The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
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The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
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Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#2I don't live in the UK nor work anywhere near the energy sector, and yet I found this a really fascinating, clear read that opened my eyes to many issues I'd never considered before. Thanks.
Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#3One thing that I find hard to understand is how the electricity prices in the UK have gone up so dramatically (blaming gas prices) when a large amount of the electricity is not generated from gas. Is the price being artificially inflated?
Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#4Curtailment, like negative prices, seems like something that it is hard for people to have constructive conversations about.
Probably the cheapest and best option is to build more wind and not care too much if it increases curtailment.
Yes, all the things mentioned should be looked into and done when it makes financial sense but "wasting wind" is much less a thing to worry about than "burning gas", and I'd rather waste wind than waste money.
Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#5One thing that I find hard to understand is how the electricity prices in the UK have gone up so dramatically (blaming gas prices) when a large amount of the electricity is not generated from gas. Is the price being artificially inflated?
I would imagine that as gas prices shoot up, demand dramatically increases for electricity.
Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#6So does NZ.... Man this place blows especially in Canterbury where I am. Nearly every single day it's windy enough that it annoys and sometimes ruins being outside. I must say 3 to 4 times a week 'f** this windy hole' to someone.
Sitting in the roaring 40s trade winds why doesnt NZ have more wind generation is baffling.
Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#7One thing that I find hard to understand is how the electricity prices in the UK have gone up so dramatically (blaming gas prices) when a large amount of the electricity is not generated from gas. Is the price being artificially inflated?
A couple possibilities. It could be competition from other countries with a different mix (e.g., the price in the UK has to compete with other countries or it'd be exported to the degree possible)
Power is also sold (ok, not sure about the UK) at the market price. So the most expensive generation needed to meet demand determines the market price. So even if gas is a small portion of the generation it could still determine the price.
Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#8One thing that I find hard to understand is how the electricity prices in the UK have gone up so dramatically (blaming gas prices) when a large amount of the electricity is not generated from gas. Is the price being artificially inflated?
The price of electricity in the UK is linked to the most costly supply in the entire mix. So if gas is the most expensive then we pay all other power-producing suppliers, regardless of means of generating, the wholesale price we'd pay for gas. It's a strange system.
Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#9Curtailment, like negative prices, seems like something that it is hard for people to have constructive conversations about. Probably the cheapest and best option is to build more wind and not care too much if it increases curtailment. Yes, all the things mentioned should be looked into and done when it makes financial sense but "wasting wind" is much less a thing to worry about than "burning gas", and I'd rather was…
But that presupposes we can actually supply enough electricity to where it's needed. We already hitting the limits, thus the curtailment and burning gas. Adding more capacity unless it's in the right place doesn't solve the issue.
Re: The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
#10One thing that I find hard to understand is how the electricity prices in the UK have gone up so dramatically (blaming gas prices) when a large amount of the electricity is not generated from gas. Is the price being artificially inflated?
Author of the article here
Electricity prices in the UK (and most other places) are set by the marginal unit, which is the most expensive unit that needs to be turned on to meet demand. All other generation for that time period gets paid the same price. The marginal unit in the UK is usually gas, hence the sensitivity to gas prices