18-State Coalition Sues Trump Administration Over Block On Wind Energy Projects
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
A coalition of 18 state attorneys general has filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s directive to stop federal approvals for both onshore and offshore wind energy developments, warning that the policy could seriously damage the wind industry and hinder progress on renewable energy.
These two introductory paragraphs add some details.
The coalition alleges that the administration’s directive and federal agencies’ subsequent implementation of it violate the Administrative Procedure Act and other laws by offering no reasoned justification for reversing federal policy and freezing all approvals.
The lawsuit, led by New York state, also alleges that the sudden halt on all permitting violates numerous federal statutes that prescribe specific procedures and timelines for federal permitting and approvals.
As New York state is mentioned, I wonder if this case could end up in front of The Lady On The Train, who turned out to be a New York State Supreme Court Judge.
Berkeley Scientists Finally Solve 10-Year Puzzle Enabling Efficient CO2-to-Fuel Conversion With Major Climate Impact Potential
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Sustainability Times.
This is the sub-heading.
In a groundbreaking advancement, scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have unveiled the critical mechanisms behind the degradation of copper catalysts, a revelation that promises to revolutionize the production of sustainable fuels by enhancing the efficiency and stability of CO2 conversion processes.
This paragraph gives more details.
Scientists from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have made a groundbreaking discovery in the field of artificial photosynthesis. By utilizing advanced X-ray techniques, they have uncovered the critical factors that limit the performance of copper catalysts in converting carbon dioxide and water into useful fuels. This revolutionary insight could significantly enhance the stability and efficiency of catalysts in CO2 conversion processes, potentially accelerating the production of ethanol and ethylene. The research, which tackles a decades-old puzzle, offers promising avenues for the development of more durable catalyst systems, paving the way for future advancements in sustainable energy solutions.
I first came across catalysts in my working life, when I was working at ICI. I was modelling a chemical process called sulphonation for a guy who was trying to find an efficient way to create the monomer of building block for a new engineering plastic.
Some feel that all plastics are bad for the environment, but I think that, if the plastic is designed to replace another material in a long-lasting application, then plastic is good for the environment.
This picture shows my wonderful Sheba cutlery.
Note.
- C and I bought it in the 1960s, when we got married.
- Some have been used every day for over fifty years.
- The important bits are Sheffield stainless steel, with the handles formed of black Delrin plastic.
- Some of the handles have been in the dishwasher too many times and have faded.
- From what I have seen on the Internet, the average worth of pieces could be as much as a tenner.
Perhaps, when I pass on, all the pieces should be divided between my grandchildren.
I have digressed and I will return to my modelling project with one of ICI’s catalyst experts.
I remember him telling me, that if you could improve the way catalysts worked, you would open up whole new areas of chemistry.
It looks to me, that the scientists at Berkeley may have opened up a route to turn carbon dioxide into fuel.
Whether that is a good route to decarbonisation is another long discussion.
Could A Highview Power CRYOBattery Provide Backup Power For A Large Data Centre?
I asked Google AI how much power does a data centre need and got this answer.
The power requirements for an average data center vary greatly depending on its size and purpose, ranging from 1-5 MW for small facilities to 20-100 MW or more for large hyperscale centers. Small data centers, typically with 500-2,000 servers, might need 1-5 MW of power, while large or hyperscale data centers, housing tens of thousands of servers, can consume 20-100 MW or even more.
As Highview Power are currently building four 200 MW/2.5 GWh CRYOBatteries for the UK, I am fairly sure the answer is in the affirmative.
Mayors Head To Parliament With Plan For Northern Arc To Deliver Green Growth
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Liverpool City Region.
These four bullet points act as sub-headings.
- Steve Rotheram and Andy Burnham take case for backing Northern Arc to Treasury – as new data shows North can drive green growth and unlock £90bn for UK economy
- Liverpool City Region and Greater Manchester Mayors will meet with ministers and MPs today, and Andy Burnham will give evidence at Business and Trade Select Committee on the UK’s industrial strategy
- Economic analysis shows that investing in transport infrastructure and a pipeline of projects across the North would benefit the whole UK economy, improving living standards and closing the North-South productivity gap
- Mayors will also address Innovation Zero World Congress in London, showing how city-regions can create high quality jobs by pioneering low-carbon innovation
These two paragraphs add a bit more detail.
The right investment would create a growth corridor, stretching from the Mersey to the Pennines and connecting into West and South Yorkshire, underpinned by transport networks that would include a new railway linking Liverpool and Manchester.
The Northern Arc area spans regions with close economic ties to Lancashire, North Wales, Hull and the North East. With international connections through the Port of Liverpool and Manchester Airport, it’s well positioned for global trade.
If I have a problem with the mayors’ thoughts, the plan outlined in the news item is rather Liverpool/Manchester-based with Hull being the only city outside that area getting a mention. Do Blackburn, Blackpool, Bradford, Burnley, Doncaster, Huddersfield, Leeds, Preston, Rotherham, Scunthorpe, Stockport, Wigan and York exist?
For instance you would expert a report from Liverpool and Manchester’s Mayors to call for a new railway between their two cities. And of course they do!
The current TransPennine Lines has two main routes across the Pennines between East and West.
If ever there was a rail route, designed by Topsy, it is the North TransPennine Route.
- There are six separate services, if you ignore Newcastle and Edinburgh Waverley, which is a shuttle to fill a gap in rail services.
- In the West trains terminate at Huddersfield, Liverpool Lime Street, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria
- In the East trains terminate at Edinburgh Waverley, Hull, Leeds, Newcastle, Redcar Central, Scarborough and York.
- Terminals like Huddersfield, Hull, Liverpool Lime Street, Newcastle and York are some of the best terminal stations in the UK, but others are very second rate.
I suspect, this North TransPennine Route structure brought about the demise of TransPennine Express.
The South TransPennine Route on the other hand, although it was built by several different railway companies, they were all intent on the same thing. An East-West route across the Pennines through Doncaster, Manchester and Sheffield.
- The Western terminal is Liverpool Lime Street, which in my view is the finest grand terminus in the UK, in terms of architecture, onward connections and operation. It is also the oldest still-operating grand terminus mainline station in the world, in that it dates from 1836.
- The Eastern terminal is Cleethorpes, which is an efficient four-platform recently-refurbished station, that is within a hundred metres of some of the best gluten-free fish and chips, I’ve ever tasted on the pier.
- Intermediate stations include Liverpool South Parkway, Warrington Central, Birchwood, Irlam, Urmston, Manchester Oxford Road, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Sheffield, Meadowhall, Doncaster, Scunthorpe, Barnetby, Habrough and Grimsby Town.
- Liverpool South Parkway has a bus connection to Liverpool Airport
- Liverpool Lime Street, Manchester Oxford Road, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Sheffield and Doncaster are stations with comprehensive onward connections.
- The route is electrified between Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Piccadilly and at Doncaster.Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes is 148.2 miles
- Hazel Grove and Doncaster is without electrification and is 52.3 miles long.
- Cleethorpes and Doncaster is without electrification and is 52.1 miles long.
- I believe that Hitachi, Siemens and Stadler could supply battery-electric trains, that would be able to work the route, with the addition of a short length of overhead wires at Cleethorpes, so that trains could return to Doncaster.
- Trains go straight through all the intermediate stations, so there are no time-wasting reverses.
- Journey time is just over three and a half hours.
I believe that a mouse-quiet battery-electric train would pack in the punters, if only for the novelty.
But.
A battery-electric train would probably knock perhaps thirty minutes off the journey.
The timetable would be an hourly train at all stations.
The service would pass the mother’s birthday test, in that you could easily visit any station from any other and buy your mother lunch before returning on a convenient train.
There are connections to and from London at Liverpool Lime Street, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Sheffield and Doncaster.
It could be a very useful East-West train service.
Plan For England’s Largest Wind Farm ‘Scaled Back’
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
Plans for the largest onshore wind farm in England have been scaled back by a developer.
These two introductory paragraphs add more details.
Calderdale Energy Park said it would apply for permission to build 41 turbines instead of the 65 originally planned on land near Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire.
A consultation period has now begun and people have been invited to submit their views on the project over the next six weeks.
Note.
- The number of wind turbines has been reduced by 37 %.
- Are the turbines now larger?
- In another paragraph, the developers say the solar element has been removed.
- Batteries, which I feel are essential to smooth the output of wind farms, are not mentioned.
Given comments by Stop Calderdale Wind Farm about peat bogs, there will be a large fight over building this wind farm.
Shawton Energy Joins Up With The Co-Op For Rooftop Solar
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Solar Power Portal.
These two paragraphs describe the agreement.
Renewable technology developer Shawton Energy has signed an agreement with the Co-Op group to help support the retail giant’s rollout of rooftop solar PV.
Working with Sol PV as a delivery partner, Shawton Energy will design, develop, fund, and manage rooftop solar PV systems at key Co-op locations using a power purchase agreement (PPA) model. This allows Co-op to make significant energy and cost savings without having to put forward any upfront investment. Co-op will now purchase the power from Shawton Energy at a flat, discounted rate. While this rollout currently only covers some of the Co-Op’s over 2,500 retail locations, there remains potential for expanding this partnership in the future.
This looks to me to be a deal, where all parties benefit.
- Co-op have thousands of locations, that could have solar roofs, which would be good green publicity.
- I suspect that the Co-op own a lot of their properties, so the collateral is there, if the deal goes wrong.
- I suspect many buildings are very similar, so design and installation costs could be reduced.
- Co-op get reduced-cost electricity.
- Shawton Energy can add other technologies like batteries and rooftop turbines to the deal.
From my experience of both sides of the leasing of multiple systems, I believe, that this would be the sort of deal, that reputable banks and finance houses would be very happy to fund.
It looks like the sort of deal that can be replicated.
Especially, as Shawton Energy have already done a deal with the Bannatyne Group, according to these two paragraphs from the article.
This is not the first significant deal with a well-known British chain that Shawton Energy has agreed this year. The company announced in March of this year that it had made an agreement with health and wellness club operator the Bannatyne Group, which has installed solar panels on the rooftops of a number of its health clubs, hotels and spas under a similar PPA agreement to that Shawton Energy has made with the Co-Op.
According to the Bannatyne Group, the installations, which consist of 967 panels and 11 inverters across eight sites around the UK, have already provided significant energy savings to the group. Since their completion, each of the eight sites has reportedly secured energy savings of up to 25%.
Savings of 25 % are worth having.
Ambitious £3bn Pumped Hydro Project At Loch Ness Moves Forward
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on Sustainable Times.
These are the two introductory paragraphs.
A £3 billion pumped storage hydro (PSH) project near Scotland’s iconic Loch Ness is one step closer to becoming a reality. Glen Earrach Energy (GEE) confirmed on April 25th that it has officially submitted the planning application for its ambitious 2gw scheme.
If greenlit, this project would represent nearly three-quarters of the total PSH capacity planned for Loch Ness, contributing 34 GWh of the region’s 46 GWh storage goal. But it’s not just the storage that stands out. This development would also account for two-thirds of the generating capacity, all while using just half of the water previously considered. To put it into perspective, the project’s capacity would be on par with the combined output of around 800 onshore wind turbines scattered throughout the Highland Council area.
Note.
- The generating and pumping capacity for this ambitious scheme is given as 2 GW. Only three in China and one in the United States are larger.
- The storage capacity of 34 GWh will make it the largest in the UK, possibly the second largest in Europe to Ulla-Førre in Norway and one of the ten largest in the world.
- A projected 10% reduction in the UK grid’s carbon footprint is claimed.
- The cost of three billion is high, but compare that with the tens of billions quoted for the 3.26 GW Hinckley Point C.
The Glen Earrach scheme is not short on superlatives and the article in Sustainable Times is worth a thorough read.
Fifth Hydro Project Proposed At Loch Ness, is based on a BBC article of the same name.
These were my thoughts in the related post.
The Existing Hydro Schemes On Loch Ness
According to the BBC article, there are two existing hydro schemes on Loch Ness.
- Foyers is described on this web site and is a reasonably modern 305 MW/6.3 GWh pumped storage hydroelectric power station, that was built by SSE Renewables in the last fifty years.
- Glendoe is described on this web site and is a modern 106.5 MW conventional hydroelectric power station, that was built by SSE Renewables in the last twenty years.
Foyers and Glendoe may not be the biggest hydroelectric power stations, but they’re up there in size with most solar and onshore wind farms. Perhaps we should look for sites to develop 100 MW hydroelectric power stations?
The Proposed Hydro Schemes On Loch Ness
According to the BBC article, there are four proposed hydro schemes on Loch Ness.
- Coire Glas is described on this web site and will be a 1.5GW/30 GWh pumped storage hydroelectric power station, that is being developed by SSE Renewables.
- Fearna is described on this web site and will be a 1.8GW/37 GWh pumped storage hydroelectric power station, that is being developed by Gilkes Energy.
- Loch Kemp is described on this web site and will be a 600MW/9 GWh pumped storage hydroelectric power station, that is being developed by Statera.
- Loch Na Cathrach is described on this web site and will be a 450MW/2.8 GWh pumped storage hydroelectric power station, that is being developed by Statktaft.
In addition there is, there is the recently announced Glen Earrach.
- Glen Earrach is described on this web site and will be a 2GW/34 GWh pumped storage hydroelectric power station, that is being developed by Glen Earrach Energy.
Note.
- The total power of the seven pumped storage hydroelectric power stations is 4.76 GW.
- The total storage capacity is 89.1 GWh.
- The storage capacity is enough to run all turbines flat out for nearly nineteen hours.
I estimate that if 2 GW/34 GWh of pumped storage will cost £3 billion, then 4.76 GW/89.1 GWh of pumped storage will cost around £7-8 billion.
Avacon And Rolls-Royce Are Testing The Contribution Of Battery Storage And PV Systems To Grid Stability
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Rolls-Royce.
These two bullet points act as sub-headings.
- Field tests are investigating the intelligent integration of renewable energies with home storage systems and larger mtu battery storage systems
- Objective: to contribute to the efficient energy supply of energy communities and grid support
This introductory paragraph adds more detail.
German energy supplier Avacon and Rolls-Royce together are driving forward the integration of battery storage into the power grid as part of a research project. Based on a field test, the aim is to show how energy communities, PV systems and mtu battery storage can be intelligently linked to contribute to an efficient energy supply and to stabilize the energy system. Avacon and Rolls-Royce are already collaborating on a second research project. The aim is to use battery storage to moderate generation peaks from PV systems and bring them into line with electricity consumption.
This all takes me back to the early 1970s, when my software was used by the Water Resources Board to plan future water supply in the South of England.
Given, that we don’t seem to suffer supply problems with water in the South, I feel that Dr. Dave Dimeloe and his team did a good job.
Some of the techniques, that I used fifty years ago, would allow an accurate model to be made of what Rolls-Royce call an energy community.
But my experience with water and later with the flow of money in peer-to-peer lending, lead to my thinking that energy communities will be stable.
But that is for Rolls-Royce to prove or disprove.
Earba 1.8GW Pumped Storage Hydro Project Secures Approval
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Solar Power Portal.
These three paragraphs introduce the article.
Gilkes Energy has been awarded planning consent for its Earba Pumped Storage Hydro (PSH) scheme.
The Earba PSH scheme is set to be the largest project of its kind in the UK, with an installed capacity of 1.8GW and a storage capacity of 40GWh, meaning that it can provide 22 hours of storage at full power. The planning application for the project was submitted to the Scottish government in early March 2024.
The project will be located at Loch Earba in the Scottish central Highlands. Gilkes Energy states that this location was chosen because the area has an ideal combination of geology and topography, which the firm states will make it one of the most economically viable PSH projects under development in the UK.
In Gilkes Reveals 900MW Scottish Pumped Storage Plan, I said that Loch Earba was a 900 MW/33 MWh PSH scheme, but now it appears a it is 1.8 GW/40 GWh scheme, which will probably put it in the largest twenty PSH schemes in the world.
It will be one of four PSH schemes under development in Scotland.
- Coire Glas – 1.3 GW/30 GWh
- Loch Earba – 1.8 GW/40 GWh
- Loch na Cathrach (formerly known as Red John) – 450 MW/2.8 GWh
- Loch Sloy – 160 MW/16 GWh
In addition.
- Cruachan is being extended to 1 GW/7 GWh.
- Highview Power are planning to build two 200 MW/2.5 GWh of their liquid air batteries in Scotland.
Everything totals up to 5.1 GW/100.8 GWh, which compares with a UK electricity production as I write this article of just under 29.5 GW.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see some high-energy industries moving to Scotland because of all this renewable and hopefully reliable power.
E.ON, Superdielectrics Develop Polymer-Based Battery Tech For Residential Storage Applications
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Solar Power Portal.
These two introductory paragraphs outline the deal.
Energy supplier E.ON and energy storage technology firm Superdielectrics have joined forces to promote and develop a new battery technology for stationary storage applications.
The new BESS technology takes a unique approach by using a polymer-based technology, with the main component being a membrane similar to contact lens materials. According to the two companies, these polymer batteries are both more affordable and more environmentally friendly than their lithium-ion counterparts.
I believe that this battery could be a game-changer. Especially, for those like me, who have solar panels on their roofs.
Check out the Superdielectrics web site for more details.
I First Spotted Superdielectrics In 2019
I wrote about them in Is Cambridge Going To Save The World From Global Warming? in 2019.
This was my conclusion in that post.
I have been observing technology since the 1960s.
This is either one of those scientific curiosities , like cold fusion, that appear from time-to-time and then disappear into the scientific archives or become a game-changer.
I suspect we’ll know in a couple of years.
But even if it is isn’t the solution to affordable and massive energy storage,, that will save the world, I believe that one of the teams of men and women in white coats, somewhere in the world will crack the problem.
It looks like they’ve taken longer than I thought they would.
Note though, that in the linked post, they have a link-up with Rolls-Royce.
Conclusion
This is one of the great energy breakthroughs of my life-time.
The Anonymous Widower 