As more wind energy is added to the grid, power companies have to match increasingly
variable electricity supplies to intermittent demand.
Not exact matches
Even if renewable energy goes mainstream, INL researchers still believe nuclear will be essential for supporting the electrical grid's base load — that portion of the nation's
electricity that must be
supplied at a constant rate, in contrast to the
variable supplies from the sun and wind.
But the
variable nature of wind and solar energy can cause problems with matching
supply to demand — problems that would be greatly eased if only we had a really good way of storing
electricity on an industrial scale.
Today, the
suppliers of
variable electricity from wind and solar do not have to firm their
supply [guarantee backup power].
Electricity generated from hot dry rocks would seem to be a far more practicable option for base - load supply in the longer term, and wind - generated electricity combined with variable - price - electricity in both the short and
Electricity generated from hot dry rocks would seem to be a far more practicable option for base - load
supply in the longer term, and wind - generated
electricity combined with variable - price - electricity in both the short and
electricity combined with
variable - price -
electricity in both the short and
electricity in both the short and long term.
As
variable renewable power such as wind and solar play a larger role on the grid, the ability to time - shift power consumption will become more important — not just for customers to keep their bills low in the face of time - of - use rates, but also to match the load to the
supply of carbon - free
electricity.
And the nature of
electricity supply is undergoing a major transition, from a century - old foundation of dispatchable fossil fuels to ever cheaper
variable renewables, with related market reforms underway.
«Contrary to most people's intuitive experience that winds are
variable and
electricity demand and
supply is stable, the opposite is actually true at the grid operator scale,» according to Goggin's report.
Surplus wind power can be stored as hydrogen and used in fuel cells or gas turbines to generate
electricity, leveling
supply when winds are
variable.
In order to achieve the ambitious energy transformation set out in the Energiewende, by 2030 half of all
electricity supply will come from renewable energy sources; Germany must continue to develop cost - effective market - based approaches which will support the forecasted growth of
variable renewable generation.
Choose Energy gave us some great data last year that compares the volatility spread (the difference between the highest bill and the lowest bill) of a
variable ESCO plan versus Con Ed's rate: Fixed rate plans are supposed to be even better at dealing with volatility, since the only
variable affecting your
supply charges will be how much
electricity you use.