US Grid Battery Storage

[shtferbrains]

What difference does Canada make if China uses 4.2 billion tons of coal and has 20x Canada's use going up as new builds?

They arn't playing your game.

[Hamloc]

Which politicians? Which environmental groups? They don't all have the same views on what needs to be done do they?

All of the above mentioned sources of electricity except for coal generation, which is on its way out in Canada. Plus carbon capture and storage for the remaining fossil fuel plants.

I am guessing of course because net zero is likely to be a relatively long way off and who knows what will happen.

Environmental groups: Greenpeace, Sierra Club, Equiterre all push renewables as the answer, Equiterre being based in Quebec is one of the few that is accepting of Hydro. Politicians? Jagmeet Singh, Elizabeth May, Steven Guilbeault. Those are the first ones that come to my mind Chuck. Oh and I forgot the NFU.

[shtferbrains]

Don’t you get that warm and fuzzy feeling setting a good example for the rest of the world??

Sure, right up until they kick your ass!!!

Boy Scouts don't seem to get the respect they once did.

China doesn't understand the principle.

[AlbertaFarmer5]

Chinook wind blew into Alberta yesterday. Went from 35 below a couple of days ago, to -25 yesterday morning, to plus 1 by 3:00 AM this morning here.
Wind production went from basically zero for the length of this cold spell, now most wind farms at or close to 100% capacity. Same as has been observed every winter that we have been observing the trend.
So at least that is predictable.
Unfortunately, my biggest energy needs are during the coldest weather. Stock waterers, heat tapes, block heaters, battery chargers, bin fans to freeze tough grain, plus, when we all switch to electric heat, the highest demands on generation by far will occur during the cold wind droughts, heating needs falling precipitously when the Chinook blows in.

This has occurred enough times during winter to assume it isn't random, but a reliable indicator.
Wind power production is exactly 180 degrees out of phase with consumption in winter in Alberta. Just like solar at our latitude in winter.May be completely different in other locations. And as pointed out above, solar is not going to be any help in the depths of winter.

[Hamloc]

Chinook wind blew into Alberta yesterday. Went from 35 below a couple of days ago, to -25 yesterday morning, to plus 1 by 3:00 AM this morning here.
Wind production went from basically zero for the length of this cold spell, now most wind farms at or close to 100% capacity. Same as has been observed every winter that we have been observing the trend.
So at least that is predictable.
Unfortunately, my biggest energy needs are during the coldest weather. Stock waterers, heat tapes, block heaters, battery chargers, bin fans to freeze tough grain, plus, when we all switch to electric heat, the highest demands on generation by far will occur during the cold wind droughts, heating needs falling precipitously when the Chinook blows in.

This has occurred enough times during winter to assume it isn't random, but a reliable indicator.
Wind power production is exactly 180 degrees out of phase with consumption in winter in Alberta. Just like solar at our latitude in winter.May be completely different in other locations. And as pointed out above, solar is not going to be any help in the depths of winter.

When I read press releases about a new solar production facility they always say to power so many homes. This is technically correct based on total yearly output but of in actual use of course it would over produce for that given number of houses during the day in the summer, under produce for the given number of houses during the day in the middle of winter and of course supply no electricity to any of the houses during the night in all seasons. To a great extent fake news. The new Travers facility being built in Lamond has contracted its electricity to Amazon. In the same CBC article it says “it’ll produce a sustainable source of energy for more than 150000 homes.” Further down in the article “Amazon, which has signed a deal to buy up to 400 MW of electricity from the project.” So which is it? Electricity for homes or so Amazon can greenwash its operations lol?

[AlbertaFarmer5]

Our one day Chinook ran out of wind last night. High of -23 today. And predictably, wind power is down to almost nothing again. Just when we need the energy the most.

[chuckChuck]

Our one day Chinook ran out of wind last night. High of -23 today. And predictably, wind power is down to almost nothing again. Just when we need the energy the most.

So your power went off then?

Do you think the utilities just might have a plan for backup and base load when intermittents aren't producing?

What happens when they shut down a coal or gas plant for maintenance?

[jazz]

Its tiresome nuking the renewable unicorns every day.

I would listen to Bjorn who is the most sensible environmentalist on the planet. He woke up a decade ago but some are still at it buried in delusion.

[shtferbrains]

So your power went off then?

Do you think the utilities just might have a plan for backup and base load when intermittents aren't producing?

What happens when they shut down a coal or gas plant for maintenance?

They have some solar thermal plants that run on steam turbines like a gas plant and use some gas to fire it at start up and shut down. The gas works so well they just use it a lot of the time but it kind of blows the sales for greenwashing credibility.

Why don't we just try use the gas plants for baseload and use the intermittent to supply when the baseload can't handle it?

Or maybe that is what we are doing here today. Doesn't look good.

[AlbertaFarmer5]

More from Bjorn:

How much is a couple of minutes of electricity storage?

Not much

Every year in Germany, there are more than 5 days (120hr/7,320 minutes) with almost no wind, and every 10 years almost 8 days without wind (186hr/11,160minutes)

Puts it into perspective how inadequate the 1 minute of storage is.
And how expensive storage would be, in spite of Chuck's insistence that it is getting cheaper and that solar is the lowest cost.