Posted on 09/08/2021 10:37:16 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
New York (AFP) - Solar power could account for nearly half of the United States' electricity supply by the middle of the century, according to a government study released Wednesday.
The report, released by the Department of Energy, said solar could account for much as 40 percent of the power supply by 2035 and 45 percent by 2050, up from its current level of just three percent.
However reaching this level would require the United States to quadruple its annual solar capacity additions, the department said in a statement.
This future also depends on extensive public investments, as well as policy changes to disincentivize carbon-based energy, the department added.
"The study illuminates the fact that solar, our cheapest and fastest-growing source of clean energy, could produce enough electricity to power all of the homes in the US by 2035," Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm said.
"Achieving this bright future requires a massive and equitable deployment of renewable energy and strong decarbonization polices –- exactly what is laid out in the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and President Biden's Build Back Better agenda."
(Excerpt) Read more at france24.com ...
In Alabama I rarely get snow. My solar panels produce about 70% of the power my house consumes. It'll be maybe 50% after I convert my gas appliances to electric. I'm thinking of getting an EV truck when my old truck gives up the ghost, but keep a gas car. I'm not decided on it, but I'll think on it.
A 100% fossil free solution? Nope. Enough to pay for itself in about 12 or 13 years? Yep. That's not as much of a ROI as putting my money into mutual funds in tax break retirement accounts. But mine and my wife's wealth is already way on track to being enough for us to retire. So I'm working on lowering our future expenses that vary a lot --- like energy expenses. Especially with the Dims all about punishing us all for cow farts and such with higher taxes and regulations on energy consumption. And when my solar system pays for itself, any money it saves me beyond that will be used to repair and it upgrade it to give me further cushion in case the Dims go even more mark of the beast on us.
At least, that's my take on the usefulness of solar. All that hopey-save-the-world BS the Dims talk about is garbage.
he government also says women are men and men are women.
Headline should read “compromise” instead of “comprise”.
Correct! Kill off older people, move other people into concentrated high-rise towers, ban the use of private automobiles, and place further restrictions on use of electricity, water and other goods. That's what they'll do to us.
If conventional power output decreases by 50%. . . ????
The Sun is in the sky for about 12 hours per day, if averaged through the year. So that prediction is an easy one.
The power demands are greater at night. The Sun is not visible at night. Am I on to something?
Get real, Department of Energy, we should be looking into firing all of you!
You need BASE LOAD CAPABILITY. Solar is NOT.
Do you backup with batteries?
The peasants will have limited solar power while the government and government officials have the 50% of the grid that is fully electric.
I honestly believe that is the plan.
The peasants will have limited solar power while the government and government officials have the 50% of the grid that is fully electric.
I honestly believe that is the plan.
Anything that stops funding muslims is s good thing.
Yes. And "backup" is probably an oversimplification. On a cloudy day my 10kW system can go from producing 9kW to 3kW a few minutes later, and back up to 8 or 9kW a few minutes after that. If my A/C is running I might be consuming 5kW (including incidentals like clocks and dehumidifier, etc.) fairly constantly while the A/C is running. So my battery "backup" is being called on for only a few minutes while a cloud is over my house, then charged back up when the cloud is gone a few minutes later. Then of course after the sun goes down my battery is my "backup" until it drains. I have it set to stop draining from the batteries when the battery charge gets to 30% (20% is the ultimate line for my warranty, but I set it at 30% to hopefully give me past my 2,000 guaranteed discharges, which is over 19 years). Given that I use only 70% of my batteries' capacity, count it as me having 21kWh of usable backup.
During the summer I usually don't have enough battery backup power to last through the night (because my A/C consumes so much). But over half the days during the spring are days I hardly pull from the grid.
During 2020, solar energy provided 1.3% of all U.S. energy consumption. Contrary to the claims of certain politicians, reporters, pundits, and educators, solar is much more expensive than other energy technologies, and this significantly limits its production in the U.S. and throughout the world. As the amount of solar capacity rises in a given region, so do the costs of backing up its lost energy output at night and during cloud cover. Mandating solar as a major energy source, as the state of California has done, can also contribute to electricity blackouts during dangerous weather conditions.
Documentation
Energy Supplies
Solar Energy Costs
Solar Energy History
“The year without a summer” would be a particularly devastating re-occurrence without backup energy sources.
Solar could comprise almost half US power by 2050, govt says”
or not ...
still, they could try paving half of nevada with solar at a cost of only a bazillion gazillion dollars ...
Could is an amazing word.
It allows all sorts of made up stories.
You in lower, mid or north Alabama? I’m curious about how local power feeds into the payback …
PM if that is better for you. I’m in N. Alabama.
Solar has no surge capacity for unforeseen events.
Good luck with solar dependency in Minnesota when the gloomiest months are November and March - both cold, and Dec,. Jan, and Feb, are colder!
Good luck with solar dependency in Minnesota when the gloomiest months are November and March - both cold, and Dec,. Jan, and Feb, are colder!
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