. . . your tax dollars at work.
Posted on 02/16/2016 3:25:17 PM PST by bananaman22
n 2015, the U.S. saw 16 gigawatts of new renewable energy capacity installed, which accounted for two-thirds of the total. Solar alone accounted for about one-third of new capacity last year. Natural gas only captured 25 percent of the newly installed capacity despite several years of incredibly low prices. The banner year for clean energy occurred while 11 gigawatts of coal-fired electricity came offline as old plants were retired amid rising costs and stricter environmental regulation. The clean energy transition is very much underway.
But the backlash from incumbent industries has also sprung to life. With solar and wind suddenly eclipsing fossil fuels as a preferred option for new power plant capacity, utilities and other fossil fuel interests are moving quickly to disrupt the progress of clean energy.
The industry argues that homeowners with solar must pay fees to cover their costs of using the grid. Solar proponents dismiss that argument, pointing to the costs saved by not needing to build new power plants.
(Excerpt) Read more at oilprice.com ...
Of course they should charge an access fee for those who wish to put energy into the system...effectively selling to themselves when it there. And available to other users in the system when not used by the generator. And, to be sold at standard rates by the utility.
It's possible in CA to have a solar system, go on vacation for a month, and have a negative energy bill...the utility has to pay YOU.
As a rural customer I already pay a monthly $35 “facility fee”.
The way it is phrased seems to mean that 16% of NEW power is solar/renewable which may well be true but also meaningless.
What is U.S. electricity generation by energy source?
In 2014, the United States generated about 4,093 billion kilowatthours of electricity.1 About 67% of the electricity generated was from fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and petroleum).
Major energy sources and percent share of total U.S. electricity generation in 2014:
Coal = 39%
Natural gas = 27%
Nuclear = 19%
Hydropower = 6%
Other renewables = 7%
Biomass = 1.7%
Geothermal = 0.4%
Solar = 0.4%
Wind = 4.4%
Petroleum = 1%
Other gases < 1%
Note Hydro is still above all the other 1% less than all the other renewable combined the last major Hydro Electric dame was finished in 1985.
oops Hydro Dam
Jimmah Cahtah signed into law a requirement that self generators must still link to the grid.
At the time I was in CO. I would have generated 12 VDC and be required to connect with the closest AC grid ($23K). Attenuation over the distance made it a no-go.
Liberals....
Solar will not provide all the energy necessary for a home as most residential demand occurs when the sun is on the wane. And then there is bad weather and clouds to consider. Just because your total kilowatt hours go down with solar, it does not decrease your demand and electrical demand is what determines the size and cost of infrastructure. The infrastructure to your house needs to be the same with or without solar panels but many people who install these systems want a free lunch from the utilities because the are “being green” (what they really want is everyone else to subsidize their decision).
These sickening eco-nuts have no concept of how to provide energy and they will be the first ones calling for power co’s heads to roll when their “green” policies cause power outages.
By sickening eco-nuts I am referring to the author who damns the power co’s and not necessarily to those who chose to install solar panels.
How is the grand supergrid that all the greenies say will solve the problem with intermittent energy generators be funded?
. . . your tax dollars at work.
What is that? Dismantled solar field? Carrizo Plain, maybe?
I want to add some solar. My utility changed its charge structure so that everyone connected has to pay some of the fixed costs. This reduces the financial benefit of solar to me, but seems perfectly appropriate to be “fair” to everyone who contributes to peak demand load capacity requirements.
There are plenty of things to be upset and whine about, but in my opinion this is not one of them.
I know where that place is, remember it when the panels were still up -- was in the same County when it was taken down, etc.
I think a couple (or a few?) newer installations went up a few years back, were slated to be built anyway -- on sites just a short distance towards the East.
There have been FR threads that included discussion of the details, though I don't recall the information, save but hazily.
Where is that?
Link at #14.
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