Igorsky

Energy Storage Incentives Approved by Congress

The big problem with green technologies is their inherent instability. Putting these green tech in the grid will make the system unstable. To counter this instability requires massive storage capacities, and I mean massive. Has anyone done a calculation on the magnitude required and compare it to what can be manufactured (batteries)? To make it work, we need two types of peaking power -- one from solar and wind and the second from the curent gas fired peakers. This is cost duplication.

In our power system today, we use peaking generators which are powered by natural gas or LNG. They ramp up fast and shut down as quick so it tracks demand nicely...making for a very stable electric grid. What wind and solar power will do is burden the system with additional cost for good base power and gas peakers will still be needed to back up the 'greens' inherent shortcomings. This will make our electric system much more expensive to run and users will have to pay lots more for duplicate 'green' power.

What will these storage batteries cost us in terms of overall wate generation in their manufacture? All the chemicals we use to make solar cells and battery cells add to our pollution. Anyone done an accounting of environmental impact yet? Obama is going headlong on this with out doing a comprehensive environmental study on a macro (world) scale.

Have people noticed that Obama's plan does not address the continued massive CO2 gas that coal fired plants generate 24/7? Looking at the big picture I see 'green energy' as perhaps addressing only the increase in power demand due to increasing US population and does not address at all our current consumption requirements which we must reduce to slow global warming.

Without addressing the need to replace coal fired units with nuclear power, we are not going to slow the exponentially rising CO2 green house gases we generate.

One thing more. Right now we are locating wind mills in windy locations. With global Warming - more correctly, Climate Change - the weather patterns has been drastically changing. The windy locations we now pick may not be as good 10 years from now.