Green, ethical, energy issues in the news

70sbudgie

I believe that there have also been examples of (wind) generators bidding simply because they know they will be paid to curtail. So they get paid not to do something they weren't going to do anyway. (I think this is another of @zeupater 's points).

Martyn1981

Looks like we have news on the reforms for grid connections, and removing 'zombie projects' that can hold things up.

Ofgem unveils plans to fast-track UK grid connections

Radical reform to fast-track cheaper, cleaner power plugging into the electricity grid is one step closer to becoming a reality, UK energy regulator Ofgem announced today.  

The new connections system, which could be in place in spring 2025, would end the first-come, first-served system where clean energy generation or storage projects cannot get plugged into the grid quickly enough, with some waiting a decade or more.    

Under proposals published today, projects would be fast-tracked if they can be operational quickly and are needed to hit the government’s clean power targets for 2030.

This new system, which prioritises projects that are “ready” and “needed” would see accelerated new offers made by the end of the year, with the first connected and operational from 2026.

The renewable energy industry has today welcomed Ofgem’s plan to remove “zombie projects” from the grid connections queue.

Stephen McKellar, Head of Grid and Networks at Scottish Renewables, said: “As the connections queue has more than 700GW of projects waiting to connect - almost four times the electricity demand we will need by 2050 - we welcome Ofgem’s continued efforts to address this issue through reform.

Kaul added: “Britain will not get a clean power grid by 2030 unless an unprecedented volume of new renewable power and storage is connected to electricity networks – that’s why we’re cutting back the red tape and replacing the out-of-date connections system.” 

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: “We have enough energy projects in the grid connection queue to deliver clean power by 2030, but many are stuck behind speculative schemes, leading to delays of up to 10 years.

“These reforms are critical to deliver clean power by 2030 , which will bring forward an estimated £200 billion of private investment. 

zeupater

70sbudgie said:

There are recent case studies for some of what @zeupater is describing. 

The Viking windfarm has been in the news about huge profits. That is an example of a large wind farm operating outside CfDs because it energised ~18 months early and before it's CfD starts. 

With the recent lack of wind and the tight margins, the some of the gas generators have demonstrated the market manipulation described. There is ~35GW of gas generating capacity and some gas generators, on seeing the day ahead pricing indicating tight margins, have pulled out of the market (reducing the already tight margin) to bid into the balancing mechanism, which then pays out a higher price because the margins just got tighter.

I do have a little sympathy for the gas generators (but don't get me wrong, I whole heartedly disagree with this practice of extreme commercial gain at the expense of everyone else) because the government has recently published their intent that by 2030, gas generation will only make up 5% of the GB generation. Imo, the challenge will be how to structure the market / pricing system so the gas generators earn a fair price for keeping their plants maintained, operational and available for perhaps an 1/8 of their current operation time. How do you keep them "on board" without allowing them to manipulate the market, because currently, when the wind doesn't blow, there isn't really anything else.

Hi

I agree ... in designing a system which can be so easily manipulated, serious questions that haven't been asked should be asked.

An argument could also be made for the current design of the UK energy market bidding process being directly responsible for the sector's lack of interest in fully schedulable green generation (eg tidal flow) with combined storage (tidal lagoon/pumped hydro) which could effectively operate on a fixed cost/margin basis, just as nuclear should if it were cost competitive ... could there possibly be an incentive to operate in a sector based on a degree of unpredictability rather that one where hourly generation capacity could be totally predictable, literally for centuries to come? ... is it a case that Shakespeare's "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark" line may equally apply to the current setup ? ... 

HTH - Z

michaels

I wonder what the net zero accounting consequences of us running our gas fleet at marginal cost (to help cover that overhead) and exporting the output via the interconnectors is?!

zeupater

michaels said:

I wonder what the net zero accounting consequences of us running our gas fleet at marginal cost (to help cover that overhead) and exporting the output via the interconnectors is?!

Hi

Probably not going to happen within the current line of thinking without heavy reliance on carbon capture ..... 

Thinking about that, has anyone bothered actually perusing this report yet (07/02/25, so last week) .... https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cmselect/cmpubacc/351/report.html .... which is the basis for numerous recent pre-emptive (aka conveniently briefed/leaked!) overrated news articles involving happy clappy (but totally clueless) politicians .... to maintain your own sanity and avoid temporary blood-pressure issues it's probably better to not attempt to read it in too much detail (probably because there isn't really any) and simply look at the headline monetary allocation along with what the expectations are and how they can be achieved .... pay particular attention to the overly-numerous caveats and references to previous similar scheme failures along with what workable projects are likely to receive funding to actually capture carbon in the UK as opposed to reference to general research (/prototyping etc) and see whether you can guess what my own thoughts are .....    .... remember, no prizes if you're right .... 

HTH - Z

Coastalwatch

While Saudi may have huge resources of oil and sunshine they are not quite so well off when it comes to water so I guess the need for battery storage of the scale below. It doesn't seem that long ago battery storage in MW's was considered impressive but now we see GW scale announcements almost on a daily basis.

BYD lands massive 12.5GWh deal with Saudi Electricity Company

The projects will integrate into Saudi Arabia’s power system, helping to integrate renewable energy, stabilise power supply and meet peak energy demand. Saudi Arabia is targeting 50% renewables by 2030 as part of a wider modernisation of the economy under the Crown Prince’s Vision 2030 programme, for which it will need 48GWh of BESS.

https://www.energy-storage.news/byd-lands-massive-12-5gwh-deal-with-saudi-electricity-company/

Martyn1981

Not very interesting yet, but the Gov has launched a consultation to review the CfD process.

UK unveils CfD reforms aimed at boosting offshore wind

The UK government is seeking to clear the way for more offshore wind projects as it today launched a consultation on proposed reforms to this year’s AR7 Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction.

The UK is already home to the three largest operational offshore wind farm projects in the world but must secure more to deliver clean power by 2030.

The proposed reforms include relaxing the eligibility criteria on planning consent for fixed-bottom offshore wind, helping to speed up new developments.

The government also wants to change how offshore wind budgets are set and published, enabling funding to be invested more efficiently.

Martyn1981

Nice to see some good news, and the correlation between green growth and the benefits to the economy as a whole.

I appreciate that the UK, and the ROW are moving to cleaner, greener energy production and consumption anyway. But always good to see the pluses in the short and medium term too.

[Optimistic as ever, I'm hoping that the fear of change, that drives much of the negativity, will continue to fade (slowly)]

Britain’s net zero economy is booming, CBI says

The net zero sector is growing three times faster than the overall UK economy, analysis has found, providing high-wage jobs across the country while cutting climate-heating emissions and increasing energy security.

The net zero economy grew by 10% in 2024 and generated £83bn in gross value added (GVA), a measure of how much value companies add through the goods and services they produce.

The analysis, by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), found that 22,000 net zero businesses, from renewable energy to green finance, employ almost a million people in full-time jobs. The average annual wage in the businesses – £43,000 – was also £5,600 higher than the national average.

The analysis showed economic growth and climate action go together, said the report’s authors, and improve lives and livelihoods. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, was criticised in January for suggesting economic growth was more important than net zero, but said more recently: “There is no tradeoff between economic growth and net zero. Quite the opposite. Net zero is the industrial opportunity of the 21st century.”

NigeWick

Martyn1981 said:

 I'm hoping that the fear of change, that drives much of the negativity, will continue to fade (slowly)]

It's not the fear of change for companies, it's the fear of profit decrease.

Martyn1981

Another CAES scheme for 8hr storage is to be built, this one in Australia. 200MW/1,600MWh in this case, with a couple of 500MW/4,000MWh in development in North America.

I've no idea if there will be a dominant technology for medium/long duration storage, but nice to see some rolling out.

Hydrostor sees 1,600MWh advanced compressed air energy storage project in Australia approved

Canada-headquartered Hydrostor has received planning approval for a 200MW/1,600MWh advanced compressed air energy storage (A-CAES) project in New South Wales, Australia.

The Silver City Energy Storage Centre, being developed at Broken Hill, a frontier mining town around 1,100km to the west of the state capital, Sydney, received approval from the New South Wales government’s Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) yesterday (25 February).

Construction of the 8-hour long-duration energy storage (LDES) project, located adjacent to the Potosi Mine, is scheduled to take place later this year and last between three to four years. It will form the backbone of a microgrid near Broken Hill by drawing renewable energy from local developments.

In doing so, the A-CAES solution will be capable of powering the entire town without a direct connection to the National Electricity Market (NEM). It will operate as backup generation during planned or unplanned outages to prevent blackouts.

Initially, the LDES project will replace ageing diesel generators nearing their end of life. It will be connected to the New South Wales grid and capable of trading large quantities of energy daily.

It will also act as an emission-free, long-term grid reliability solution for Broken Hill and the wider region, supporting existing and new renewable energy generation and serving communities and mining loads cost-effectively.