"green energy" feasibility and investment opportunities

The circumstances being that there was plenty of fossil fuels to backstop the blackouts that would occur when green sources were relied upon?

Exactly what purpose is it fit for?

Then they should be awarding Putin the “green” equivalent of the Nobel Prize. I’m not sure if they’re psychotic or bluffing.

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This was a good blog on how things are going in the EU and how their disfunctional green politics means they are in for a world of hurt on energy prices.

Specifically, to address high prices, you want more energy supply and less energy demand. You don’t get more supply tho, esp not green supply, since the politicians are taking the profits of the more efficient energy producers as “windfall profits” and using the money as subsidies for customers and impacted industries to help lower their prices paid. Which of course means the full price impact isn’t felt, so demand doesn’t go down as much as it should…

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I wonder if Germany is going to rely on their wind and solar power or from their nuclear reactors?

https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/02/energy/nord-stream-1-pipeline-turned-off/index.html

Since June, Gazprom has slashed flows through Nord Stream 1 to just 20% of its capacity, citing maintenance issues and a dispute over a missing turbine caught up in Western export sanctions.

It has also cut off supplies to several “unfriendly” European countries and energy companiesover their refusal to pay for gas in rubles, as the Kremlin insists, rather than the euros or dollars stated in contracts. European leaders have described the demands as blackmail.

Earlier this week, Gazprom said it would suspend all shipments to France’s Engie (EGIEY) from Thursday, claiming that it had not received full payment from the company for the gas it supplied in July.

Energy prices were the single biggest driver of inflation, rising 38% in the year to August.

But German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said earlier this week that his country was “much better prepared” to secure enough gas for the winter than could have been imagined a few months ago.

“We can deal quite well with the threats that are coming our way from Russia,” he said.

Oookay …

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A good debate between Steven Koonin and Andrew Dessler on “Green energy“

Edit. Dessler keeps saying that wind and solar are cheaper than fossil fuels. If that were true, then they would be adopted without any need for subsidies or government mandates.

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He is absolutely right. Well, after the government builds the wind turbines, towers and buys the land upon which to place them. Oh, and after the government buys the solar panels and land to place them upon. Oh, and after the tax credits for anything “green.”

So yes, it’s pretty obvious to anyone with a particular kind of a brain that wind and solar are significantly cheaper than oil/gas.

Next up: “The plain facts that prove one solar panel and one wind turbine produce more power than a whole field of oil pumpers.”

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Has The climate cult lost the WaPo?

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/california-scrambles-to-avoid-blackouts-as-it-pursues-a-green-energy-future/ar-AA11zv38

California’s risk of widespread blackouts this week is forcing millions of residents to keep the grid afloat by jacking up thermostats and shutting off appliances, but they are not the only ones feeling the heat. The lawmakers and regulators behind the state’s emphatic embrace of green energy are feeling it too.

If you had any doubt that this is a cult see this from later in the article.

“We understand we cannot have the lights go off,” said Siva Gunda, vice chair of the California Energy Commission. “But the fear of these questions being brought up is not a reason to slow down from what we know is morally and societally what we need to do.”

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California, known for leading the nation off of the cliff, partially solves the “don’t charge your car now” conundrum, without invoking the “back to the future” horse and buggy rule.

In all seriousness, the amount of time the kids spend playing video games, they could nearly power a house if expected to pedal while playing.

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Good thing we have 12 years until “the ban” to adjust the grid.

Partial bans kick in a lot sooner. Also, since there is no current solution to the backup problem, these bans will cause major problems.

The complete ban — no new gas-only vehicles at dealerships — takes effect in calendar-year 2035. But it is phased in over a 10-year period starting in 2026.

EV sales now account for about 16% of new vehicle sales in California. The new rule requires that at least 35% of new passenger cars and light trucks sold at dealerships in the state in 2026 be electric.

The percentage grows annually: 43% in 2027, 51% in 2028, 59% in 2029, 68% in 2030, 76% in 2031, 82% in 2032, 88% in 2033, 94% in 2034, and 100% in 2035.

This is a great start for the new Prime Minister

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About that CA power situation,

  • California Power Grid Operator Issues Level 1 Emergency, again
  • A Flex alert will be in effect today. Conserve power from 4 - 9 p.m. to help prevent outages.
  • Grid status: THE CALIFORNIA INDEPENDENT SYSTEM OPERATOR HAS ISSUED AN ENERGY EMERGENCY ALERT 1 (EEA 1) FROM 4:00 PM ON SEPTEMBER 9, 2022 TO 8:00 PM ON SEPTEMBER 9, 2022.

http://www.caiso.com/informed/Pages/Notifications/NoticeLog.aspx

you can see PG&E with the same alert / warning nearly every day since Sept 3rd.

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These quotes are misleading (article’s fault, not yours), because they read like 100% of all sales in 2035 must be pure-electric. The law allows for 20% to be plugin-hybrids, as the article mentions.

I don’t disagree that this will put an additional strain on the grid, but we have to remember this only applies to new cars. Also if it doesn’t work out, these deadlines could always be postponed.

This will also create a bigger market for < 1-year-old cars from other, no-ban states, as the article mentions.

Is there any mechanism in the “law” (not sure if it’s an actual law or not) that prevents strawman sales of new cars to an intermediary so that once they reach California car lots they’re technically “used”? Coining the phrase “California new” to describe one-owner never-driven used cars for sale?

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The article mentions that cars can be purchased from other states and registered in CA, but must have at least 7500 miles if they don’t meet the CA requirements.

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The new UK Prime Minister is getting off to a promising start. The euro weenies are starting to see the light.

The U.K. originally banned fracking in 2019 but could restart domestic production as early as March 2023.

The energy crisis has pushed the U.K. and several of its European neighbors to reconsider their shutdown of nuclear power. Germany made loopholes in its plan to shut down its last plants last week, allowing for two to be re-opened if necessary.

Belgium, meanwhile, was planning to close two reactors by 2025 but will now keep them open through 2036. France is looking to build an additional 14 reactors over the next several decades.

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On Monday, about 47% of California’s electricity was generated by natural gas while 19% was produced by imports. Just 21% of electricity generated was produced by renewables, including solar and wind power.
On Tuesday, more than half of the state’s electricity was provided by natural gas. Imports and renewables each generated another 18-19% of the power produced.

Edit. The numbers are perhaps misleading since the big problem is in the evening, from 4 to 8 PM, when solar is dropping but there’s still a large demand for air conditioning.

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It seems that the “green” part is only in the minds of people who need to “feel” like they’re doing something important.