4 ms·

The UK is one of the best positioned countries in the world in terms of natural wind resource. This is because large parts of the north sea are shallow/have ba

The UK is one of the best positioned countries in the world in terms of natural wind resource. This is because large parts of the north sea are shallow/have banks that very large offshore wind farms can be built on. No terrain to get in the way, no people to object about it being close to their house. Scotland is also windy and not that populated and so has quite a few onshore farms. Eg see. https://orsted.com/en/media/newsroom/news/2022/08/20220831559011#:~:text=%C3%98rsted%20is%20proud%20to%20announce,clean%20and%20secure%20renewable%20energy https://orsted.com/en/media/newsroom/news/2022/08/2022083155....

pydry 4y ago
>No people to object about it I'm not sure whether this MP was in the pocket of gas, coal or nuclear interests or whatever but he successfully rounded up residents to NIMBY what would have been the biggest wind farm to date even though it would have barely have been visible. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navitus_Bay_wind_farm https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navitus_Bay_wind_farm I was bitter before. Doubly so now electricity prices are through the roof.
- thomond 4y ago
  > Doubly so now electricity prices are through the roof. Electricity prices would still be through the roof. The prices are all set on the international markets.
  - substation13 4y ago
    It depends who owns the energy production. If the government keeps a stake then they can use the additional profits to shield consumers from prices.
  - leg100 4y ago
    > Electricity prices would still be through the roof. The prices are all set on the international markets. Only to the extent that electricity can be imported and exported via international connectors, which are of course limited in their capacity. Prices are not set internationally, but domestically. Energy is not a tangible, stored commodity like coal which is internationally priced. If what you said was true then America's electricity would be priced the same as Europe's, whereas it is way cheaper. Therefore building out additional electricity production in the UK could well lower prices, depending on matching of demand and supply, agreed prices in contracts, length of contracts, etc, and of course whether additional connectors are deployed.
    - 7952 4y ago
      Gas prices are a big component of electricity prices at the moment and they are mostly imported.
      - makomk 4y ago
        There's actually a similar but much more widespread talking point about gas, claiming the price of that is set on the international market and therefore the UK producing more gas locally would not help reduce prices. That should come with the exact same caveats (only to the extent that it can be imported and exported, American prices are much cheaper for Europe's because of this, and that's likely a big reason why electricity prices are much lower there) but the mainstream media unfortunately ignores them.
        7952 4y ago
        There is also a caveat that any cost savings from locality may be wiped out by higher costs in other areas. It may well be cheaper to invest in the US or Middle East and import as LPG. Transport costs are only one factor. And it is not like domestic supply would have no transport costs either. Running pipelines through rural England to fracking sites is not exactly cheap.
- DrScientist 4y ago
  Didn't know about that one. I note that the successful argument was based on the imagined impact to the tourism industry, rather than the visual effect per se.
- rr888 4y ago
  Scotland has one of the biggest gas fields in Europe, why should it rely on ugly and unreliable Wind turbines? Esp Global Warming probably makes Scotland's climate more comfortable, and its proximity to Greenland means sea levels might even fall.
  - nicoburns 4y ago
    Our economies are linked, so even from a selfish perspective, the effects of global warming will felt even in places where the weather doesn't directly cause problems. If the effects of climate change get bad, we are likely to see widespread war.
  - WhackyIdeas 4y ago
    I am Scottish and I would be proud if all our energy needs were met by non-polluting and abundant resources such as wind and tide. Even if you didn’t believe in man-made global warming, surely the idea of cleaner Scottish air would be a bonus.
    - grey-area 4y ago
      They already are. Scotland has hit 100% renewable energy already on a few days.
      - recursion 4y ago
        This is false. https://fullfact.org/environment/scotland-renewable-energy/ https://fullfact.org/environment/scotland-renewable-energy/
        grey-area 4y ago
        No, it’s not false, that article takes a deliberately obtuse definition and uses it to debunk something which wasn’t claimed. Clearly due to the nature of grids and shared generation nobody can guarantee that all electrons used came from wind power (nor does anyone care!?!) but Scotland is an exporter of energy and at times its entire needs could be met from its renewable generation. Not sure which part of Scotland producing lots of renewable energy you find difficult to cope with, but renewable production is here to stay, cheaper than other sources and a growing part of the mix.
lifeisstillgood 4y ago
Oh - Doggerland About end of the Stone Age ~15,000BC you could still walk from UK to Europe - there is I believe evidence of civilisation and villages down there still.

pydry 4y ago

>No people to object about it I'm not sure whether this MP was in the pocket of gas, coal or nuclear interests or whatever but he successfully rounded up residents to NIMBY what would have been the biggest wind farm to date even though it would have barely have been visible. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navitus_Bay_wind_farm https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navitus_Bay_wind_farm I was bitter before. Doubly so now electricity prices are through the roof.

thomond 4y ago
> Doubly so now electricity prices are through the roof. Electricity prices would still be through the roof. The prices are all set on the international markets.
- substation13 4y ago
  It depends who owns the energy production. If the government keeps a stake then they can use the additional profits to shield consumers from prices.
- leg100 4y ago
  > Electricity prices would still be through the roof. The prices are all set on the international markets. Only to the extent that electricity can be imported and exported via international connectors, which are of course limited in their capacity. Prices are not set internationally, but domestically. Energy is not a tangible, stored commodity like coal which is internationally priced. If what you said was true then America's electricity would be priced the same as Europe's, whereas it is way cheaper. Therefore building out additional electricity production in the UK could well lower prices, depending on matching of demand and supply, agreed prices in contracts, length of contracts, etc, and of course whether additional connectors are deployed.
  - 7952 4y ago
    Gas prices are a big component of electricity prices at the moment and they are mostly imported.
    - makomk 4y ago
      There's actually a similar but much more widespread talking point about gas, claiming the price of that is set on the international market and therefore the UK producing more gas locally would not help reduce prices. That should come with the exact same caveats (only to the extent that it can be imported and exported, American prices are much cheaper for Europe's because of this, and that's likely a big reason why electricity prices are much lower there) but the mainstream media unfortunately ignores them.
      - 7952 4y ago
        There is also a caveat that any cost savings from locality may be wiped out by higher costs in other areas. It may well be cheaper to invest in the US or Middle East and import as LPG. Transport costs are only one factor. And it is not like domestic supply would have no transport costs either. Running pipelines through rural England to fracking sites is not exactly cheap.
DrScientist 4y ago
Didn't know about that one. I note that the successful argument was based on the imagined impact to the tourism industry, rather than the visual effect per se.
rr888 4y ago
Scotland has one of the biggest gas fields in Europe, why should it rely on ugly and unreliable Wind turbines? Esp Global Warming probably makes Scotland's climate more comfortable, and its proximity to Greenland means sea levels might even fall.
- nicoburns 4y ago
  Our economies are linked, so even from a selfish perspective, the effects of global warming will felt even in places where the weather doesn't directly cause problems. If the effects of climate change get bad, we are likely to see widespread war.
- WhackyIdeas 4y ago
  I am Scottish and I would be proud if all our energy needs were met by non-polluting and abundant resources such as wind and tide. Even if you didn’t believe in man-made global warming, surely the idea of cleaner Scottish air would be a bonus.
  - grey-area 4y ago
    They already are. Scotland has hit 100% renewable energy already on a few days.
    - recursion 4y ago
      This is false. https://fullfact.org/environment/scotland-renewable-energy/ https://fullfact.org/environment/scotland-renewable-energy/
      - grey-area 4y ago
        No, it’s not false, that article takes a deliberately obtuse definition and uses it to debunk something which wasn’t claimed. Clearly due to the nature of grids and shared generation nobody can guarantee that all electrons used came from wind power (nor does anyone care!?!) but Scotland is an exporter of energy and at times its entire needs could be met from its renewable generation. Not sure which part of Scotland producing lots of renewable energy you find difficult to cope with, but renewable production is here to stay, cheaper than other sources and a growing part of the mix.

lifeisstillgood 4y ago

Oh - Doggerland About end of the Stone Age ~15,000BC you could still walk from UK to Europe - there is I believe evidence of civilisation and villages down there still.