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Because environmental regulations and permitting, zoning, land acquisition, health and safety regulations, ensuring there is a financial return for the capital
by snowwindwaves 8y ago
Because environmental regulations and permitting, zoning, land acquisition, health and safety regulations, ensuring there is a financial return for the capital in light of the possibility of changing political environment, etc, all make it harder to get a project to the point of breaking ground.
The power plants i work on are 5-10 years for permitting.
Bc hydro has been studying the site C dam for 35 years and finally started construction but the project was nearly cancelled 2 years in due to changing political winds they were ready to abandon the project with 2 billion dollars already spent.
The engineering and construction is the easy part.
- ebikelaw 8y agoBut I'm talking about a site that's already been flooded, where all the major civil engineering is already complete.
- snowwindwaves 8y agothere would still be new land occupied for penstocks, pumps and power lines. there is still the economic problem, nobody wants a line item on their bill that says "energy storage" or "premium for using as much energy as you want whenever you want". pumped storage doesn't generate any power it just allows you to use 80% of it later. Who is going to put the money out to build something that nobody wants to pay for that we currently get for free from traditional hydro and fossil fuel plants. Those types of regulatory changes don't get sold to the public quickly.