4 ms·
No, it is meant to beat base load plants, that is oil, coal, natural gas, biomass, geothermal and hydroelectric. Wind is somewhat bad as base load plant as the
by AstralStorm 8y ago
No, it is meant to beat base load plants, that is oil, coal, natural gas, biomass, geothermal and hydroelectric.
Wind is somewhat bad as base load plant as there are serious lulls when wind is relatively globally low.
- Retric 8y agoBase load power is inherently less useful than peaking power plants as the demand curve while predictable is extremely variable. Power companies build as many of them as they can get away with because they are cheap, not because there is some inherent advantage to steady state power. Wind competes in exactly the same niche as the price is low though with some additional downsides. As you build more of them there is less utility in base load power as you end up producing wasted electricity production ever more frequently. PS: Hydroelectric is generally the ideal peaking power plant as it’s cheap, the downside is you can’t build many if them.
- kbenson 8y ago> Hydroelectric is generally the ideal peaking power plant as it’s cheap, the downside is you can’t build many if them. What ever happened to the offshore hydroelectric turbines we were supposed to get? I think is was 15-20 years ago they were being touted as one of the next big power systems.
- Retric 8y agoThe ocean is a really difficult place to leave equipment. Short term small scale tests looked promising, but scaling up never really worked out.