Back in the 1980s, before the variable New Energies – most notably wind and solar – commonly sent the electricity they generate to the grid, they were labeled “intermittent” and the perception developed that they are undependable because “the sun doesn’t always shine and the wind doesn’t always blow.” That is about as relevant a way to think about solar and wind today as is Madonna’s cone bra a way to think about today’s women’s lingerie.
Anybody who says wind and sun will not be substantial sources of power generation until there is adequate and economic storage for them is either uninformed or an adversary. The proof is what is happening with wind in Denmark, in Spain, in Iowa and in Texas.
A recent study from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) found that by 2017 the U.S. grid will be ready to utilize enough wind power to generate 30% of its electricity, along with enough solar energy to meet another 5% of the demand on it – WITHOUT any storage. In fact, the study found that under current circumstances no large scale storage – even pumped hydro storage (PHS), the most cost effective right now – would be economically advantageous. (See OVER A THIRD OF POWER FROM NEW ENERGY – STUDY)
One day last month, Texas got 14% of its power from wind energy-generated electricity, despite the fact that there is no storage. But that’s just the beginning. Last year, Iowa got a daily average of 14% of its power from wind for the whole year. Denmark got 20% of its power from wind last year. And one day this year Spain got over HALF of its electricity from wind power.
Spain’s New Energy installed capacity grew astonishingly fast in the 2005-to-2008 boom period. Its generation potential is so big that, when all factors are favorable, it tests the limits of what a system can do with New Energy and raises anew the question of storage. Even the NREL study suggests that the over-50%-levels of New Energy Spain is consuming might benefit from storage that is economically viable. Which is why – as detailed in Wind-Hydro Integration: Pumped Storage to Support Wind by Iberdrola engineers Fernando Perán Montero and Juan J. Pérez, Iberdrola – Spain’s biggest wind developer and one of the biggest in the world – has already built hundreds of megawatts of pumped storage and is committed to building thousands more.
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