3 ms·

Reminds me of the German government’s decision, made in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, to phase out all German nuclear power: https://en.wikipedia.org/wik

by _iyig 6y ago

Reminds me of the German government’s decision, made in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, to phase out all German nuclear power: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_power_phase-out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_power_phase-out An immediate effect of this decision was to increase Germany’s reliance on fossil fuels, including “brown coal” which is strip-mined in an extraordinarily environmentally-destructive process. Another effect was to increase the German grid’s reliance on nuclear power generated in France.

_ph_ 6y ago
The German grid does not rely on nuclear power from France. Germany is a net exporter. Of course, with an European electricity network, there is a lot of electricity moved around every day, often reversing directions in a few hours, depending on local needs and production.
- revax 6y ago
  It is overall a net exporter but in winter when there is no wind, Germany rely more on its neighborhood. Average are misleading.
  - jnxx 6y ago
    German winters are quite windy, especially near the coast. Solar (photovoltaic) has its maximum around noon, when there is high demand. The irony is that in summer, it has happened in several warm years now that nuclear power plants in France had to shut down - they are cooled by rivers and when the water level becomes too low, they need to shut off to maintain safety and avoid ecological damage. These are the times when Germany exports most electricity to France.
    - Kuinox 6y ago
      Yes, they shut down to not kill the fish in the river, not because the water is not cold enough. But this problem was/will be solved by adding more air cooling.
    - rnhmjoj 6y ago
      > Solar (photovoltaic) has its maximum around noon, when there is high demand. I think it's exactly the opposite: see [1]. It's a increasingly big problem as more renewable sources are deployed. The peak demand happens at mid-evening and morning hours while, as you said, peak production from renewables is around noon. A possible solution is energy storage but, as far as I now, it's not yet common and not always available depending on the location and type of plant. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_curve https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_curve
  - cygx 6y ago
    You're aware that it's France that nearly crashes the European grid every other winter? Some German articles on the topic: 2012: https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Warten-auf-den-Blackout-in-Frankreich-3393061.html https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Warten-auf-den-Blackout-in-... 2017: https://www.heise.de/tp/news/Atom-Frankreich-versucht-Blackout-abzuwenden-3599885.html https://www.heise.de/tp/news/Atom-Frankreich-versucht-Blacko... 2019: https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Alle-Jahre-wieder-Frankreich-am-grossen-Blackout-vorbeigeschrammt-4273544.html https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Alle-Jahre-wieder-Frankreic...
- AceJohnny2 6y ago
  Source (because I didn't trust): https://www.nsenergybusiness.com/features/electricity-export-france/ https://www.nsenergybusiness.com/features/electricity-export...
  - _ph_ 6y ago
    One also has to carefully observe, that while France very often exports to Germany, most of the time, the elektricity is passing through Germany towards the south and eastern neighbour states.
skocznymroczny 6y ago
"brown coal" = lignite

by _iyig 6y ago

_ph_ 6y ago

The German grid does not rely on nuclear power from France. Germany is a net exporter. Of course, with an European electricity network, there is a lot of electricity moved around every day, often reversing directions in a few hours, depending on local needs and production.

revax 6y ago
It is overall a net exporter but in winter when there is no wind, Germany rely more on its neighborhood. Average are misleading.
- jnxx 6y ago
  German winters are quite windy, especially near the coast. Solar (photovoltaic) has its maximum around noon, when there is high demand. The irony is that in summer, it has happened in several warm years now that nuclear power plants in France had to shut down - they are cooled by rivers and when the water level becomes too low, they need to shut off to maintain safety and avoid ecological damage. These are the times when Germany exports most electricity to France.
  - Kuinox 6y ago
    Yes, they shut down to not kill the fish in the river, not because the water is not cold enough. But this problem was/will be solved by adding more air cooling.
  - rnhmjoj 6y ago
    > Solar (photovoltaic) has its maximum around noon, when there is high demand. I think it's exactly the opposite: see [1]. It's a increasingly big problem as more renewable sources are deployed. The peak demand happens at mid-evening and morning hours while, as you said, peak production from renewables is around noon. A possible solution is energy storage but, as far as I now, it's not yet common and not always available depending on the location and type of plant. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_curve https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_curve
- cygx 6y ago
  You're aware that it's France that nearly crashes the European grid every other winter? Some German articles on the topic: 2012: https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Warten-auf-den-Blackout-in-Frankreich-3393061.html https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Warten-auf-den-Blackout-in-... 2017: https://www.heise.de/tp/news/Atom-Frankreich-versucht-Blackout-abzuwenden-3599885.html https://www.heise.de/tp/news/Atom-Frankreich-versucht-Blacko... 2019: https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Alle-Jahre-wieder-Frankreich-am-grossen-Blackout-vorbeigeschrammt-4273544.html https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Alle-Jahre-wieder-Frankreic...
AceJohnny2 6y ago
Source (because I didn't trust): https://www.nsenergybusiness.com/features/electricity-export-france/ https://www.nsenergybusiness.com/features/electricity-export...
- _ph_ 6y ago
  One also has to carefully observe, that while France very often exports to Germany, most of the time, the elektricity is passing through Germany towards the south and eastern neighbour states.

skocznymroczny 6y ago

"brown coal" = lignite