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Meanwhile over here in the UK, the press is blaming the energy crisis partly on the fact that our government didn't spend loads of money on solar and onshore wi
by makomk 4y ago
Meanwhile over here in the UK, the press is blaming the energy crisis partly on the fact that our government didn't spend loads of money on solar and onshore wind like Germany. We're even worse situated to benefit from solar than they are. (The renewable program here is mostly focused on offshore wind, which is the least-bad option given our geography, plus attempts at nuclear that are widely criticized by the press as wastes of money given how much cheaper onshore wind and solar are.)
- ClumsyPilot 4y agoBritain is the best position country in Europe for wind and tidal power. There was a project to pay down cable to import reliable, cheap 24/7 power from Iceland and hobernment said 'nah'. They also cancelled a 340 MW tidal project
- throwaway2037 4y agoReal question: What is the largest tidal power installation in the world? Why do we see so little of it?
- ZeroGravitas 4y agoI think there's a 2MW test turbine off Scotland which I think is the biggest in the world. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-57991351 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-she... Just not as cost effective as wind, which got to piggyback of onshore turbine development.
- wongarsu 4y agoWe don't see large tidal power installations because they are not every economical so far. In theory there's a lot of energy to be won, but the salt water causes corrosion issues, and maintenance gets expensive quickly
- ClumsyPilot 4y agoon the other hand its 100% reliable and needs no fuel, does notndepend on drought, etc.
- throwaway2037 4y agoThis is a very good post. I never before considered the issue of corrosion. To that point, does this also affect offshore wind power generation (turbines)? I guess the difference will be: the turbine is not underwater!
- adgjlsfhk1 4y agooffshore wind is much less effected because all the complicated parts are 100 feet up, and much easier to partially seal.
- Freestyler_3 4y agoBut the UK has HVDC line to norway right?
- ralphhughes 4y agoYes it does, in fact the UK is in the process of building many more HVDC interconnectors (see table in 3rd section of page) https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/energy-policy-and-regulation/policy-and-regulatory-programmes/interconnectors https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/energy-policy-and-regulation/policy...
- spaceman_2020 4y agoIs wind power even worth the investment? From disposal issues to wind turbines killing birds and bird habitats to sheer unreliability, wind seems to have a ton of issues.
- throwaway2037 4y agoYou wrote "disposal issues": As I understand, the current generation of windmill blades are not recycled. Rather, they are sent to landfill (at least in United States -- can someone please comment for other countries that they know about? UK?). Two things to consider: (1) Fiberglass mostly inert and safe to bury. Please correct me if wrong. (2) Can future designs be recycled? I assume yes.
- adgjlsfhk1 4y agowind mills kill way fewer birds than mining does. wind has a few incredibly minor issues, but so does everything, and wind is green and cost effective.