Spain wind power reaches 60.5% demand, prices fall

[jpak]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/16/markets-iberia-power-idUSL6E8FG8NH20120416

MADRID, April 16 (Reuters) - Spain's wind parks provided a record 60.46 percent of demand for electricity early on Monday, national grid manager REE said, after a windy weekend that reduced wholesale power prices to their lowest levels in more than two years.

The new record percentage set at 3:48 a.m. local time (0148 GMT) compared with a previous maximum of 59.63 percent at 2 a.m. on Nov. 11.

The Iberian Electricity Market's (Mibel) spot exchange OMIE set the benchmark "pool" price in Spain for Sunday at 10.99 euros ($14.38) per megawatt-hour, its lowest since fixing a level of 6.32 euros for Jan. 1, 2010.

Wind power sways the spot market, because producers can sell it at a considerable discount to electricity generated by burning coal and gas.

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[freshwest]

1. Alternate energy generation doesn't work...

[Fledermaus]

2. Pumped -Storage helps firm the variability!

The 635-MW La Muela pumped-storage plant in Spain is being expanded with the addition of a second powerhouse, 852-MW La Muela 2. Iberdrola anticipates that this plant will begin operating in 2012 to help firm the variability of the utility’s extensive wind capacity.

http://www.hydroworld.com/index/display/article-display.articles.hydro-review-worldwide.volume-17.Issue_3.Articles.Wind-Hydro_Integration__Pumped_Storage_to_Support_Wind.html

[FogerRox]

5. Excellent news, pumped hydro grew 40% in 2011 according to the IEA

635 Mw is about the size of Oyster Creek nuke in NJ. So thats commercial scale.

[Nihil]

8. Rec'd for this vital update.

> The 635-MW La Muela pumped-storage plant in Spain is being expanded
> with the addition of a second powerhouse, 852-MW La Muela 2. Iberdrola
> anticipates that this plant will begin operating in 2012 to help firm the
> variability of the utility’s extensive wind capacity.

And THAT is the way to do it!

Add wind and storage and you can do without a huge amount of fossil fuels.

[madokie]

9. We also have pumped hydro storage

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salina_Pumped_Storage_Project

I chased after the largemouth bass there for 5 years running back in the '90s and caught my share of big'ens.
GRDA, owners of this lake use to say they were going to build another one up from this one but its been a few years since I last heard that they were so I'm inclined to believe they have reconsidered for some reason.

[NYC_SKP]

3. $14.38 per megawatt-hour is VERY SCARY!

If you're an Enron or any of the other energy industry vampire-types.

K and R.

[Nederland]

4. For less than a DAY

REE estimated wind power would decline to about 7,500 MW on Tuesday from 12,113 on Monday afternoon, or enough to meet a robust 30.5 percent of demand.

What do you do the rest of the time?

[eqfan592]

6. Not really a valid argument against wind power...

...unless somebody is arguing that we should ONLY have wind power.

And as others have pointed out, pumped storage facilities are aiding in increasing the amount of demand wind alone can meet.

[Kolesar]

10. Seista!

kick

[eqfan592]

7. Woot, a jpak post I can rec! :D (nt)