US power grid added battery equivalent of 20 nuclear reactors in past four years

[Bernoldus Niemand]

US power grid added battery equivalent of 20 nuclear reactors in past four years

Pace of growth helps maintain renewable energy when weather conditions interfere with wind and solar

www.theguardian.com

Faced with worsening climate-driven disasters and an electricity grid increasingly supplied by intermittent renewables, the US is rapidly installing huge batteries that are already starting to help prevent power blackouts.

From barely anything just a few years ago, the US is now adding utility-scale batteries at a dizzying pace, having installed more than 20 gigawatts of battery capacity to the electric grid, with 5GW of this occurring just in the first seven months of this year, according to the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA).

This means that battery storage equivalent to the output of 20 nuclear reactors has been bolted on to America’s electric grids in barely four years, with the EIA predicting this capacity could double again to 40GW by 2025 if further planned expansions occur.

 

[UB40]

Trump gets stuff done

 

[Bernoldus Niemand]

But, but, but nuclear power is the answer they said.

 

[wingnut771]

But, but, but nuclear power is the answer they said.

The problem at the moment is the battery only lasts 1 hour.

 

[LazyLion]

lol.... the only problem is.... one major power outage and those batteries get drained in a few hours.
Unlike Nuclear... which would just go on generating power constantly as base load.
How can people be so DOFF.

 

[LazyLion]

The problem at the moment is the battery only lasts 1 hour.

OH SNAP!!!
Thank you... I see one other forumite has a brain.

 

[Bernoldus Niemand]

The problem at the moment is the battery only lasts 1 hour.

Good enough to leverage peak demand.

 

[wingnut771]

Good enough to leverage peak demand.

and then what?

 

[LazyLion]

Good enough to leverage peak demand.

The typical ice storm ... and associated power outage in the USA can last up to three days....
Let's see.... that's about 69 hours longer than what the batteries last.
And yes... I have been caught on one of those ice storms myself.

 

[Bernoldus Niemand]

Lol it's going to double again so all you haters can go suck a fat pipe.

 

[LazyLion]

Lol it's going to double again so all you haters can go suck a fat pipe.

We're not "haters"... we understand the need for battery backup. It's just not the "Climate Saviour" that everyone makes it out to be.
Nuclear is still the best power generation technology this planet has.... and the cleanest.
And one day when everyone "wakes up" and finally starts building the Nuclear plants that we REALLY NEED, then we can move forward technologically as a species.

 

[Lupus]

The problem at the moment is the battery only lasts 1 hour.

Plus the batteries are actually there to smooth out the grid, not to actually take load
“Batteries can smooth out some of that variability from those times when the wind isn’t blowing or the sun isn’t shining. The Germans have a word for this sort of drought: Dunkelflaute,” said Moura. “So if you have a four-hour storage battery, that can get you through a Dunkelflaute.”
Nothing like having something variable trying to power your country, cause when it decides to not blow or shine, you need something to smooth out the discrepancy in power.
This is one of the reasons renewables actually end up costing the consumers more, cause the actual backup power required for renewables costs more.

 

[Lupus]

Lol it's going to double again so all you haters can go suck a fat pipe.

• The US is projected to consume 4,112 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity.
  
  

That's a lot of batteries

 

[Lupus]

Good enough to leverage peak demand.

For who? What happens after 10pm?

 

[Lupus]

OH SNAP!!!
Thank you... I see one other forumite has a brain.

He's been in good company lately ;-)

 

[konfab]

From barely anything just a few years ago, the US is now adding utility-scale batteries at a dizzying pace, having installed more than 20 gigawatts of battery capacity to the electric grid, with 5GW of this occurring just in the first seven months of this year, according to the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA)

I am against the death penalty for criminals in general. But people who confuse energy and power deserve the firing squad.

 

[Lupus]

I am against the death penalty for criminals in general. But people who confuse energy and power deserve the firing squad.

I am getting there, sheesh

 

[wingnut771]

Plus the batteries are actually there to smooth out the grid, not to actually take load
“Batteries can smooth out some of that variability from those times when the wind isn’t blowing or the sun isn’t shining. The Germans have a word for this sort of drought: Dunkelflaute,” said Moura. “So if you have a four-hour storage battery, that can get you through a Dunkelflaute.”
Nothing like having something variable trying to power your country, cause when it decides to not blow or shine, you need something to smooth out the discrepancy in power.
This is one of the reasons renewables actually end up costing the consumers more, cause the actual backup power required for renewables costs more.

Yes, I can't wait to become a grid smoother.

 

[Lupus]

But for interest in 2023 the US generated 775.4 terrawatt-hours from nuclear.

A report from McKinsey projects that there will be between 1.5-2.5 terawatts (about 85-140 terawatt-hours) of long-duration energy storage capacity globally by 2040

 

[Lupus]

Yes, I can't wait to become a grid smoother.

I've heard it's all the rage, plus people need to adjust their peaks to accommodate power generation, don't work 9 to 5, you must be home.