be as professional as possible. Maybe in your culture all the really fun and entertaining people with extravagant personality get the business, but in my culture we observe competence and do not expect to be entertained.

 

[Shopclicks]

Wood emits only about half of its carbon when it burns, so it's not only net-zero, but actually carbon negative.

You might need a bit more research on that topic. Wood releases 100% of its carbon when burnt.

And don't forget to factor in the process of cutting the tree down through to burning it.

 

[IslandMode]

You have not said what you do.

You have not said what you want.

You keep on commenting on something that is already happening in the UK.

Tell us how well your business is performing in Germany.

I have explained in every single comment that I design microgrids. Microgrid is the final product after you bundle different renewable energy resources to produce your own electricity. It's not a standard product because each microgrid is a tailored solution. It's a power grid that's micro scale, which means that's it's just between few kilowatts and few megawatts depending on the customers need and desire. The name of the brand says that. It's Island Mode Microgrids. When a microgrid stands alone isolated and autonomously, it's called Island Mode. It's an actual thing. You can look it up. It's a growing trend with the transition to renewables which is being pushed by world political circumstances whether we like it or not.

I said, I'm looking for business partners in the UK, who want to sell and design microgrids with me. I have researched the UK and US market and I am focued on the UK and US market because I have detected that these markets are behind in this development, because there is much political resistance by the extremeist lobbies. The right wing populists are sponsored by the fossils industry and the other extreme, the greens are just unhinged about for example biomass and they just want to ruin and destroy the economiy.

 

[IslandMode]

You might need a bit more research on that topic. Wood releases 100% of its carbon when burnt.

And don't forget to factor in the process of cutting the tree down through to burning it.

No, wood does not disintegrate 100% when it burns. When you burn wood, a large visible amount of coal and ashes are left in the fireplace. This doesn't require research. Any sane person just knows this.

 

[Shopclicks]

Nobody used the term disintegrate.

When wood is burnt efficiently it leaves ash. Ash contains next to no carbon.

 

[IslandMode]

Nobody used the term disintegrate.

When wood is burnt efficiently it leaves ash. Ash contains next to no carbon.

Ok, anyway it's determined by law that wood is renewable and at least low-carbon emission. The burners and boilers on the market must fulfill the modern requirements and are therefore permitted. So there's really nothing to debate here.

 

[Gecko001]

No, wood does not disintegrate 100% when it burns. When you burn wood, a large visible amount of coal and ashes are left in the fireplace. This doesn't require research. Any sane person just knows this.

I have been burning logs in my fireplace all winter and the amount of ash produced is tiny compared to the amount of wood burned. Several large 20L buckets of logs reduce to a couple or three inches of ash in a 250X250mm tray. That amounts to less than 1% of ash in terms of volume. BTW I am a sane person, but I am beginning to think I am insane for taking part in this thread.

 

[NickGrogan]

Any sane person just knows this.

I thought you were being polite and professional?

it's determined by law that wood is renewable

That doesnt make it true. Do you think the atmosphere cares what is written in UK/Finnish law?

Burning something now, and saying you might absorb that CO2 at some point in the future, maybe, if all goes well is not net zero. Finnish forests are struggling at the moment, in case you haven't noticed.

There are a large number of small heat networks and CHP sites in the UK, and a lot more in development, many tied to data centers. All are variations on microgrids.

Ignoring your lack of knowledge on biomass and forestry, what are you actually offering?

I don't mean what has Finland done, in general, I mean you specifically.

 

[IslandMode]

You have not said what you do.

You have not said what you want.

You keep on commenting on something that is already happening in the UK.

Tell us how well your business is performing in Germany.

I'll give you an example. There's an interesting company in Horsham, England named Ceres Power Holdings plc that developes Solid Oxide Fuel Cell technology. This technology has been around for some time already, but it hasn't taken off. This company isn't doing very well because people just aren't aware and familiar with this technology. We need to create a market for it. We need a real boom. A trendy new business. People need to realize it and all its benefits. We need a brand that presents these benefits and shows people how it's done.

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells alone are micro CHP's and microgrids, but to really stand alone and energy arbitrage, you need also a battery energy storage system (BESS) that stores the electricity until the price is high. You can couple your SOFC with some solar panels to ensure a good surplus to sell the the main grid. Now you have a bundle of three renewable energy sources which together give a reliable stable output. You have solar power, you have batteries and you have the Solid Oxide Fuel Cell. So here's an example of a tailored microgrid.

 

[IslandMode]

I have been burning logs in my fireplace all winter and the amount of ash produced is tiny compared to the amount of wood burned. Several large 20L buckets of logs reduce to a couple or three inches of ash in a 250X250mm tray. That amounts to less than 1% of ash in terms of volume. BTW I am a sane person, but I am beginning to think I am insane for taking part in this thread.

Yes, my whole point is that it's pointless to discuss morality of wood burning over and over because it's determined by law and I would appreciate it if you'd stop disturbing with your childish comments if you're not really interested but just some bored people. If you were real business people, you would understand that my time is extremelly valuable and you are buying it every moment. You can't steal my time boys. We live in a rule of law and law determines what is right and what is wrong., this is especially convenient for business people, because it saves time, when we don't need to ponder ethics in every turn. We can just check what the law says. Legality is one of a CEO's key responsibilites.

 

[NickGrogan]

I'll give you an example. There's an interesting company in Horsham, England named Ceres Power Holdings plc that developes Solid Oxide Fuel Cell technology. This technology has been around for some time already, but it hasn't taken off. This company isn't doing very well because people just aren't aware and familiar with this technology. We need to create a market for it. We need a real boom. A trendy new business. People need to realize it and all its benefits. We need a brand that presents these benefits and shows people how it's done.

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells alone are micro CHP's and microgrids, but to really stand alone and energy arbitrage, you need also a battery energy storage system (BESS) that stores the electricity until the price is high. You can couple your SOFC with some solar panels to ensure a good surplus to sell the the main grid. Now you have a bundle of three renewable energy sources which together give a reliable stable output. You have solar power, you have batteries and you have the Solid Oxide Fuel Cell. So here's an example of a tailored microgrid.

The company who's share price went from 79 to 800 in the last 12 months?

Yep, clearly struggling.

And what they really need is a trendy brand?

Are you a marketer or an energy expert?

 

[IslandMode]

I thought you were being polite and professional?


That doesnt make it true. Do you think the atmosphere cares what is written in UK/Finnish law?

Burning something now, and saying you might absorb that CO2 at some point in the future, maybe, if all goes well is not net zero. Finnish forests are struggling at the moment, in case you haven't noticed.

There are a large number of small heat networks and CHP sites in the UK, and a lot more in development, many tied to data centers. All are variations on microgrids.

Ignoring your lack of knowledge on biomass and forestry, what are you actually offering?

I don't mean what has Finland done, in general, I mean you specifically.

Yes, but it makes it legal and therefore ethical, so that you don't really have a case against me or anyone. You can only disturb people with your personal moralizing and see if anyone cares about your opinions. Business people usually don't have the time to care about your individual opinions. We only care about what is legal. Time is money in business, so I hope you can actually afford mine. I design microgrids. There is not standard microgrid. Each one is tailored for the specific need.

 

[NickGrogan]

Yes, but it makes it legal and therefore ethical, so that you don't really have a case against me or anyone. You can only disturb people with your personal moralizing and see if anyone cares about your opinions. Business people usually don't have the time to care about your individual opinions. We only care about what is legal. Time is money in business, so I hope you can actually afford mine. I design microgrids. There is not standard microgrid. Each one is tailored for the specific need.

The law is a floor, not a ceiling.

my time is extremelly valuable

No its not, it is worth whatever people will pay for it.

Can you link to any specific projects you've worked on?

 

[IslandMode]

The company who's share price went from 79 to 800 in the last 12 months?

Yep, clearly struggling.

And what they really need is a trendy brand?

Are you a marketer or an energy expert?

Ok, I didn't know that. I was looking at last years data. It says on the Wikipedia page that they were struggling last year. I actually just picked a random company from the UK for this example, but you see now how I am in the center of the current new boom because I know what's trending without looking at stock markets. I'm an energy expert but I am also a marketer. The point with a brand is to promote technologies. Creating bundles is a sales strategy. A microgrid is a bundled final product.

 

[NickGrogan]

Can you link to any specific projects you've worked on?

 

[IslandMode]

The law is a floor, not a ceiling.



No its not, it is worth whatever people will pay for it.

Can you link to any specific projects you've worked on?

My time is my property and I price my own time. You do not price my time. You are free to buy or not buy, but you are not free to waste my time, which is my property and has an intrinsic value. That's how free market capitalism works boy. I could charge you now for teaching you basics of free market capitalism.

 

[IslandMode]

Can you link to any specific projects you've worked on?

I have not worked on any projects. I'm a new startup. It says that in the topic.

 

[NickGrogan]

My time is my property and I price my own time. You do not price my time. You are free to buy or not buy, but you are not free to waste my time, which is my property and has an intrinsic value. That's how free market capitalism works boy. I could charge you now for teaching you basics of free market capitalism.

Go on then. lol.

 

[NickGrogan]

I have not worked on any projects. I'm a new startup. It says that in the topic.

I am a microgrid expert from Finland

So not an expert? That explains a lot.

 

[IslandMode]

So not an expert? That explains a lot.

No, I'm an expert. I have studied extensively. You become an expert by studying and acquiring knowledge and when you're confident enough, you can then go on and make a living with your professional knowledge. See that's how society works. You do not determine anything about me. You're just a Communist with a suspicious mindset and you're trying to interrogate me, but see this is a free world and I may choose myself what I do and how I market myself and you are free to buy or not buy, but you can't harass everyone and waste their time, just because you suspect in your Marxist mind that all business people are frauds.

 

[IslandMode]

How long ago did you leave university?

How would I know that SOFC are a hot product right now if I'm not an expert? Huh, Sherlock? How would I know that without spending time studying what is what?

 

[NickGrogan]

Solid Oxide Fuel Cell technology. This technology has been around for some time already, but it hasn't taken off.

How would I know that SOFC are a hot product right now

You specifically said its not a hot product less than 2 hours ago.

You also don't know how to burn wood or plant a tree, so not entirely sure what you have studied.

 

[Ozzy]

Wasn't really sure where to trim this thread, but took a stab and picked a spot since it was really going nowhere fast. Needless to say, yeah...

 

[cjd]

Microgrid is the product. If it's for only one household then it's actually called a nanogrid.

That's the name of the product - what EXACTLY is it? Tell us what it is, what it does and why it's better than its competitors. Are you making it yourself? Is it patented? Just what is you business model?

 

[tony84]

I have always wondered why we never went down the route of tidal and hydro power.
With some pretty big rivers and surrounded by the sea, you almost feel like we have an endless supply of both. Maybe not enough to power the country but more consistent than wind or solar.

 

[IslandMode]

That's the name of the product - what EXACTLY is it? Tell us what it is, what it does and why it's better than its competitors. Are you making it yourself? Is it patented? Just what is you business model?

It's a tailored bundle of renewable energy resource options, which are orchestrated in a stand alone micro scale grid. You can use it for energy self-reliance or energy arbitrage by selling electricity to the main grid, or simply both. It's an actual thing. You can look it up. The wider public isn't just aware that it's possible, but there is an economic boom right around renewable now with the energy crisis together with the AI boom. A stable and reliable microgrid requires professional planning for each individual need, so I design microgrids.

 

[IslandMode]

I have always wondered why we never went down the route of tidal and hydro power.
With some pretty big rivers and surrounded by the sea, you almost feel like we have an endless supply of both. Maybe not enough to power the country but more consistent than wind or solar.

Yes, hydro is definitely one of the best renewable resources, because it's much more stable than wind and solar and it's low maintenance and completely free. The thing is that it's not collective power generation as with dispatchable power sources that are monopolized. With renewables the means of production is given to you and me. You have to break free from the energy nanny state mindset and realize that it's up to you to make yourself energy self-reliant and an energy arbitrageur by investing in a microgrid.

 

[Shopclicks]

A stable and reliable microgrid requires professional planning for each individual need, so I design microgrids.

UK energy suppliers are already in this business. I would have thought the minimum requirement to design a microgrid would be an electrical engineering degree?

 

[IslandMode]

UK energy suppliers are already in this business. I would have thought the minimum requirement to design a microgrid would be an electrical engineering degree?

No, it's a free market where anyone can compete with energy production. It's not a monopoly anymore for only licensed operators. That's the whole point here. The laws have changed completely to help this transition. The installation of electric systems require an electrical engineer.

 

[IslandMode]

UK energy suppliers are already in this business. I would have thought the minimum requirement to design a microgrid would be an electrical engineering degree?

Really? You think so? Where on earth will we find such person?

 

[Shopclicks]

No, it's a free market where anyone can compete with energy production. It's not a monopoly anymore for only licensed operators. That's the whole point here. The laws have changed completely to help this transition. The installation of electric systems require an electrical engineer.

If that's the case .... I could design a microgrid?

Of course I wouldn't recommend anybody connect it to their house because the house may burn down. but I could design the system ...right?

 

[IslandMode]

If that's the case .... I could design a microgrid?

Of course I wouldn't recommend anybody connect it to their house because the house may burn down. but I could design the system ...right?

Yes, it's required by law that an electrical engineer installs it because it's dangerous to do it yourself. I'm not an electrical engineer. I'm a business person. I'm a professional CEO. These are two separate professions. You see a company is a unit. A team of different professionals. There might also be an accountant that keeps book for the company. It's an other function that requires a professional.

 

[Shopclicks]

I'm a professional CEO.

You no doubt have a marketing plan then. How are you going to spread the word and target clients?

 

[NickGrogan]

I have always wondered why we never went down the route of tidal and hydro power.
With some pretty big rivers and surrounded by the sea, you almost feel like we have an endless supply of both. Maybe not enough to power the country but more consistent than wind or solar.

Hydro works best when you have got a big source and a long drop. Things like Hoover Dam in USA.

We have a few locations that would work, mainly in Scotland/Wales/Lake District.

Flooding these valleys would be a good idea from a water storage and power generation POV, but is not very popular with the locals.

Tidal is a similar problem, in that a lot of potential sources - Forth, Severn, etc are used by boats a lot, so restricting the flow has issues.

There are some very strong ocean currents, but they are mainly around Shetland - too far away to be useful.

 

[IslandMode]

Hydro works best when you have got a big source and a long drop. Things like Hoover Dam in USA.

We have a few locations that would work, mainly in Scotland/Wales/Lake District.

Flooding these valleys would be a good idea from a water storage and power generation POV, but is not very popular with the locals.

Tidal is a similar problem, in that a lot of potential sources - Forth, Severn, etc are used by boats a lot, so restricting the flow has issues.

There are some very strong ocean currents, but they are mainly around Shetland - too far away to be useful.

No, see there's also micro hydro power plants. This is exactly why you need professional consultancy. You don't know what's out there and how it works because you have not studied the market.

 

[fisicx]

No, see there's also micro hydro power plants. This is exactly why you need professional consultancy. You don't know what's out there and how it works because you have not studied the market.

Not really. I don’t have a river from which to generate electricity. Can’t install a wind turbine. But I have got solar power.

Didn’t need a professional consultant.

 

[Gecko001]

Yes, my whole point is that it's pointless to discuss morality of wood burning over and over because it's determined by law and I would appreciate it if you'd stop disturbing with your childish comments if you're not really interested but just some bored people. If you were real business people, you would understand that my time is extremelly valuable and you are buying it every moment. You can't steal my time boys. We live in a rule of law and law determines what is right and what is wrong., this is especially convenient for business people, because it saves time, when we don't need to ponder ethics in every turn. We can just check what the law says. Legality is one of a CEO's key responsibilites.

This is a forum where most of the members have many years of business experience. I, for example, have had 25 years of running my own consultancy firm in the engineering field and before that worked for decades in that sector.

My comments were intended as humour. Humour is generally welcomed on this forum. If you stick around this forum you will see that the other people here who have run businesses for many years, appreciate humour on occasions.

Your time is not any more valuable than any other member of this forum.

 

[IslandMode]

Not really. I don’t have a river from which to generate electricity. Can’t install a wind turbine. But I have got solar power.

Didn’t need a professional consultant.

Right, but that's not a stand alone microgrid or an energy farm investment. I'm selling stand alone microgrids for energy self-reliance. What makes it stand alone, is that it has a reliable and stable output. This requires planning.

 

[NickGrogan]

No, see there's also micro hydro power plants. This is exactly why you need professional consultancy. You don't know what's out there and how it works because you have not studied the market.

Yes I know, I also know how many commercial properties there are in the UK, and how many are close to rivers.

I also know the Environment Agency exists and that even if you have a decent energy usage and a river on your property you cant just start using it to generate power.

Any truly viable sites have already been developed, some many many years ago.

 

[IslandMode]

This is a forum where most of the members have many years of business experience. I, for example, have had 25 years of running my own consultancy firm in the engineering field and before that worked for decades in that sector.

My comments were intended as humour. Humour is generally welcomed on this forum. If you stick around this forum you will see that the other people here who have run businesses for many years, appreciate humour on occasions.

Your time is not any more valuable than any other member of this forum.

Ok, nice to meet you sir, but there was clearly little bit of "let's bully the new guy and see what he's made of" wibe going on yesterday. I don't mind that. I can defend myself and bully back and laugh at you. I don't get sad or depressed because I get even. My time might however be more valuable than someone else's time. Peoples time do have different value depending on their skills. I'm fluent in three languages and am a professional CEO. CEO's tend to generally make more money than janitors, so I don't really understand where your argument that "each peoples time is equally valuable" comes from. Sounds like communism to me. I'm from East-Europe and I'm very much against communism.