Getting connected: Europe's green energy 'supergrid'

It is a criticism frequently leveled at those promoting wind or solar power as an alternative to fossil fuels: what happens when the wind doesn’t blow or the sun doesn’t shine?

Well, now there is a smart answer, at least in Europe — we’ll simply and instantly switch to another source of clean, green power.
Plans for a massive electricity grid dedicated to uniting the varied sources of renewable energy available in northern Europe have taken a step forward in January as nine countries formally agreed to work together on the project.

Using thousands of miles of high-tech undersea cables the ’supergrid’ will unite wind farms on blustery British coasts with Dutch and Belgian tidal power, the vast hydroelectric potential of Norway fjords and Germany’s massive solar arrays.

The gird should mean that when one source falls short, another takes up the slack to ensure continuity of supply.

The countries signed up — Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and the UK — hope to have the grid working within the next decade. It is seen as an essential step towards the European Union’s pledge to source 20 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2020.

CNN