Green & Ethical Investment News and Suggestions

Exiled_Tyke

Reed_Richards said:

Surely the problem with dropping solid weights down a mine shaft is that the size (and thus mass) of the weight is limited by the width of the shaft.  Whereas if you use liquid weights (i.e. water) you can have a big tank at the bottom and a big tank at the top yet still drop your weight down a narrow shaft.  So you vastly improve the storage capacity by re-inventing the pumped storage hydro plant.  If you replaced the water with a heavier liquid like mercury you could store even more energy, although that would present some other issues.

However concrete is about 2 1/5 times as dense as water and so you need to move a lower volume and less storage space.  I would have thought that taking away the difficulties in handling liquid and also that it appears that winches are more efficient than water pumps that the solid-mass proposition is looking more and more favourable. ?

EricMears

Exiled_Tyke said:

Reed_Richards said:

Surely the problem with dropping solid weights down a mine shaft is that the size (and thus mass) of the weight is limited by the width of the shaft.  Whereas if you use liquid weights (i.e. water) you can have a big tank at the bottom and a big tank at the top yet still drop your weight down a narrow shaft.  So you vastly improve the storage capacity by re-inventing the pumped storage hydro plant.  If you replaced the water with a heavier liquid like mercury you could store even more energy, although that would present some other issues.

However concrete is about 2 1/5 times as dense as water and so you need to move a lower volume and less storage space.  I would have thought that taking away the difficulties in handling liquid and also that it appears that winches are more efficient than water pumps that the solid-mass proposition is looking more and more favourable. ?

If moving a lower volume was really important,  then there are heavier liquids than water (e.g. Mercury as R-R suggested) or of course concrete is far from being the most dense solid (spent Uranium would be around 5 times as dense as concrete or even lead would have 3 times the density of concrete).

Not sure how you're defining 'efficiency' in this example :  there's a lot more to go wrong with a winch system than with a water pump.

Exiled_Tyke

EricMears said:

Exiled_Tyke said:

Reed_Richards said:

Surely the problem with dropping solid weights down a mine shaft is that the size (and thus mass) of the weight is limited by the width of the shaft.  Whereas if you use liquid weights (i.e. water) you can have a big tank at the bottom and a big tank at the top yet still drop your weight down a narrow shaft.  So you vastly improve the storage capacity by re-inventing the pumped storage hydro plant.  If you replaced the water with a heavier liquid like mercury you could store even more energy, although that would present some other issues.

However concrete is about 2 1/5 times as dense as water and so you need to move a lower volume and less storage space.  I would have thought that taking away the difficulties in handling liquid and also that it appears that winches are more efficient than water pumps that the solid-mass proposition is looking more and more favourable. ?

If moving a lower volume was really important,  then there are heavier liquids than water (e.g. Mercury as R-R suggested) or of course concrete is far from being the most dense solid (spent Uranium would be around 5 times as dense as concrete or even lead would have 3 times the density of concrete).

Not sure how you're defining 'efficiency' in this example :  there's a lot more to go wrong with a winch system than with a water pump.

But the denser liquids and solids tend to be extremely expensive. So there is a trade off between volume and cost. Concrete is reasonably dense and relatively cheap which is why I guess it has been chosen. And of course suitable shafts already exist so there's little in the way of boring costs.

On the efficiency matter they are quoting round trip losses of around 15% (I think).  The plans include a regime for replacing winch cables so I expect you concerns on repairs have been thought about. A winch is still a pretty simple bit of kit and easy to maintain and repair. 

But ultimately this should not be an argument to prove that one is better than the other. The point I was trying to make was that a scheme which at first sight I thought to be pretty ridiculous could be viable. I guess the idea of pumping water up a hill was considered less strange because the other half of the scheme (simply building damns and generating hydroelectric power) was already well established. 

Coastalwatch

Clearly a lot of interest in this raise reaching it's limit in just 20 minutes upon first opening this morning. That's quite a sum for a crowdfunding platform in such a short space of time. Great to see, lets hope it realises the minerals necessary to enable battery manufacture in the UK to commence asap!

Cornish Lithium raises £6 million in new Crowdfunding Raise

Cornish Lithium Ltd (“the Company” or “Cornish Lithium”), the innovative mineral exploration and development company based in Cornwall, UK, today announces that it has successfully completed a crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube raising £6 million to progress its geothermal and hard rock projects in Cornwall and to create additional value for shareholders. The Company opened up the opportunity to pre-registered investors today at 9:00am and had raised it’s £6 million target within 20 minutes.

Jeremy Wrathall, CEO & Founder of Cornish Lithium, said: “We are delighted with the support we have received to date for our latest crowdfunding round. The additional funding will be used to continue the progress towards our goal of creating a battery metals hub for the UK. We have made significant advances since our last fundraising on Crowdcube, on both our geothermal and hard rock workstreams. We have also continued to attract Government support with additional funding grants being made as well as receiving our offshore exploration licences from the Crown Estate.

Reed_Richards

Exiled_Tyke said:
However concrete is about 2 1/5 times as dense as water and so you need to move a lower volume and less storage space.  I would have thought that taking away the difficulties in handling liquid and also that it appears that winches are more efficient than water pumps that the solid-mass proposition is looking more and more favourable. ?

To compete with the storage capacity of a liquid you would need a conveyor belt delivering blocks of concrete one after the other to the top of the shaft and another conveyor belt at the bottom of the shaft to take the blocks away again.  In fact it could just be one single conveyor belt that lifts the blocks back to the surface up a small incline.  There you are, new invention!  

Exiled_Tyke

Is a bubble about to burst? 

Simec Atlantis which has a range of exciting renewable energy projects is faced with the real risk of not being able to finance its debts.  Why it has got into this state, I don't know but I guess it's because too many of its projects are too delayed and thus not generating enough cash yet.  The risk is so great that the company's auditors have refused to support the view that the company will continue as a going concern.  If the company were to fail we could lose many renewable energy opportunities.  BUT there is more. A quick scan down the portfolio on the Abundance Investment market place and it is evident that a significant number of the debentures on offer are Simec Atlantis projects. Which makes me wonder if there are investors who are tied up in some of these schemes who do not realise they are all run by the same company?  Simec Atlantis board have had discussions with Abundance and believes that refinancing the debt will be possible. Perhaps they are right as Abundance debenture holders are more likely to be sympathetic and hold on for the long term.  But the platform has already suffered from failed schemes and I could see a simultaneous failure of a number of their investments could possibly finish it off? 

Coastalwatch

Thanks for posting that info ET, sad as it possibly is. I have to confess to holding out great hopes for tidal energy generation especially with it's predictable nature. So fingers crossed a means to keep them in existance so development and cost reductions can continue will be found.

In spite of those regularly casting doubt upon the financial viablility of renewable energy and it's associated offshoots, then, reassuringly striking progress and cost reductions continue in other areas and they are now the most cost effective means of energy generation, albeit with a measure of unpredictability.

Back in 2018 Gresham House formed their Energy Storage section with a finance raise in the November on the LSE. They were projecting a 4.5% return in the first year and 7% annually thereafter. Outside of crowdfunding platforms it was a first and scary investment into the stockmarket for us. They struggled to raise the entire amount on that occasion but had sufficient funding to start their portfolio of Battery Storage installations which has grown considerably since.

They have delivered on the their promise of annual dividend returns which is probably why their last raise of £100m, to grow further, was oversubscribed!

The £1 shares we originally purchased are now quoted at £1.175 on the LSM and this coupled with dividend returns to date of 15% have not only made for a healthy return but more importantly demonstrates there are secure investment opportunities during transition away from reliance on FF's.

Coastalwatch

Exiled_Tyke said:

Is a bubble about to burst? 

Not sure if the matter has been entirely resolved as presumably the financial situation must still be a concern. However, it would appear that Simec are now able to continue on their chosen path.

So good news for renewable fans and the efforts towards seeking net zero!

Simec Atlantis shares surge as receivers resign from major shareholder

(Sharecast News) - Sustainable energy generator Simec Atlantis Energy updated the market on the status of its major shareholder, Simec UK Energy, which holds around 41% of the company, and over which receivers were appointed in May/

The AIM-traded firm said the GFG Alliance, of which Simec UK Energy is a member, had confirmed that the appointment of receivers had ceased, and that the receivers had resigned as directors of Simec UK Energy.

It said the GFG Alliance also confirmed that they were in control of the Simec Atlantis shares.

"Simec Atlantis Energy understands that this matter is now resolved, and looks forward to a more stable relationship with its major shareholder," the board said in its statement.

"Simec Atlantis Energy is an independent company, whose focus remains the delivery of its world leading projects, which can play a critical role in the journey to net zero."

In further news....

SIMEC Atlantis finds new chairman

With an impressive CV if that's any to go by.

https://theenergyst.com/simec-atlantis-finds-new-chairman/

Exiled_Tyke

Coastalwatch said:

Exiled_Tyke said:

Is a bubble about to burst? 

Not sure if the matter has been entirely resolved as presumably the financial situation must still be a concern. However, it would appear that Simec are now able to continue on their chosen path.

So good news for renewable fans and the efforts towards seeking net zero!

Simec Atlantis shares surge as receivers resign from major shareholder

(Sharecast News) - Sustainable energy generator Simec Atlantis Energy updated the market on the status of its major shareholder, Simec UK Energy, which holds around 41% of the company, and over which receivers were appointed in May/

The AIM-traded firm said the GFG Alliance, of which Simec UK Energy is a member, had confirmed that the appointment of receivers had ceased, and that the receivers had resigned as directors of Simec UK Energy.

It said the GFG Alliance also confirmed that they were in control of the Simec Atlantis shares.

"Simec Atlantis Energy understands that this matter is now resolved, and looks forward to a more stable relationship with its major shareholder," the board said in its statement.

"Simec Atlantis Energy is an independent company, whose focus remains the delivery of its world leading projects, which can play a critical role in the journey to net zero."

In further news....

SIMEC Atlantis finds new chairman

With an impressive CV if that's any to go by.

https://theenergyst.com/simec-atlantis-finds-new-chairman/

Agreed - all good news but they are far from out of the woods, which I guess is why the share price is up to around 7p (from 4.5p?) but still down a long way from a year ago (20ish pence).   But two great pieces of news: 

1. Presumably Simec UK Energy will be in a better position to offer financial support if it needs to, and should do all it can to stop the business failing. 
2. If  the company can still 'recruit' (or at least get greater commitment from)  impressive individuals, there must surely be some good judgement here and hope for the future. 

I'm not sure it's a strong 'buy' signal. Probably more of a sit tight and hold but at least there is no need for panic just yet.  It would be great to have a positive  announcement on the debentures next. 

Coastalwatch

Agreed there ET, although return payments were forthcoming in June, so finance was available for those. I believe it will be December before the next installment is due. Let's hope there are further encouraging announcements in between time!