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We’re still a long way from figuring out storage for renewables. Here in Ireland in winter we get weeks long periods of calm, cold, overcast weather where renew
by padjo 1y ago
We’re still a long way from figuring out storage for renewables. Here in Ireland in winter we get weeks long periods of calm, cold, overcast weather where renewables generate almost nothing. There’s no known energy storage mechanism that can handle this, so we still have to burn fossil fuels. I don’t doubt we’ll figure it out, but I think skeptics still have a valid point on storage.
- space_firmware 1y agoYeah, it's a struggle. The upshot is most of the cost of combined cycle natural gas peaker plants are the fuel costs, so while storage solutions get figured out, or the renewable get massively overbuilt, you can maintain the FF infra for fairly cheap for the these days.
- robocat 1y agoIncorrect. most of the cost of peaker plants is the capital cost. The fixed costs are high and spread over few hours (peaker) or even no hours at all (just providing ready capacity if required e.g. ready in case of faults with generators or transmission). The variable costs (fuel) are normally quite irrelevant.
- ZeroGravitas 1y agoIreland already has the gas capacity built though. It provides about 50% of their power today, so they just need to phase it down and then out, not build it from scratch. This is broadly true of most developed nations.
- badpun 1y agoIf the standby gas capacity is needed to cover a majority of country's needs a few times a year, can it really be phased down?
- adrianN 1y agoYou can always produce hydrogen or methane and use ordinary gas turbines to turn it back to electricity.
- padjo 1y agoIn theory yes, but in practice we haven’t done it yet and until we have it’s reasonable to be skeptical about it.
- adrianN 1y agoThere are demonstrators being built everywhere.
- padjo 1y agoWhich proves my point?
- adrianN 1y agoFor varying values of „we haven’t done it yet“.
- padjo 1y ago“It” being power a country for any length of time from hydrogen or methane created from renewable energy
- adrianN 1y agoThat is very different from "there is no known mechanism". We also never powered a country exclusively with nuclear energy, but I think most people would agree that it can be done.
- padjo 1y agoThis is very tiresome. The fact is, green hydrogen or methane on a scale that would replace fossil fuels during extended periods of low renewable output is miles from proven technology. I’m a booster of renewable energy but some realism is also warranted.
- sharemywin 1y agoto me this is all % based. 15% natural gas is way better than 90% coal or something like that.