Green, ethical, energy issues in the news

Martyn1981

Slow news day (week?), so I thought perhaps a blast from the past with a site I haven't mentioned for years and dates back to 2009. It shows, to scale, the amount of land area needed to generate enough energy for the World just from PV, and also a map showing the same just from offshore wind. Back when this appeared some folk were suggesting that there simply wasn't enough land (or sea) to build out enough PV and wind.

Obviously these are just for interest, no suggestion that these are singular solutions, but I've always found them eye-opening. And they are based on all energy demand, and account for predicted increases in energy demand in the future. Click on the maps on the site for larger versions easier to see and read.

Land Art Generator









Note that the offshore wind estimates are based on WT sizes and cf's that are already being exceeded - "Powering the world for all forms of energy would require 2.8 million offshore turbines rated at 11 MW peak capacity with an operational capacity factor of 45%"




Also there's a new map from 2021 which takes a more holistic look at things:

michaels

Martyn1981 said:

So, here's another design for a floating offshore WT. The article mentions that it can scale to 15MW+, so that answers a question I had as to how they compare (potentially) to 'normal' WT's sat on seabed monopiles. So I guess all that's left is the economics, but I get the gut feeling that 'floaters' will compare well.

Technip Energies takes stake in Spanish floater designer

Technip Energies has acquired a stake in a Spanish start-up that has designed an offshore wind turbine floating platform with “environmental and operational benefits”.

The design allows for a lighter floater design with a “significantly reduced” steel requirement and for a more efficient and restricted mooring system minimising the impact on seabed. It is scalable for turbines of 15MW capacities and upwards, facilitating cost- effective deployment for large-scale offshore wind farms.

Technip Energies and X1 Wind will collaborate on the development of the first commercial-scale demonstrator, as well as the related industrialisation and commercialisation plans of the technology.

Interesting, this could really change the economics and mean that those shallow ocean bed leases are no longer worth much more than deeper water sites - plus as we mentioned before, being able to position them all around the UK reduces the occasions where they are all becalmed, would need a proper study but I suspect the times that there is no wind anywhere within 50 miles of the UK coast are very much less than the times when the north sea is wind less.

Martyn1981

Another study showing that RE is cheaper than FF's, even without including the enormous externality costs of AGW.


The US could save $5.6B a year if it switched from coal to solar – study

Electricity from solar is cheaper than sourcing it from coal-fired power plants, according to a new article published in the journal Energy and Environmental Materials.

Solar makes more financial sense than coal

The authors of the peer-reviewed study from the University of Surrey in the UK point out that even if no other argument, such as fighting climate change, is accepted for the switch from fossil fuels to renewables, then economics should be reason enough to embrace clean energy.

Electrek’s Take

Of course, solar needs to be balanced with other sources of clean energy, such as wind and hydro, and battery storage is an essential part of the mix to regulate supply and demand.

But what’s overwhelmingly clear is that coal – and indeed, fossil fuels in general – are not only bad for the environment, they’re also a terrible financial choice. That’s the main thrust of this study, and it’s a powerful argument. You can read the study’s editorial here.

Martyn1981

michaels said:

Martyn1981 said:

So, here's another design for a floating offshore WT. The article mentions that it can scale to 15MW+, so that answers a question I had as to how they compare (potentially) to 'normal' WT's sat on seabed monopiles. So I guess all that's left is the economics, but I get the gut feeling that 'floaters' will compare well.

Technip Energies takes stake in Spanish floater designer

Technip Energies has acquired a stake in a Spanish start-up that has designed an offshore wind turbine floating platform with “environmental and operational benefits”.

The design allows for a lighter floater design with a “significantly reduced” steel requirement and for a more efficient and restricted mooring system minimising the impact on seabed. It is scalable for turbines of 15MW capacities and upwards, facilitating cost- effective deployment for large-scale offshore wind farms.

Technip Energies and X1 Wind will collaborate on the development of the first commercial-scale demonstrator, as well as the related industrialisation and commercialisation plans of the technology.

Interesting, this could really change the economics and mean that those shallow ocean bed leases are no longer worth much more than deeper water sites - plus as we mentioned before, being able to position them all around the UK reduces the occasions where they are all becalmed, would need a proper study but I suspect the times that there is no wind anywhere within 50 miles of the UK coast are very much less than the times when the north sea is wind less.

Just in case you're interested, this article from Cleantechnica tells roughly the same story, but goes into some detail explaining the plus' and minus' of a downwind turbine.

Floating Offshore Wind Industry About To Be Disrupted Already

Upwind Vs. Downwind For Offshore Wind Turbines

That thing about “downwind concept” is probably the most interesting thing about X1’s new offshore wind technology. The preferred design for most wind turbines today is to position the blades in front of the tower, facing into the wind. They stick out ahead of the turbine tower, far enough to eliminate any chance of the blades striking the tower. The blades also need to be relatively stiff, to avoid bending into the tower during high wind periods.

As explained by our friends over at the Danish Wind Industry Association — and they should know — the upwind front-of-tower design is preferred because it eliminates shading from the tower, which would cut down on efficiency.

On the downside, the upwind configuration is relatively complicated to engineer, partly because it requires a mechanism to keep the blades in an optimal position facing the wind.

The downwind configuration avoids some of this complexity and provides for increased flexibility, both of which lead to lighter weight and lower costs.

Coastalwatch

A development surely welcomed by all seeking a cleaner future. While it's no silver bullet it's certainly a step along the road to medium term storage so desperately needed. Have to confess to being a little confused as the total power it would deliver, the optimist in me hopes for 1.5GW/hr but suspect it's more likely a total, so perhaps 50MW/hr for the 30 hours of supply!

Happy to be advised whichever one it turns out to be.

ILI Group to develop 1.5GW pumped storage hydro project

Clean energy developer ILI Group has begun the initial planning phase for a new pumped storage hydro project in Scotland.

The Balliemeanoch project at Loch Awe, Dalmally in Argyll and Bute will be able to supply 1.5GW of power for up to 30 hours. It is the third and largest of ILI’s pumped storage hydro projects, with the other two being Red John at Loch Ness and Corrievarkie at Loch Ericht.

https://www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/news/ili_group_to_develop_1.5gw_pumped_storage_hydro_project

ABrass

Coastalwatch said:

A development surely welcomed by all seeking a cleaner future. While it's no silver bullet it's certainly a step along the road to medium term storage so desperately needed. Have to confess to being a little confused as the total power it would deliver, the optimist in me hopes for 1.5GW/hr but suspect it's more likely a total, so perhaps 50MW/hr for the 30 hours of supply!

Happy to be advised whichever one it turns out to be.

ILI Group to develop 1.5GW pumped storage hydro project

Clean energy developer ILI Group has begun the initial planning phase for a new pumped storage hydro project in Scotland.

The Balliemeanoch project at Loch Awe, Dalmally in Argyll and Bute will be able to supply 1.5GW of power for up to 30 hours. It is the third and largest of ILI’s pumped storage hydro projects, with the other two being Red John at Loch Ness and Corrievarkie at Loch Ericht.

https://www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/news/ili_group_to_develop_1.5gw_pumped_storage_hydro_project

It says 58 million cubic meters against Dinorwigs 9.2 million. It does read like it's going to be a (edit: missing decimal point) 1.5GW / 450GWh system.

michaels

ABrass said:

Coastalwatch said:

A development surely welcomed by all seeking a cleaner future. While it's no silver bullet it's certainly a step along the road to medium term storage so desperately needed. Have to confess to being a little confused as the total power it would deliver, the optimist in me hopes for 1.5GW/hr but suspect it's more likely a total, so perhaps 50MW/hr for the 30 hours of supply!

Happy to be advised whichever one it turns out to be.

ILI Group to develop 1.5GW pumped storage hydro project

Clean energy developer ILI Group has begun the initial planning phase for a new pumped storage hydro project in Scotland.

The Balliemeanoch project at Loch Awe, Dalmally in Argyll and Bute will be able to supply 1.5GW of power for up to 30 hours. It is the third and largest of ILI’s pumped storage hydro projects, with the other two being Red John at Loch Ness and Corrievarkie at Loch Ericht.

https://www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/news/ili_group_to_develop_1.5gw_pumped_storage_hydro_project

It says 58 million cubic meters against Dinorwigs 9.2 million. It does read like it's going to be a 15GW / 450GWh system.

Sounds great but only 2% of typical UK daily usage....

QrizB

Octopus Energy are running a trial - the Big Dirty Turn Down - starting today:

https://octopus.energy/blog/the-big-dirty-turn-down-free-electricity-trial

Open to all Octopus customers with (a) a working smart meter and (b) without an export tariff.

I'm pretty sure, having read the blurb, that (b) means an *Octopus* export tariff; my FIT is with EON Next so I've signed up.

michaels

QrizB said:

Octopus Energy are running a trial - the Big Dirty Turn Down - starting today:

https://octopus.energy/blog/the-big-dirty-turn-down-free-electricity-trial

Open to all Octopus customers with (a) a working smart meter and (b) without an export tariff.

I'm pretty sure, having read the blurb, that (b) means an *Octopus* export tariff; my FIT is with EON Next so I've signed up.

Was discussing this elsewhere - effectively a TOU tariff but packaged differently I guess to achieve a bigger nudge - would be great for anyone with a battery!

Verdigris

I'll be up for it. when I get Octopussed, as I rarely put the dinner on before 19:00 hours o'clock.