Why wind, solar power will never be enough

Australia will never have a wind and solar-based grid power supply, a letter writer says.

WITH reference to the letter by John Millar (TB, 26/09), I do not let preconceived beliefs get in the way of facts when it comes to the unreliability and unpredictability of wind and solar grid power generation.

The facts will speak for themselves.

In his letter I notice the judicious use of the term “net exporter”, which indicates the knowledge that wind and solar can export energy some of the time but not all the time, which is exactly correct.

Net is what is left after profit and loss.

When a government introduces renewable energy targets it introduces laws that make it mandatory for the energy produced by any subsidised renewable project to be purchased and sent to the grid.

It does not matter when the energy is produced or even if the energy is required at that time.

Coal-generating plants do not receive this generous concession and must burn coal and be ready to provide power to the grid when needed. That is when the renewables are not working.

South Australia has the highest per capita installation of subsidised rooftop solar panels in this country.

During the daylight hours and with wind blowing, SA can become a net exporter of energy to the grid whether it is needed or not.

Instead of looking at this theory we should introduce a practical scenario.

If the National Electricity Market (NEM) has decided that between 6pm and midnight next Friday it will require an additional 400MW to cater for a planned event, can it get a guarantee from SA to supply this energy?

The answer is no.

Can it get a guarantee from the coal-fired energy suppliers in Queensland?

Picture: EMILY BRADFIELD

The answer is yes. Because this energy produced is both reliable and predictable 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year.

There is no country in the world that has managed to build a wind and solar-based grid power supply for its citizens and there never will be.

What he has got right in his letter is that if the ageing coal-powered generators in Queensland suffer a catastrophic failure, the entire east coast power system will be in trouble.