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Page added on November 9, 2014
The rise of Irish Wind power
With all the talk of the German energy transition are we missing another countries change, that is Irish wind power? There are now a whole heap of websites where you can look at what’s happening on the grid in real time. Yesterday looking for something else I found one and was very surprised to see earlier on that day 70% of Ireland’s electricity was from wind power. By the time I had found it had dropped to a still very impressive 30%.
Ireland rarely gets mentioned in energy terms. I have read about big battles over offshore gas finds on the West coast and I know Ireland used to get a lot of its electricity from unsustainable peat, but the rise of Irish wind power has crept up on me. A high voltage DC interconnecter has recently opened to the UK. This means both countries can iron out excess or shortages of power. What I don’t know is whether the wind industry in Ireland has a lot of opposition as it has here.
Obviously Ireland being a small windy country will find it easier to its needs from wind than a larger country like the UK or Germany, but its still very impressive. Well done Ireland.
25 Comments on "The rise of Irish Wind power"
Dredd on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 9:38 am
As the polar vortex disintegrates, will this have an adverse impact on wind energy strategies?
At least in terms of prevailing wind directions (On the Origin of Tornadoes)?
Kenz300 on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 10:06 am
Wind, solar, wave energy, geothermal and second generation biofuels made from algae, cellulose and waste are the future.
The cost of fossil fuels and the damage to the environment from them is too high.
The cost of alternatives keeps dropping every year.
—————–
New Cost Analysis Shows Unsubsidized Renewables Increasingly Rival Fossil Fuels « Breaking Energy – Energy industry news, analysis, and commentary
http://breakingenergy.com/2014/09/25/new-cost-analysis-shows-unsubsidized-renewables-increasingly-rival-fossil-fuels/
JuanP on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 10:07 am
Uruguay is adding 600 MW of wind generating capacity right now. This will allow us to export electricity to Brazil and Argentina on a regular basis, but we will need to buy some back during drought years when our hydroelectric capacity doesn’t perform as well.
On good rain years, Uruguay can now export more electricity than we consume. We have now the capacity to generate more than twice the electricity we consume on an average year.
sunweb on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 12:31 pm
It would be elegant if wind and solar energy capturing devices could actually maintain a modicum of the wonderfully rich lifestyles many of us live. I believe this is a false dream and that BAU (business as usual) is not sustainable or “green” nor really desirable for the future of the earth or even our species.
I have researched the energy requirements and the CO2 emissions for just the rebar and concrete used for the base of a 2.5 megawatt wind energy capturing device (wind turbine). There are charts and pictures. It is sobering.
http://sunweber.blogspot.com/2014/11/prove-this-wrong.html
Feemer on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 1:41 pm
^sunweb, yes renewable technologies create CO2 to make-so does everything-but its about converting to renewables now. Would you rather fossil fuel energy be used to make wind turbines, or have it go towards constructing a new coal plant or oil well? once there is enough renewable energy, we can use it to make more. Wind is a great resource and I hope that Europe rapidly implements it.
rockman on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 1:55 pm
“I have researched the energy requirements and the CO2 emissions for just the rebar and concrete used for the base of a 2.5 megawatt wind energy capturing device (wind turbine.” But compare that to the amount of bar and concrete that’s used for a NG or coal fired plant. So what would create more CO2: the construction of a wind farm or the construction of a NG fired power plant AND burning NG for the next 30 to 40 years? I doubt it’s much of a contest.
Again I’ll use Texas as the prime example of wind power expansion in the US. Despite having as much capacity of the #2 and #3 states combined it has not replaced and fossil fuel sourced electricity. The expansion has been supplementing our growing economy.
J-Gav on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 1:56 pm
From 70% to 30%? Does anybody else see a little problem there? An inconsequential piece which doesn’t even deserve to be called an article …
rockman on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 2:02 pm
BTW Texas has installed or has under construction more than 6X as much wind capacity as Ireland.
mack on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 2:17 pm
so how did the wonderful Irish make up the difference when they produced an amazing 70% by wind power? Did they burn fossil fuel? What happened when it dropped to 30%? More fossil fuel. So rather than demonstrate how effective wind power is the article shows the problem with wind power. That wind is terribly inconsistent and doesn’t always blow and when and where we need it to blow. So if Ireland were 100% dependent on wind what would their economy look like? The other problem that always worried me about wind was can you make wind power with wind power? Does wind power produce enough surplus energy to not only power the economy but also make and maintain the wind power system. Also does wind power produce the right kind of energy? Can you make concrete with electricity? If not then Gails Liebigs Law of the Minimum bites you in the ass. Thats why wind power is really just a fossil fuel extender and sunweb is correct in that wind power will break down real fast without the fossil fuel to keep it going.
rockman on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 3:05 pm
J-Gav: Found some more details. The article is just reporting instantaneous outputs.
“On July 31, 2009, the output from the country’s turbines peaked at 999 megawatts. At that time, 39% of Ireland’s demand for electricity was met from wind. On October 24, 2009, the output exceeded 1000 megawatts for the first time with a peak of 1064 MW. Once in April 2010, 50% of electricity demand was met from wind power. However, the wind generation capacity factor for 2010 was approx. 23.5%, giving an annual average wind energy penetration of approx. 11% of total KWh consumed. A new record in the output of Ireland’s wind farms was recorded at 6pm on Wednesday evening November 2, 2011, it reached 1,412 megawatts.”
So the wind blows and doesn’t blow. Oddly enough Texas hit its instantaneous output record last March for the same reason it was so critical to have our turbines: the polar vortex knocked some ff powered plants offline but also generated record breaking winds.
Preston Sturges on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 4:02 pm
When we were in western Ireland many years ago, it was very very windy. And the higher elevations seemed very barren and jagged with no impediment to wind turbines beyond blasting in some one lane roads.
We also various peat cutting operations, including people that were still doing it by hand out behind their farmhouse, turning up the wet turf into piles to drain.
Preston Sturges on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 4:04 pm
>>>Oddly enough Texas hit its instantaneous output record last March for the same reason it was so critical to have our turbines: the polar vortex knocked some ff powered plants offline but also generated record breaking winds.
In the US the wind blows in times of record cold when the artic winds roar down from Canada. In the UK I think record cold happens when the wind fails to blow in the warm ocean air, so the situation is reversed.
JuanP on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 5:43 pm
Rock, It is the same thing in Uruguay, wind turbines are not replacing ff electricity, just adding to it. Even when we are exporting electricity because we are producing too much, we still have all the FF thermal power plants running.
J-Gav on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 5:56 pm
Rock – Thanks for the extra info. Texas may get another test this year if, as some predict, the polar vortex makes a new appearance.
In west Texas where I lived for a couple of years, they used to say : “The wind stopped blowin’ and all the damn chickens fell over.”
GregT on Sun, 9th Nov 2014 11:36 pm
There are going to be a lot of extremely despondent people, when they finally figure out that electric power generation will never come close to solving a liquid fuel crisis.
The electric age is a byproduct of the fossil fuel age. When fossil fuels leave us, electricity will not be far behind.
dashster on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 3:40 am
Wind and solar are going to have a difficult time replacing fossil fuel plants until we start using them along with means to store their output.
But saying that they haven’t replaced anything yet, doesn’t mean that they won’t replace something someday. As soon as the United States declares war on fossil fuel burning, then we can begin to use our massive military budget (which produces no energy) to create storage systems for wind farms and solar arrays.
dashster on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 4:08 am
“BTW Texas has installed or has under construction more than 6X as much wind capacity as Ireland.”
If we just go by installed capacity, since that is what Wikipedia lists, Texas is 5.6 times. But it has 9.9 times the area and 5.74 times the population. So per-capita, Ireland is kicking Texas butt. 😉
dashster on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 4:09 am
“If we just go by installed capacity, since that is what Wikipedia lists, Texas is 5.6 times.”
That should be “4.6 times”.
Davy on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 6:31 am
Dash, you do realize there is no time and no money anymore right? Renewables and shiny new infrastructure you are talking about is unrealistic in an economic collapse situation. It is not even realistic with what we have today. Your Manhattan style project ideas were from a different time of ample resources and a smaller population of individuals ready to sacrifice for the common good.
The military is not going to give up power. That power will be bleed away by collapse but it will always remain relatively significant. Militaries have always been strong throughout history and there is no reason to believe that will change. The only time I have seen the military diminish its power is times of prosperity. Prosperity is no longer in the cards.
I hope something like your ideas happen Dash but I feel they are more wishful thinking in action. We desperately need a plan B and there are none. We have precious little time and resources left. How long will we have an economy to produce the needed management, capital, and production? We are close to a time of dysfunction, irrational abandonment, and fraying social fabric. Large, expensive, and complex projects are finished IMHO.
The best we can do now is triage, adjustment, and mitigation of a descent in energy intensity and failing complexity. IOW muddle through a descent into chaos, death, destruction, and mayhem.
rockman on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 6:49 am
d – “So per-capita, Ireland is kicking Texas butt.” True…just as Texas is kicking the butts of the other states. LOL.
dashster on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 9:32 am
“The military is not going to give up power.”
We are a democratic republic, where politicians can be bought by military contractors (but not the actual DOD I believe), but we are not a military dictatorship. So the military will have to do whatever the politicians come up with, unless they wage a coup. The politicians very well may continue to see the defense budget as make-work and enjoy the fruits of defense contractor money into their pockets, but it won’t be the military that is keeping the massive budget going. It will be the politicians and the voters who blissfully let them.
Davy on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 10:09 am
I agree Dash, but if things deteriorate we may get a de factor military run government from behind the scenes or a de jure martial law situation if the bottom falls out.
I personally hope we have a civilian in charge who is ready to do what it takes to mitigate the coming crisis and a military that will downsize to help pay for the extreme demands that are ahead. We simply must downsize our global military footprint at some point when the economy falters and the energy predicament hit full speed. Both of these dangers could be right around the corner.
Kenz300 on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 10:11 am
Energy storage is a huge growing market that will improve the consistency of wind and solar power generation. Wind and solar capacity continues to grow…………
———————————
Energy Storage Will Soon Replace Simple Cycle Combustion Turbine Peaker Plants
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2014/11/energy-storage-will-soon-replace-simple-cycle-combustion-turbine-peaker-plants
Preston Sturges on Mon, 10th Nov 2014 11:06 am
Ireland was sea water and elevation for pumped storage, but the bedrock is porous limestone….
wind power on Wed, 12th Nov 2014 5:37 pm
The capacity factor for wind power in Europe in 2013 was about 22.6%