A solar eclipse is just one type of a larger class of challenge with solar PV
Some thoughts about challenges with intermittent solar PV, triggered by this week's Solar Eclipse in North America
solar PV
A personal experience of spot-price paid solar injections
The recent demise of start-up retailer, Urth Energy (suspended from the market by the AEMO on 1st February) was an unfortunate development on this path of the energy transition.
About solar panels (predominantly) facing north, not west
To clarify a quotation today in the Fairfax media about solar PV performance on heatwave Friday in NSW.
Illustrating how the currently installed rooftop solar PV has reduced peak demand – but more won’t reduce it more**
Looking at 13th, 14th and 15th January and the contribution of solar PV to peak demand reduction
[UPDATED] NEM-wide demand screams past 34,000MW today
NEM-wide demand roared to life today, for the first time this summer, with hot weather pretty much everywhere.
Queensland electricity demand surpasses 9000MW in heatwave
Hot weather drives Queensland demand higher than 9,000MW for the first time this summer - even with many people still out on holidays...
Hot weather in NSW drives demand higher
Demand rose in NSW today off the back of some hot weather
SA electricity demand at New Year’s exhibiting the “Duck Curve” affliction
New Years Eve and New Years Day have provided 2 excellent examples of the "Duck Curve" in South Australia
Barcaldine Solar Farm output – and the audacious 50% by 2030 renewables ambition
A quick look at first output of Barcaldine Solar Farm - as a segue into consideration of what we see as an "audacious" 50% by 2030 ambition.
Forecasting is a Mug’s Game
The three main flaws that put boundaries on the usefulness of all forecasting/modelling
Increased complexity, and challenges, in this energy transition
Two slides (from BNEF and AEMO) that provide some context on the energy transition
The war for dispatch: Who will control distributed energy?
In today’s energy sector, it is rare to get electricity networks, retailers, generators and system controllers in the same room at the same time. In a deconstructed market about to be transformed by distributed...
If I was going to assess Factors Contributing to the “truly remarkable” Q2 2016 prices, here are some starting places I’d look…
A starting list of factors that I'd look further into, if I was sucked into the "rabbit hole" of assessing all of the contributing factors leading to the Remarkable Prices seen in Q2 2016...
Win, lose or draw: Three scenarios for the electricity system in 2030
Cast your mind back 15 years to 2016. You probably don’t remember this, but 15 years ago people still debated whether the growth of distributed energy would fundamentally transform the Australian electricity system.
The opacity of distributed, small-scale solar PV output
A comparison of the output of the two different estimates now available for aggregate state-wide output from small-scale solar PV systems - the ARENA-funded APVI method, and a new method from AEMO
What happens when energy is free?
One scenario holds that the price of energy supply might drop to the point where it is effectively free. Here's some of what we're thinking about...
How small-scale solar PV is helping to moderate peak demand
Quick notes about how solar PV is helping to moderate peak demand (but some considerations relating to using rules of thumb about its effect).
Moree Solar Farm becomes the fourth of the Large-Scale Solar Farms outputting to the NEM (but 3rd publishing data)
A quick look at large-scale solar data for the NSW region, with the recent addition of Moree Solar
What role might Demand Response play in a (possible) future grid featuring high levels of intermittency?
Back on 8th October, I spoke at All Energy in Melbourne on this topic. Given the questions posed after the session, it seemed that it might be of value to some WattClarity readers if...
Ramp rates, for “Unserved Demand” much higher in this future world
A quick look at how ramp rates would vary (for "Unserved Consumption") in the hypothetical "10x" high intermittency grid.