Eco-Group expands to insulation
Eco Group has sold half its shares to F. Schembri Holdings, raising €1.5 million which will be used to fund a new venture producing polyurethane boards, used as internal wall insulation as well as underfloor lining to beat moisture. The boards are much...
Eco Group has sold half its shares to F. Schembri Holdings, raising €1.5 million which will be used to fund a new venture producing polyurethane boards, used as internal wall insulation as well as underfloor lining to beat moisture. The boards are much thinner than the polystyrene insulation currently used - and more efficient with higher specifications.
The group applied for the factory in Bulebel three years ago - but by the time it is ready at the end of this month, managing director Louis Borg fears that the group will already have outgrown the 1,000 sq.m.
"There has been so much happening since we applied. We are already looking for more space!" he said.
"Because insulation means lower utility bills, the boards pay for themselves in just a few years. The November 2006 Buildings Regulations envisaged mandatory insulation if buildings are to be certified as eco-friendly. But this requirement has never been enforced. It is a real shame. We encourage people to have energy-efficient white goods but not energy-efficient homes and offices!" he said.
"Why aren't other methods used to cool or heat the building?"
The group, set up in 2000 at the Corradino Business Incubation Centre, has rapidly built up a presence in environmental applications, starting off with solar-energy systems and energy-saving devices ranging from pre-heaters for boilers to reflective film for glass panes. Mr Borg also made a name for himself doing energy audits for industrial concerns. The factory at Bulebel will be carbon dioxide neutral, thanks to clever use of insulation and renewable energy.
He recently went into new areas of technology. One of these is solar cooling, which uses the same thermal solar panel system to heat and cooling. One of these will operate at Dar Il-Wens.
"We are using solar power to run a chiller which uses ammonia to lower the temperature, circulated through underfloor pipes, which can also be used for heating. Imagine," he laughed. "We could have an indoor ski-rink, just like Dubai has!"
"If temperatures rise because of global warming, then cooling systems will be in great demand - and as the price of oil goes up, other forms of cooling will be sought as electricity generated from fossil fuels will be more and more expensive to produce."
He also believes that more will have to be done to reduce electricity demand if Malta is to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions in line with EU targets - or face fines.
"It will be very hard to make the dramatic reductions needed by 2010 as you are talking about a completely different consumption culture. But we can easily reach the 2020 reduction targets, as long as we start taking action now."
Another area of research that he is looking into is car batteries.
"I don't like car batteries because it takes so much energy to make them - and to dispose of them. Because their efficiency is so low, battery cars would be limited to Mdina or Valletta. Yet, it is actually better in many cases to use a car that runs on fossil fuel than one run on electricity generated from fossil fuels!" he explained ."
He is now looking at a completely new idea: Mixing the carbon dioxide from the exhaust gas with water to create methane - which is then used as the fuel to run the car.
"The technology is quite straightforward and is based on well-known chemical principles. The system is not cost-effective in a car because it would take so long to pay for itself - although it will get cheaper as we do more research. But with a van or truck, which is much heavier and therefore uses more diesel, the payback can be as little as 20 to 42 weeks," he said.
Renewable energy is much more than a business to Mr Borg. He is convinced that people would adopt the energy if there were the right incentives - and if they could be persuaded that it actually makes sound financial sense in the longer-term. He wants to donate a 50 sq.m. solar panel to be installed in a roundabout that would change orientation to track the sun. "It would be able to generate an average of 42Kw a day which means that the roundabout would be energy self-sufficient - for lighting and irrigation, for example - and would probably have enough left over to sell to the grid. So it could generate revenue to pay for its own landscaping," he said enthusiastically.
He is also a firm believer in using the tried and tested, rather than trying to reinvent the wheel.
"For years, we had windmills dotting our countryside which farmers used to draw up water. Now we are talking about huge windfarms to generate electricity. Why not have many more small windmills that do the same thing?" he said, tapping a brochure for the simple tower and windmill, connected to an alternator which converts the rotational energy of the drive shaft into a three-phase alternating current.
"They were actually a picturesque part of our landscape."
The group applied for the factory in Bulebel three years ago - but by the time it is ready at the end of this month, managing director Louis Borg fears that the group will already have outgrown the 1,000 sq.m.
"There has been so much happening since we applied. We are already looking for more space!" he said.
"Because insulation means lower utility bills, the boards pay for themselves in just a few years. The November 2006 Buildings Regulations envisaged mandatory insulation if buildings are to be certified as eco-friendly. But this requirement has never been enforced. It is a real shame. We encourage people to have energy-efficient white goods but not energy-efficient homes and offices!" he said.
"Why aren't other methods used to cool or heat the building?"
The group, set up in 2000 at the Corradino Business Incubation Centre, has rapidly built up a presence in environmental applications, starting off with solar-energy systems and energy-saving devices ranging from pre-heaters for boilers to reflective film for glass panes. Mr Borg also made a name for himself doing energy audits for industrial concerns. The factory at Bulebel will be carbon dioxide neutral, thanks to clever use of insulation and renewable energy.
He recently went into new areas of technology. One of these is solar cooling, which uses the same thermal solar panel system to heat and cooling. One of these will operate at Dar Il-Wens.
"We are using solar power to run a chiller which uses ammonia to lower the temperature, circulated through underfloor pipes, which can also be used for heating. Imagine," he laughed. "We could have an indoor ski-rink, just like Dubai has!"
"If temperatures rise because of global warming, then cooling systems will be in great demand - and as the price of oil goes up, other forms of cooling will be sought as electricity generated from fossil fuels will be more and more expensive to produce."
He also believes that more will have to be done to reduce electricity demand if Malta is to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions in line with EU targets - or face fines.
"It will be very hard to make the dramatic reductions needed by 2010 as you are talking about a completely different consumption culture. But we can easily reach the 2020 reduction targets, as long as we start taking action now."
Another area of research that he is looking into is car batteries.
"I don't like car batteries because it takes so much energy to make them - and to dispose of them. Because their efficiency is so low, battery cars would be limited to Mdina or Valletta. Yet, it is actually better in many cases to use a car that runs on fossil fuel than one run on electricity generated from fossil fuels!" he explained ."
He is now looking at a completely new idea: Mixing the carbon dioxide from the exhaust gas with water to create methane - which is then used as the fuel to run the car.
"The technology is quite straightforward and is based on well-known chemical principles. The system is not cost-effective in a car because it would take so long to pay for itself - although it will get cheaper as we do more research. But with a van or truck, which is much heavier and therefore uses more diesel, the payback can be as little as 20 to 42 weeks," he said.
Renewable energy is much more than a business to Mr Borg. He is convinced that people would adopt the energy if there were the right incentives - and if they could be persuaded that it actually makes sound financial sense in the longer-term. He wants to donate a 50 sq.m. solar panel to be installed in a roundabout that would change orientation to track the sun. "It would be able to generate an average of 42Kw a day which means that the roundabout would be energy self-sufficient - for lighting and irrigation, for example - and would probably have enough left over to sell to the grid. So it could generate revenue to pay for its own landscaping," he said enthusiastically.
He is also a firm believer in using the tried and tested, rather than trying to reinvent the wheel.
"For years, we had windmills dotting our countryside which farmers used to draw up water. Now we are talking about huge windfarms to generate electricity. Why not have many more small windmills that do the same thing?" he said, tapping a brochure for the simple tower and windmill, connected to an alternator which converts the rotational energy of the drive shaft into a three-phase alternating current.
"They were actually a picturesque part of our landscape."