With solar thermal, I am beginning to wander further away from systems where I have a reasonable grasp of their operation. There are two main classes of concentrated solar power (CSP) namely parabolic mirrors that focus solar energy onto a pipe filled with water that raises steam and a central tower configuration where an array of mirrors focusses the Sun’s energy onto a central tower, raising steam to drive a turbine (inset image).
Note Ivanpah CSP plant in the USA covers 1,420 ha (3,500 acres) is rated at 329 MW gross and cost $2.2 billon to build.
The Externalities of Energy Production Systems (Day 1 Coal)
Energy Externalities Day 2: Gas-fired-CCGT
Energy Externalities Day 3: Biomass-Fired-Electricity
Energy Externalities Day 4: Nuclear Power
Energy Externalities Day 5: Wind Power
Energy Externalities Day 6: Hydroelectric Power
Energy Externalities Day 7: Solar Photo Voltaics
Energy Externalities Day 8: Diesel
I am proposing to use 12 metrics to measure costs and benefits:
- Fatalities / year / unit of energy produced
- Chronic illness years / year / unit of energy produced
- Environmental costs not covered directly by the system operators
- Foot print of energy system per unit of energy produced
- Energy system costs where energy source transfers costs to the transmission system
- Energy system benefits where energy source provides a service to the transmission system
- Environmental benefits derived from energy system operation
- Taxes raised / year / for total energy produced
- Subsidies paid / year / for total energy produced
- Tax free cost of energy
- EroEI
- Resource availability
For the following 12 electricity generating systems
- Coal-fired (Monday 19 March)
- Gas-fired (Tuesday 20 March)
- Biomass-fired
- Diesel
- Nuclear
- Hydro electric
- Wind
- Solar PV
- Solar thermal
- Wave
- Tidal
- barrage
- lagoon
- stream
- Geothermal
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Diesel powered electricity generation is a niche common on isolated island grids like El Hierro and in certain countries, like the UK, recently adopted as peaking plants. They have the advantage that they can quickly and easily be switched on and off and the disadvantage that they are expensive to run. Answering some of the questions below for diesel is a bit tricky. For example, when it comes to fatalities we need to consider fatal accidents in the Global oil production and refining industries. But diesel for power generation uses only a tiny fraction of global oil production (<1%?). Power diesel accidents therefore need to be pro-rated accordingly but then adjusted to the amount of electricity produced. Not an easy task to scale in your head.
Solar PV is a multidimensional energy system difficult to evaluate on a global basis. Maximum concentration required from The Game players! First, there is solar thermal hot water, solar thermal power generation (also known as CSP) and solar PV. Today’s game is exclusively on the latter. And in solar PV there are two main families of panels: 1) thin film and 2) polycrystalline. Today’s game is exclusively on the latter. Add to that the fact that solar PV works much better at low latitude than high, not only from the resource perspective but also from the seasonal storage one. In short, solar PV makes much better sense in Arizona and Mexico than it does in Aberdeen. Politicians tend to see devices that generate free, clean electricity, while I tend to see expensive devices made from coal in China that produce electricity some of the time.
Hydroelectric power produces no pollution once the dam is built and the valley flooded. It is dispatchable and widely regarded to be the “Rolls Royce” of renewable energy. Based on trapping rainfall produced by solar energy trapped in high valleys that were created by plate tectonics that is driven by spontaneous nuclear fission within the lithosphere. 
It’s now day 4 of the Energy Externality Game. Diesel generators were next on the list, but I decided to skip over that for the time being and to move on to the more exciting topic of nuclear power. Nuclear power has a long supply chain and needs to take into account U mining, ore processing and upgrading to yellow cake; enrichment and fuel manufacture; construction of enrichment facilities, reactors and power stations; operation of the foregoing; decommissioning and waste storage.
Its day 3 of the Energy Externality Game already and we move onto biomass-fired-electricity. Most biomass electricity currently resides in Europe, where much of the fuel is imported from North America. In evaluating biomass we need to consider the whole supply chain from timber operations in N America, transport to and from the wood pellet factory, transport across the Atlantic Ocean, off-loading and transport to power station. We then need to consider the externalities associated with power generation.
Day 2 of The Energy Externality Game and we are assessing gas fired power generation using a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT). In scoring gas we need to take into account the whole of the gas exploration and supply side of the business (which is complex, see below), transportation of gas and the CCGT operation itself. I was a little disappointed in the level of audience participation yesterday, with only 11 participants in total, although the results are very interesting. It would be really good if we could push that beyond 20. Hopefully all of yesterday’s players will play again. Once you get in the swing it takes <10 minutes to compile the scores.
The economics term 
From 26th February to 5th March 2018, the UK and indeed most of Northern Europe was gripped by severe cold weather blowing in from Siberia. The event was Christened the Beast From the East by UK press. The conditions were harsh, not just sub-zero temperatures and snow but high winds that created life-threatening conditions. In this post I present the electricity generating statistics for the month 13 February to 12 March. The key point I want to make is that during the week of The Beast the UK’s remaining 10.6 GW of coal ran flat out day and night for 8 days. I think the time has come for the UK Government and National Grid to explain how they plan to keep the lights on when they 
In his 
A global energy demand forecast is presented to 2100 based on historic growth of per capita energy consumption, 1965-2015 and on UN low and medium population growth forecasts. The low forecast sees energy demand growing from 13.15 billion tonnes oil equivalent (toe) per annum in 2015 to 19.16 billion toe in 2100. The medium population forecast sees 29.5 billion toe in 2100, that is a rise of 124% over 2015. This is an interactive post where commenters are invited to suggest where all this additional energy may come from.
It is that time of year again where we try to forecast what the oil price will do over the coming 12 months. Last year I forecast $60 / bbl for Brent year ending 2017 and with Brent trading on $66.50 as I write I can conclude that I got lucky this year. My friend wagered on $78 and our bet this year was too close to call. My forecasting effort is based on trying to understand the supply, demand, storage, price dynamic and since this seemed to work pretty well this year I will repeat the exercise with some slight modifications.
UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Phillip Hammond (finance minister) delivered his budget on Wednesday last week. The tame budget was overshadowed by news that UK productivity and hence economic growth had stalled. In this post I search for the underlying causes of economic malaise and explore the structure of UK GDP; UK Government and private debt levels; demographics, in particular our ageing population; Higher Education policy, in particular over-production of sub-prime graduates and lastly UK Energy Policy that is focussed on high cost inefficient energy systems.
The UK Government has made a 
Last month I drew attention to the fact that the WTI-Brent spread had opened to $7 and that this could be a bullish signal for the oil price. A strong rally in Brent has since continued and the price now stands close to $64 / bbl while the spread remains at $6.50 (Figure 3).
