Posted on 04/18/2015 7:10:33 AM PDT by ckilmer
I’ve heard this before.
So this guy is lobbying Congress to remove all those federal subsidies that are just giving wind and solar a bad name? I must have missed that in the article.
I don’t mind considering alternative power sources but just like cars, if it cannot match what I have now you can keep it.
He’s correct with regard to wind - AT UTILITY SCALE. In other words, large wind farms with high hub heights and large turbines are cost-effective with other forms of generation today WITHOUT subsidies. The PTC expired last year and has not been renewed for those in Rio Lindo, and the wind industry is going along just fine without them, as they know the subsidy isn’t necessary but who turns down free money?
Small wind, e.g. little turbines at houses and farms are not and never will be able to achieve cost parity. They can still be useful, but just always more expensive. Same with small solar.
It remains to be seen whether technology advances as he describes can bring cost parity to utility scale solar. Even so, it will always likely be a niche form of generation.
Do bear in mind that all forms of electrical power generation are subsidized by the federal gov’t in some way or another, as well as regulated.
There is no solar power when it’s dark and there is no windmill power when the wind is calm. For either of these technologies to be successful, you need a way to store excess power for those times when insufficient power is being generated.
Backing up what I said with facts:
The article is your typical trade magazine puff piece. No different than the ones I read in my own industry. The trade magazine, where everything is fantastic, where nothing is garbage. Like someone said, if it is all soo great, than I guess we can eliminate all the government giveaways. As for the electric car, my test is, can I drive from NYC to Tampa in less than 24 hours. If I cannot, than I am not interested.
In most areas where wind speeds are tracked in detail, the wind generally increases at night, making winds and solar mildly complementary.
so, whatevah.
And that's a small emergency system without any fancy distribution.
Pricey, but I like to watch the weather here.
/johnny
Same prediction was made nearly every year for the last 20 years.
Until one is build and is able to prove this through the numbers, I think this is fantasy land.
They always talk peak efficiency, not average efficiency, because the sun doesn’t shine in the night and the wind doesn’t blow all the time. This always cuts their numbers in half right off the bat, if not more.
Yeah...well...you can always us a kitchen knife as a screwdriver, too, but very few mechanics have one in their toolbox.
You do realize that these are still under subsidy?, that they get the biggest subsidy from the rate payers because they sell power in at the consumer grid rate without having to pay for the grid itself?
All conventional power sources pay through a lower price, they don’t get consumer grid rates.
If they had to wholesale their power, they would go out of business tomorrow.
Nuclear power will be too cheap monitor. Free!
“Ten years from now.....”
But, but, in ten years, we’ll have fusion generating plants, won’t we?
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