Netherlands may have run 6 days on discarded inexperienced energy in second quarter

Copyright © ChangeInc 2023

on the Netherlands, a lot inexperienced electrical energy is being generated by photo voltaic panels and wind generators that electrical energy costs are going adverse and wind and photo voltaic farms are being shut down. In the final three months, 1,700 gigawatt hours of inexperienced electrical energy have been misplaced consequently, as a complete the Netherlands eat in six days. This may save 350 million cubic meters of pure gasoline.

These are the month-to-month figures from Energieopwek.nl, a collaboration of the National Climate Platform with EnTranCe/Hanzehogeschool Groningen, Tennet and Gasunie.

Most of the photo voltaic power

In June, the manufacturing of renewable power grew by 9 p.c in comparison with the earlier yr. This is as a result of there have been many wind generators since then. In the land it generated 15 p.c extra power, within the sea even 35 p.c. Of all of the power consumed, 20 p.c is electrical energy. In whole, nearly two-thirds (64 p.c) of all Dutch electrical energy generated in June was inexperienced. Last yr the determine was 56 p.c. Solar panels have the biggest share of this: 38.1 p.c. That’s about the identical as final yr, however that is as a result of it was much less sunny final month than the 2023 warmth wave.

Surpluses are growing

As the capability of wind and solar energy continues to extend, there are growing surpluses of inexperienced energy. Especially on sunny and windy weekend days, when demand is low. Surpluses will solely improve within the coming years, if solely as a result of extra gigawatts of recent offshore wind farms can be added. Due to overloads and lack of energy grid capability (grid congestion) and because of low demand, this energy will not be at all times delivered to companies and different clients. Exporting overseas, which we frequently do now, has grow to be much less simple as a result of different European international locations are additionally producing extra inexperienced energy themselves.

More typically adverse electrical energy costs

At instances like that, the value of electrical energy is adverse. This yr that occurred for 286 hours. In comparability, in all of 2023, the value of electrical energy was adverse for 372 hours. Producers flip off their panels or shut down their generators as a result of they can not make a revenue from them or the grid cannot deal with the ability they supply. So so long as that inexperienced energy will not be saved in batteries or hydrogen, it’s not “harvested” and thrown away.

Six days of energy was thrown away

Energy Generation estimates that within the final three months, each time the value is adverse, 6 gigawatts of wind generators and photo voltaic panels are turned off. This implies that 1,700 gigawatt hours of inexperienced energy have been wasted in these months. In comparability, the Netherlands’ The whole electrical energy consumption is about 300 gigawatt hours per day, so the nation can run on it for about six days. With that energy, gasoline energy vegetation may also need to run much less typically and 350 million cubic meters of pure gasoline can be saved within the second quarter.