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Tag Archives: energy matters
The Geological Society of London’s Statement on Climate Change
The Geological Society of London’s Statement on Climate Change A group of geologists have drawn my attention to the 2010/2013 Geological Society of London‘s statement on climate change and asked if I could arrange an on-line discussion about it. The lead author of the statements is Dr Colin Summerhayes who has participated as guest blogger […]
Blowout Week 211
Blowout Week 211 This week we return to the Big South Australian Battery (BSAB), the alleged success of which – the “Tesla effect” – is spawning a raft of similar projects elsewhere in the country. Coming after we have Frydenberg on Snowy River; the usual dose of OPEC; Russia sells gas to the US; less […]
The 2018 Oil Production Forecast Explained
The 2018 Oil Production Forecast Explained In my recent post, Oil Price Scenario for 2018, my global supply forecast was seriously at odds with those presented by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and Rystad Energy, a respected Norwegian consulting firm. This post puts more flesh on my 2018 oil production view. The post could easily have […]
Blowout Week 210
Blowout Week 210 Is the US about to become the world’s largest oil producer? Our feature story says yes. To follow we have Trump’s offshore leasing program; record Russian gas production; Saudi Arabia’s gasoline price hike; Germany shuts down a nuclear reactor; Australia’s industry to power down during heatwave; Coal growth in Asia; the Snowy […]
How Chile’s electricity sector can go 100% renewable
How Chile’s electricity sector can go 100% renewable If pumped hydro plants that use the sea as the lower reservoir can be put into large-scale operation Chile would be able to install at least 10 TWh of pumped hydro storage along its northern coast. With it Chile could convert enough intermittent solar into dispatchable form […]
Oil Price Scenario for 2018
Oil Price Scenario for 2018 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 […]
The Valhalla solar/pumped hydro project
The Valhalla solar/pumped hydro project When and if it gets built the Valhalla project will consist of a 600 MW solar farm and a 300 MW pumped hydro plant which, it is claimed, will in combination deliver continuous baseload power to Northern Chile. If the project works as planned it will indeed deliver continuous baseload […]
More on going off-grid in UK
More on going off-grid in UK In my previous Going off-grid post I reviewed the question of whether Tesla Powerwalls or overgeneration, considered separately, might allow a UK homeowner with a rooftop solar array to go off-grid. In this post I consider the two in combination. Once more using 10 Mossbank Way as an example […]
Virtual Energy
Virtual Energy Has the day of the smart computer controlled micro-grid arrived? They reduce dependency on power from large centralised utilities whilst at the same time empowering communities to become self sufficient in energy supplies. Blockchain computer code is the enabling technology that allows the vendor of surplus solar power to trade with a neighbour […]
Going off-grid in the UK
Going off-grid in the UK In my recent post featuring a residence in Tucson, Arizona (latitude 32 north) I found that no reasonable number of Tesla Powerwalls would allow the homeowner to go off-grid using a combination of solar and battery storage. In this post I review a residence in UK (latitude 52 north) and […]
The End of Economic Growth
The End of Economic Growth 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 […]
Will solar panels and Tesla Powerwalls meet your home’s energy needs?
Will solar panels and Tesla Powerwalls meet your home’s energy needs? Tesla is now marketing its Powerwall2 storage battery for domestic applications, claiming among other things that it can make your home self-powered and blackout-proof. Here I review Tesla’s claims using an existing rooftop PV array in the Arizona desert as a real-life example. Will […]
Blowout Week 204
Blowout Week 204 In this week’s Blowout we continue our recent focus on energy storage, featuring the just-published ACOLA study which claims that Australia can get 75% of its electricity from intermittent renewables with 105 gigawatt-hours of long-term storage, enough to cover demand for all of four hours. We follow with Russia jumping into bed […]
China’s “Hualong 1” passes the first stage of the UK GDA process
China’s “Hualong 1” passes the first stage of the UK GDA process With little fanfare last week, the Chinese designed HPR1000 (previously Hualong-1), pressurised water reactor, cleared the first of four stages in the General Design Assessment (GDA) administered by the UK Office of Nuclear Regulation (ONR). China General Nuclear (CGN) proposes to build 2 […]
Helm and the death of UK wind and solar
Helm and the death of UK wind and solar In his recent post on the Helm Review Euan Mearns predicted that Helm’s recommendation that “intermittent producers need to bear the cost of converting intermittent to firm capacity” will, if adopted, “sound the death knell for new wind and solar projects in the UK”. This post […]
