Posted on 04/20/2016 1:36:16 PM PDT by Lorianne
Solar energy records are falling left and right in California these days, as the state steams ahead toward its ambitious renewable energy goals.
But the success of solar has brought about a hidden downside: on some perfectly sunny days, solar farms are being told to turn off.
That’s because in the spring and fall, when Californians aren’t using much air conditioning and demand for electricity is low, the surge of midday solar power is more than the state can use.
It’s becoming a growing concern for those running the grid at the California Independent System Operator. At their Folsom headquarters, a team continually manages the power supply for most of the state, keeping the lights on for some 30 million people.
“It’s constantly solving a constant problem, meaning you’re always trying to balance,” says Nancy Traweek, who directs system operations for the grid.
TOO MUCH RENEWABLE POWER
On March 27, a sunny day, some solar farms had to shut down because there was more power on the grid than Californians were using.
(Excerpt) Read more at ww2.kqed.org ...
I suspected this was an exaggeration but discovered on wiki that they have a lot more solar power installed than I realized.
They’re working up a pumped storage site near me:
http://www.edf-re.com/projects/detail/swan_lake_north_pumped_storage_hydro_project/
It’s the other way around, though. They plan to use night-time power to pump, and then generate in the afternoon during peak demand.
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