The Problem With Renewable Energy
Jun 20, 2023 7:01 am
The Problem With Renewable Energy
3 min read
15 January 2023 – Germany has wind speeds of up to 22.2 kph in the north of the country, causing wind turbines to turn at maximum speed. This generated enough energy to power the entire country, which was crucial as the south of Germany was urged to save electricity, asked neighbouring countries for backup power and fired up coal power plants for additional electricity. Not having anywhere to send the energy oversupply meant that wind turbines had to be slowed down and the cheap clean energy went to waste.
This is the current renewable energy dilemma. We’ve got an oversupply of renewable energy in one region but either don’t have the battery infrastructure to store that energy for later use, we don’t have powerlines to transmit that energy to other regions that require it, or we find ourselves in both these scenarios simultaneously.
Challenges of renewable energy
The major challenges facing the widescale success of renewable energy are:
- Weather dependence – we need sunshine to produce solar energy and wind to produce wind energy. If the sun is not shining or the wind is not blowing, we can’t get electricity. We also need favourable weather conditions at exact times during the day. Solar energy production typically leads demand during the day and lags demand at night. That gap between energy demand and energy supply at night is one of solar energy’s biggest problems. The same applies to wind energy during windless periods.
Solar energy supply during a typical summer’s day in California.
Solar supply and demand deficit during a typical summer’s day in California.
- Location – renewable energy plants are usually not located where the largest demand for energy is. In South Africa, the majority of wind farms are located on the west and south coasts of the country and the majority of solar farms are located in the north-western part of the country. However, the majority of the demand comes from Gauteng, the Western Cape and Kwazulu-Natal.
Solutions
For a renewable energy revolution to really take place, we need to build grids to fit renewable energy systems. This will require:
- Transmission lines to transport electricity over long distances. This solution will not be easy to come by, given the pushback from landowners refusing to have large powerlines going over or under their land. A mutual agreement will definitely have to be made between landowners and government.
- Substations to reduce high voltage electrical power to voltage suitable for homes, businesses, etc.
- Distribution lines to transport electricity from the substations to residential and commercial end consumers.
- Batteries to store energy when there is an oversupply and draw from when supply is lower than demand. We can also use pumped hydro storage where surplus electricity is used to pump water up a hill and let it flow down when there is demand for that energy. The forceful flow of water turns a turbine which generates electricity. If even more energy storage is required, we can use excess renewable energy to produce hydrogen which we can store and then use to generate electricity during peak hours.
- More residential and commercial renewable energy generation. This includes homeowners and businesses installing solar and/or wind turbines on their properties which will alleviate the pressure on the grid. We could also sell excess electricity we produce back to the grid. This is possible in major municipalities in SA.
- Use less electricity. We as consumers could simply look for ways to use less electricity. We can also complete energy intensive tasks such as laundry during off-peak hours. Eskom already charges lower rates for electricity used during off-peak hours through its TOU (time-of-use) initiative.
- Build a “smart grid” powered by AI showing us when and where energy is needed and also distributing it accordingly. Although this will cost billions every year, it is still essential to reaching a greener future.
Renewable energy, just like any other ground-breaking technology that seems like a no-brainer, does come with its problems. It’s up to us to solve those problems and create a better future for our planet.
What do you think? Would you delay doing laundry until 10pm to help integrate renewables into the grid? Share your thoughts by replying to this email!
For more information on renewable energy, or any other energy related articles, view the blog posts on my website and be sure to open my weekly emails every Tuesday at 9am CAT.
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