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Sunday, March 6, 2011

UK: Wind Energy -- Electricity Won't Always Be Available

This may be the most honest reporting I have ever seen.

And the most incredible.

I have lived in Britain for for several years and the British people are very "compliant." This does not surprise me at all.

Due to the vagaries of wind energy -- like, no electricity when the wind ain't blowin' -- the British will have to live with the fact that there will be times when electricity is not available when their country's smart grid is tied into wind energy
Electricity consumers in the UK will need to get used to flicking the switch and finding the power unavailable, according to Steve Holliday, CEO of National Grid, the country’s grid operator. Because of a six-fold increase in wind generation, which won’t be available when the wind doesn’t blow, “The grid is going to be a very different system in 2020, 2030. We keep thinking that we want it to be there and provide power when we need it. It’s going to be much smarter than that.
By being "smarter," he means that the government, through the grid, will determine where brownouts and blackouts will occur when there is not enough electricity to meet demand -- because of the British decision to convert to so much wind energy.

Of course, now that the Brits are paying $9/gallon of gasoline, this story will not catch much attention in London. They've got a few more pressing problems.

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