Critics’ case against wind energy

According to its critics, wind power is unreliable. The wind doesn’t blow all the time. It doesn’t blow on any predictable pattern. Wind turbines require some minimum wind speed for them to work at all. And if the wind is too strong, they can’t operate safely and must shut down.

Wind can cross one or the other of these thresholds multiple times a day. They operate at full capacity for only a few hours a year. So the theoretical capacity of a wind farm greatly exceeds its actual output.

The times turbines can generate electricity do not coincide with rising and falling demand for electricity. This variability creates problems for stabilizing the grid. Critics further claim that the wind industry can’t operate without massive government subsidies.

Wind power and South Australia blackout of 2016?

South Australia depends on wind energy for about 40% of its electricity. It suffered seven tornadoes on September 28, 2016. Two of them, with winds almost as fast as Hurricane Katrina, destroyed twenty towers that held three different transmission lines. Nine wind farms shut down.  Within minutes, the entire state suffered a massive blackout.

What contributed the most to the blackout? South Australia’s high dependence on wind power? The weather? Or something else?

Renewable energy skeptics quickly claimed the blackout justified their position. The wind farms simply failed to provide enough electricity in the emergency. Wind and solar energy, they say, are inherently unreliable. South Australia’s heavy reliance demonstrates an irresponsible policy based on ideology more than technological reality.

Certainly, the weather would have caused a disturbance in electrical service no matter what source of electricity. People near the downed transmission lines could not have avoided loss of power. But prompt action by grid operators makes it possible to bypass problem areas and limit the extent of the outage.

On closer examination, however, the correct answer to the multiple-choice question above is C: something else.

Wind turbines have “low voltage ride through” settings to keep operating for brief periods when voltage dips below the threshold at which they can operate correctly. If low-voltage conditions occur too frequently, the wind turbines have a protection mechanism that turns them off.

• Ten wind farms experienced between three and six low-voltage events within two minutes. But the turbines were operating on factory settings. No one performed any testing to determine good settings under local conditions.
• The agency that regulates the Australian electricity market knew nothing about the protection feature. It blamed the wind farms, but surely someone on staff should have been familiar with the default operation of the turbines. After all, the agency approved purchase and installation of the turbines. It had all the documentation.
• Two gas generating plants that should have supplied backup power failed to come online.

The weather caused a problem that became a crisis not because of technical limitations of renewable energy, but because of too many different organizations’ incompetence.

One homeowner in South Australia didn’t suffer from the outage. He didn’t even know about the blackout till he saw it on the news. He had to test the accuracy of the news reports by opening his oven and noting that the light didn’t come on.

It turns out he had installed solar panels just a few weeks earlier. And since power outages in his part of South Australia occur almost every month, he decided to install a Tesla Powerwall as well.

He can’t use it to power his entire house, but it takes care of the lights and the television. It stores enough electricity for 10 hours of off-grid power.

Big oil and wind power

International oil companies have not joined the chorus of wind-industry skeptics. Several of them, including Royal Dutch Shell, have begun to invest heavily in off-shore wind farms. Especially in the North Sea. Oil production there has steadily declined for about 15 years.

Exploring for new oil fields has become too risky and expensive. These oil companies have decided that investing in wind energy helps their cash flow and makes it more predictable.

Oil companies have more expertise in working on offshore platforms than do companies that specialize in wind energy. Instead of building a foundation for turbines on the ocean floor, at least one oil company has begun to explore how to mount them on floating platforms.

Traditional wind energy firms have been operating turbines in the North Sea for years, but the oil companies have begun to outbid them. Their off-shore expertise has helped them drive down their costs.

So far, American oil companies have shown less interest in wind farms. If they decide they’re in the oil business, they will eventually lose market share to renewable energy companies. If they decide they’re in the energy business, they’ll have to start investing in renewable energy. And if any decide to invest heavily in solar power besides or instead of wind, they will still be following the lead of Total, a French oil company.

For that matter, the coal business is dying. Perhaps some of them will have enough sense to invest in renewables to improve their cash flow.

The post A Blackout, Big Oil, and Wind Energy first appeared on BioEnergy Consult.

Generators don’t come cheap, so it’s understandable that business owners will want to do their research before taking the plunge and making a purchase. If you find yourself on the fence when it comes to investing in a generator for your business, here are a few points that may help you with your decision:

It Will Keep Your Business Running During a Power Outage

Anyone who has been out shopping or eating at a cafe during a power outage will know how inconvenient it can be. Often, you won’t be able to buy anything and operations will cease. If, however, the business were to have a generator that kicks in the moment the power goes down, then things will be significantly different.

Having a generator ensures that critical systems can continue to work and you won’t have to contend with disappointed customers. Be sure to investigate your options with a reputable supplier like Blue Diamond Generators who can advise you on the various models available and help find a model that is most well-suited to your business needs.

Generators Can Also Help During Brownouts

While the rise in the use of renewable energy is certainly a welcome development, one of the issues is that the power supply from these sources can be somewhat variable. Solar panels and wind turbines are being built at a rapid rate but they don’t always serve people when they need power most.

For example, wind power tends to be strongest during the spring and fall seasons but not necessarily during the summer and winter months when people actually need more power. Often when these systems become overloaded with demand for power, brownouts are implemented as a means of regulating the power supply.  Having a generator means that your business can remain environmentally-friendly but also continue operating should the renewable energy sources prove unreliable.

Investing in a Generator Can Be Cost-Effective in the Long Term

When you consider the amount of money your business loses as a result of a power outage or a brownout, then the cost of a generator doesn’t seem so bad. For example, in the catering trade, a loss of power results in food expiry, and these expenses are rarely recoverable. If you find that such events become regular then these expenses quickly build up. Owning a generator and fuel reserve could prove to be a long-term investment, especially if your business is operating in an area which is susceptible to storms of natural disasters.

If you’re able to find the funding,  then investing in a generator or a transformer ultimately allows your business to keep running even when others can’t. Not only will this give you a comparative edge over other businesses, but you could potentially make significant savings in the long run, especially when you consider any potential losses and disruptions that could happen as a result of a power outage.

The post 3 Reasons Why Your Business Should Invest in a Generator first appeared on BioEnergy Consult.

At first glance, you might not realize all the benefits that come from transformer ownership, but there are plenty.

1. You can ensure quality

When you rely on the electric company to loan you a transformer, you can’t guarantee it’s high-quality. And the quality of your transformer won’t change your electric bill. The electric company can give you a brand-new transformer, a used one, or a refurbished one, and they’ll still charge you the same rates. Sure, they’ll replace it when it fails, but that can be inconvenient even though you won’t have to foot the bill. Even when you aren’t paying for it, you still need a reliable transformer.

On the other hand, when you buy your own transformer, you can guarantee its quality by getting it from a reputable manufacturer, like ELSCO Transformers, where the craftsmanship is superior, and they’ve never had an operational transformer fail since 1988.

You just don’t have any control over what the power company gives you, and that can end up being a disaster. A transformer built to last rather than built to sell will give you reliable power and peace of mind at the same time.

2. Owning your transformer will lower your costs

Power companies usually offer lower rates when you own your transformer. However, it’s crucial that you find out the rates and do the math to make sure it makes sense in light of how much you’re going to pay for your new transformer. That doesn’t mean the dollar amount has to add up. Remember to include the value of reliable power that won’t put you in the dark at random times and leave you hanging. Sometimes, the value of peace of mind is worth an extra expense.

3. You can have your transformer repaired faster

When you experience an unplanned power outage resulting from a failed transformer, you’d normally need to wait for the power company to come out and fix it for you. They’re usually pretty good about getting someone out quickly, but that’s not always the case. If they need a specific part that isn’t available, it could take weeks.

Owning your transformer means you can hire a qualified, licensed electrician to fix it for you, and you can even go a step further by keeping spare parts on hand that you’ve ordered ahead of time just for the occasion. However, if you buy a high-quality transformer to start with, the chances of it failing are low.

4. Choice

When left up to the utility company, you’re going to get the cheapest transformer available at the moment. That may or may not be what you want or need, but it’s what you’ll get. They will make sure it meets your basic load needs, but that’s about as far as they’ll go with the extra care. They want to save money, and they aren’t going to give you the Cadillac of transformers.

When you buy your own transformer, you have a choice regarding what you get. You can buy a transformer that is more powerful than you currently need if you know you’ll grow into it, and you can ensure it has all the qualities you’re looking for.

The biggest benefit here is being able to order the specific transformer you want ahead of time, so even if the lead times are long – like one or two years – you can start the order process early to get exactly what you want.

5. Breakdowns are less likely

There are a ton of reasons transformers can break down, and the good news is that when you own your transformer, those situations are less likely to become your reality. For example, poor insulation, too much voltage, power surges, corrosion, lightning strikes, and static electrification area all common reasons for transformer failure.

While you can’t prevent lightning from striking your transformer, you can minimize the potential for all the other reasons for failure by purchasing your own high-quality transformer. The higher the level of craftsmanship, the less likely it is to fail.

A transformer is a worthwhile investment

If there’s one thing that will make life easier, it’s owning your own transformer. It’s the easiest way to get reliable electricity and prevent unplanned power outages caused by inferior equipment.

The post Why Industrial Property Owners Should Own Their Own Transformers first appeared on BioEnergy Consult.