![]() However, the past few years have seen grid-scale batteries finally take off as a substantial source of energy storage capacity. The vast majority of energy storage today comes in the form of pumped hydro, which stores energy in the form of the gravitational potential energy of water in an elevated reservoir. Only with grid-scale energy storage can we free ourselves from the whims of the weather while continuing to move towards net-zero carbon grids. With energy storage integrated into grids, renewable energy can be stored when supply exceeds demand and released when demand exceeds supply. ![]() Chiefly, however, we require the addition of energy storage to grids: pumped hydro, battery storage, and other types like hydrogen and gravity storage. This calls for a range of measures, from building infrastructure that is resilient to extreme weather to incorporating AI to make our grids responsive to changes in supply and demand. It is also about balancing supply and demand. The energy transition, then, is not just about building more renewables to displace fossil fuels like coal. When renewables-based supply cannot keep up with demand, we resort to conventional fuels to fill the gap – but this cannot continue forever. Operators are forced to curtail solar plants and miss out on clean energy simply because there is nowhere to store it. Balancing supply and demand gets harder when solar farms generate more electricity than demand requires or than the grid infrastructure can physically handle (grid congestion). It’s clear things need to change, but transformation is not straightforward. Rolling blackouts due to an ailing national grid are a regular blight in South Africa, while power outages caused by various factors have hit countries including Bangladesh and Pakistan in recent years. ![]() During this summer’s heatwave in California, residents were urged to cut back on air conditioning as the state’s grid struggled to cope with peaks in demand. As climate change intensifies, legacy grids are both perpetuating the problem and struggling to deal with its consequences. Of course, sporting fixtures are the least of our challenges. Since then, the UK National Grid has been watching the sports calendar closely, ready to burn more fuel to meet such surges in demand. This caused a historic 2.8GW surge in electricity demand – equivalent to more than a million kettles being switched on at once. Back in the 1990 World Cup Semi Final, tens of millions of England football fans watched their team lose after a tense penalty shoot-out, and went to commiserate over cups of tea. We rely on the flexibility of conventional fuels – you can simply burn more or less – to meet demand as it varies through the day and night, and when events cause spikes in demand. ![]() With the establishment of large, centralised power stations and long-distance power transmission, however, sprawling power networks (or grids) emerged, allowing people and businesses to use electricity generated far away.Įlectrical grids today are still largely stuck in the twentieth century. In the early days of electricity, power was generated and used locally. A grid powered by renewables looks very different – with energy storage playing a key role in balancing supply and demand. Today’s grids are still dominated by conventional fuels and not fit for the future. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |