There is a story in the Australian press (Hat Tip: JoNova) showing all of us the huge danger of overloading the grid with renewables. Put aside the fact nothing about renewables makes any economic sense whatsoever. Put aside the fact the whole scam is built on the false premise of a climate crisis. Put aside the fact most large renewable projects face major community opposition. Put aside all of it and we're still left with an obstacle that should strike fear in anyone who gives a damn about energy security.
The story is about Alice Springs, a relatively small town of a little more than 25,000 people that accounts for roughly 10% of the population of Australian's Northern Territory. It appears to be quite the politically correct community having its own Climate Action Plan, although, of course, it's rendered completely pointless by nearby China's overwhelming emissions. It's also a ‘solar city.’ And, it offers 'Green Living Subsidies’ for folks using cloth diapers, reusable sanitary pads and worm farms. So, the reader will get the picture.
The 'solar city’ iniative apparently has led many residents to install solar panels, to the extent 13% of energy in the town is generated from them. This is where it gets interesting as the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation, a state-funded and supposedly ‘independent’ national public broadcaster) story illustrates (emphasis added):
Solar not always the most stable supply
The Alice Springs Future Grid website says if solar panels across the town are generating a lot of power in the middle of the day and a cloud bank suddenly shadows them, their electricity production may drop more quickly than an alternative power source can be drawn upon, leading to a blackout.
In 2019, a "system black" power outage in Alice Springs affecting 12,000 customers led to the the NT government sacking the CEOs of Territory Generation and Power and Water Corporation.
Alice Springs Future Grid director Lyndon Freason said in today's system, there is sometimes lots of solar being produced that is not used by the grid.
"It's becoming increasingly difficult to efficiently absorb more renewables in the middle of the day when the sun is shining, without actually causing instability in the existing generation," he said.
"The ability for the power system to cope with that balance every second of every day ... that's what we call a stable grid."
Non-renewable gas energy from the Owen Springs Power Station is used to stabilise the grid during energy fluctuations and ensure electricity is available as residents need it…
Freason said it was possible to turn off the Owen Springs Power Station and run completely on solar and batteries.
"But the transition between having them on and then having them off is quite technically complex, particularly in a grid such as ours," he said.
"We didn't make a judgement as to what was the preferred option ... what we have determined is in any one of those scenarios, there's common sets of actions that need to be taken today and tomorrow and the day after.
"There's a whole range of different individuals, consumers and investors and government agencies who can think about what they want to do best."
The story is theoretically about a plan the virtue signaling town has to grow renewables generation to 50% of the total needed. Four scenarios are set forth in vague terms as to how this might be done (e.g., battery storage, keeping traditional generation on at all times in order to provide grid stabilisation). But, as any reader can see with their own eyes, there really is no plan per se. There’s only a pipedream and the dangers to the operation of the grid were already proven in 2019. It may be officially called Alice Springs but it's pure Alice in Wonderland.
Moreover, just look at that duck curve. It will only get worse, and quickly, with more renewables. When the bottom of the curve hits total bottom there is only one choice and that is to turn off generation by real power plants or risk great damage to the grid. And, then a dark cloud appears and it turns into a blackout not to mention the high costs and risks to the system for repeatedly starting up and shutting down power plants. Plus, if you think those costs might be significant, think about the price for maintaining power plants that are only occasionaly used does to the cost of electicity. Duplication of dsystems is big-time expensive, especially when you add in the massive subsidies required for renewables.
Everything one needs to know about green energy economics and the huge risk involved in contained in this one story. It's what's happening also in California and what New York is planning for its residents. It's a pleasant dream to green energy true belivers, a bonanza to green energy grifters and a future nightmare for those who become dependent on such green energy. Curiouser and curiouser is why so many of the dreamers are so easily fooled by the grifters. They're becoming gremlins.
#AliceInWonderland #AliceSprings #Renewables #GreenEnergy #ClimateCrisis #GreenGrifters
Ah the “duck curve”. Identified by California ISO in 2014. No way the Aussies could have known about this little “glitch” in their renewal dream. The sun goes down.. why is that so difficult to understand?
There are so many costs to building renewables. First, there's the mis-allocation of capital - think how many other things could have been done with the money invested. Then, there's the cost of subsidies, falling on both the taxpayer and the rate payer. And finally, the cost of lowering our standard of living. And the poor, especially the working poor, who can't afford a rate increase, get hurt the most.