Disused Coal Mine Could Host Gravity Energy Storage Project
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Power Engineering International.
It does seem that Gravitricity has made a breakthrough, with the announcement of a full-size demonstration project in the Czech Republic.
- The project is based at the mothballed Staříč coal-mine in the Moravian Silesian region.
- They have backing from the European Investment Bank.
- This project will be delivered through the European Commission’s Project Development Assistance scheme.
- The Czech Republic seem to have carried out checks, with their own consultants.
It looks to me, that Gravitricity have passed the due diligence procedures of some high-powered agencies.
But this paragraph from the article must be important.
Gravitricity estimates there are around 14,000 mines worldwide which could be suitable for gravity energy storage.
If they can successfully store energy in one mine in the Czech Republic, how many of the 14,000 will be suitable for use?
I doubt it will be a small number, as mining engineers tend to be a conservative bunch and most of those mines will have been built to similar rules by similar machines and techniques.
A search of the Internet indicates that Staříč coal-mine has a depth of over a kilometre.
Using Omni’s Potential energy calculator, 12,000 tonnes and a kilometre give a figure of 32.69 MWh.
32 MWh may seem a small amount, but it would power one of these 4 MW Class 90 locomotives for eight hours.
At their typical operating speed of 100 mph, whilst hauling eight coaches, they’d travel a distance of eight hundred miles or from London to Edinburgh and back!
The Anonymous Widower 