Posted on 03/18/2016 8:41:48 AM PDT by rktman
California regulators may force a massive solar thermal power plant in the Mojave Desert to shut down after years of under-producing electricity — not to mention the plant was blinding pilots flying over the area and incinerating birds.
The Ivanpah solar plant could be shut down if state regulators don’t give it more time to meet electricity production promises it made as part of its power purchase agreements with utilities, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Ivanpah, which got a $1.6 billion loan guarantee from the Obama administration, only produced a fraction of the power state regulators expected it would. The plant only generated 45 percent of expected power in 2014 and only 68 percent in 2015, according to government data.
And it does all this at a cost of $200 per megawatt hour — nearly six times the cost of electricity from natural gas-fired power plants. Interestingly enough, Ivanpah uses natural gas to supplement its solar production.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...
Geez, only six times the cost of natural gas + it supplements itself with natural gas? What could possibly go wrong here? A few million more in subsidies and they'll swear they'll be able to lower the cost to "only" 4 times the cost of using natural gas. What a great plan. Plus, it's probably a hoot to watch the "streamers" as they attempt to fly through the glare.
Kinda pricy bird incinerator.
This is the type of idiocy you see when other peoples money is stolen to pay for it.
Must have been this guy in charge: http://i678.photobucket.com/albums/vv146/gmosko/Fallout%20New%20Vegas/Fantastic2.jpg
JFTR: Solar thermal generation is not the same as solar panel (photovoltaic) generation. They’re actually attempting to use solar energy to heat a working fluid to mechanically turn a generator for AC power.
How many miles of the wall could have been built with the money wasted on this project?
Collectivism is about intent, not result.
And you wonder why private investors will not invest in any of this crap science without massive government subsidies.
350 years of recoverable coal in the US.
Why not spend research money on cleaning the last bit of pollution given off from this proven resource ?
Kinda like a steam engine? LOL!
I believe collectivism is all about the result, just not the one the tyrants claim. The result is that people who cannot produce anything of value get to control the lives of those who can.
How dare you apply logic and common sense to this debate?! Time for your visit to the re-education camp!
I’ve mined coal, sold coal, burned coal...
Light ‘em up !
“And it does all this at a cost of $200 per megawatt hour”
I assume any green energy is not going to be as efficient at producing power, but where is the cost coming from on this?
Yes; that’s how Ivanpah works, boiling water for steam to turn turbine generators. Much easier to use coal for that purpose.
It would be far cheaper for any company that is thinking of installing photovoltaics to just buy a lot of plywood panels and paint them black, and set them on stands out on the lawn, and keep using utility power for their electricity needs. That way they get all of the greenie-bunnyhugger cred, but they get to keep money in the bank and the lights come on when you flip a switch.
More Libtard Wealth Redistribution
The real purpose of projects like this is to funnel large amounts of government taxpayer money to the right people.
Actually building these white elephants with a part of the money is just a necessary part of the deal.
After all - they have something to show to the people to keep them from wondering what happened to the bulk of the money.
With the exception of hydro-electric and photovoltaic all power plants work kind of like steam engines. I had a textbook that pictured old power plant mechanical regulators and such that look like something you would see on a giant steam boat.
“We’re gonna put a lot of solar engineers and solar companies out of business.” Oh, wait.............
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.