from NoTricksZone
Author: P Gosselin, November 10, 2024
At 5pm last Wednesday, Germany's 1,602 offshore wind turbines in the North and Baltic Seas were at a standstill… and their solar output was close to zero. Germany had to struggle to maintain supplies.
Author: KlimaNachrichten
In the words of Professor Claudia Kemfert: The idea that solar and wind power cannot provide enough electricity is a myth. The myth that somewhere in Europe there will be enough wind and sunshine is shattered at the start of November 2024. Daniel Wetzel Situation described on the Internet world (Paid article)
As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, solar power was just 1 megawatt hour. The 1,602 offshore wind turbines in the North and Baltic Seas, each the size of the Eiffel Tower, are at a standstill. Zero electricity production.
At that time, onshore wind turbines produced only 114 MWh of electricity, while Germany's electricity consumption was 63,000 MWh. Transmission system operator Amprion described the situation on its LinkedIn portal on Thursday: “The total minimum feed-in of wind and photovoltaic power is only around 100 MW (between 5pm and 9pm).”
This means that 87,000 MW of photovoltaic capacity and about 72,000 MW of wind capacity installed in Germany with subsidies worth three billion euros have been left unused for almost several hours. It is said that there is no danger to the power supply. “No sun, no wind – it was dark in Germany yesterday and today,” Amprien explained Thursday, “but our systems manage everything under control.”
Without fossil energy producers and foreign countries, things would look bad. This is expected, but has always been laughed off. Instead, graphics of the annual cycle are waved to show that the sun and wind can perfectly complement each other.
The most fatal thing about this situation is the price. Fossil energy generation becomes politically more expensive, and in times of shortage, prices can literally skyrocket. Le Monde added:
The past week’s peak prices may just be a harbinger of the coming winter. The expert agency “Montel” quoted energy market experts as saying that if the wind weakens further, the price peak will reach 1,000 euros per megawatt hour. This is because during periods of lower wind power production, increasingly expensive gas-fired power plants must step in to determine market price levels.
Traders interviewed by Montel also cited the phase-out of nuclear and coal in Germany, which reduces the capacity of base-load power plants that can generate electricity regardless of the weather. The coming cold autumn and winter in Europe may also push up prices. This is because France, in particular, will see its own consumption increase dramatically, as many of the country's heating systems are powered by electricity. A surge in electricity demand in France could further exacerbate relative shortages on European power exchanges, pushing up prices.
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