ESRI reports finds power generating problems
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A report from the Economic and Social Research Institute has found that a new power generating capacity will be needed in two years time to cope with the increasing demand for electricity.
The ESRI report on electricity shortages highlights a high growth in electricity demand and says the country is becoming increasingly dependant on old and unreliable power stations to guarantee supplies.
The report highlights shortcomings in the country’s ability to keep the enough power in the electricity supply grid.
The ESRI says last month, 18% of the state’s generation capacity was unavailable because of unplanned outages, including at Poolbeg, Great Island and Tarbert.
The ESRI says these three plants are essential to the system’s reliability, but are old and unreliable.
When the three plants are operating fully, the probability of a power cut is half of 1%.
But when they are out of service, the demands on the rest of the system mean that probability increases to 47%.
On the front line for future power cuts lasting up to several hours at a time are small businesses & households and traffic signals.
The ESRI warns of the need to reduce demand and says that new generation capacity is needed and this should be done by removing the government cap on new generation from the ESB.
That cap was imposed to stimulate competition from new players in the market but thus far has had little impact.
Solution
Approval expected for wind farms
London Array’s scheme would cost £1.5bn
Plans for two major offshore wind farms in the Thames Estuary are expected to be agreed by the government on Monday.
One of the schemes would be the world’s biggest with 341 turbines in 144 sq miles (232 sq km) between Margate in Kent and Clacton, Essex.The other project would be seven miles (11km) off North Foreland, Kent, across an area of 21 sq miles (35 sq km).
The consortium behind the larger scheme is appealing against a Kent council’s refusal for an onshore substation.
Swale Borough Council refused planning consent in June, citing environmental impact as the reason.
The consortium, London Array Limited, said it had changed its plans following concerns over the impact of the substation at Graveney.
It also said it had addressed residents’ concerns over the impact of construction traffic.
Economic opportunities
The Department of Trade and Industry said the £1.5bn London Array project could generate enough renewable electricity to power a third of London’s three million households when fully operational.
It would be situated 12 miles (20km) off the Kent and Essex coasts and contain five offshore substations and four meteorological masts.
The first turbines could be erected by 2008 with the scheme completed by 2011.
The smaller project, called the Thanet scheme, would cost £450m and contain 100 turbines. The developer, Warwick Energy, expects the project to provide enough renewable electricity for 240,000 homes.
The department added both projects would make a “significant contribution to the government’s aim of a five-fold increase in the UKs renewable energy resource by 2020.”
It also said the schemes would bring economic opportunities to businesses and local communities.
The government announcement is expected to be made on Monday morning.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/6188133.stm
The government need to look at tailoring the fiscal backdrop to ensure that carbon emmissions are targetted downward.
Anyone else see those ads on TV saying “save electricity by not turning on everything when you come in the door at 5pm”.
A thinly veiled attempt to say “PLEASE do it or our power supply will be brought to its knees”
If enough people turned everything on often enough there would not be enough capacity given the amount of appliances we all have these days.
I think that there is very clear choice to be made in Ireland at this time do we rely on imported fossil or nuclear fuels that we have no control over the supply of or we invest large sums in renewables like in the above examples. The smaller of the 2 examples would even on much reduced North Sea winds provide for all domestic use in Co Cork whilst the larger example would provide for every household in the GDA.
Given the massive carbon tax exposure this country faces at EU level and that there are no domestic utilities to invest in for the National Pensions Reserve Fund this type of scheme would fit very nicely in a number of boxes. This would also give the electricity market suffcient time to reform to concentrate on industrial, commercial and agricultural uses.
What can’t continue are the number of small scale wind farm developments in upland areas that both degrade habitats and give a veneer that something is actually happening in renewable energy; which other than the Arklow Banks scheme is very small and makes a mockery of the climatic advantage this country possesses.
i think its about time the goverment took it into control and built a few incenerators(using powers they have to build prisons) because lets face it energy demand isnt our only problem!the visual impact and pollution generated can hardly be worse than landfilling vast swathes of land or any worse than giant wind farms up and down the country!personally its the perfect solution and wouldnt mind if they built one right beside my estate,we’re surronded by so many factories you wouldnt notice anyway!
There are two essential differences between incineration and off shore wind power
Firstly off shore wind farms are far enough away from anyone that the really valid only concern is the potential to disrupt avian life and seasonal bird migratory patterns. If sited in the correct location these effects can be minimised.
Secondly to suggest that incineration is a progressive process is plain wrong; yes it produces an amount of energy but this does not compare to the carbon footprint of all the materials incinerated that have to be transported long distances to replace what could have been reused or recylced.
The established solution to waste are a combination of the the three R’s; recylcing which needs more work, reuse which since the South Wharf debacle has taken a serious blow with no glass bottle producer left in the state and reduction which will take longer as most of the current generation will not reduce consumption of most things unless the price becomes punative.
Off shore wind farms are an ideal solution for the following reasons.
1. No-one lives close to them so they have limited local effects
2. They have a life cycle of 30-50 years and require limited maintenance as against gas or oil fired stations
3. They reduce imports beyond capital phase
4. Environmental there are no emmisions so reduce localised pollution
5. Carbon taxes they produce limited carbon thereby reducing exposure
6. Global warming reduced
7. Investment premium value given scarcity of utility investment opportunitiesIDA, ESB warn on potential electricity cuts
December 28, 2006 14:46
The IDA and the ESB are warning that more power cuts are on the way unless we get more sources of electricity.They say that Minister Noel Dempseey’s plans to upgrade the electicity network are too slow and that very soon we’ll struggle to cope.
They say that Minister Noel Dempseey’s plans to upgrade the electicity network are too slow and that very soon we’ll struggle to cope
IDA says the Government must accelerate the construction of electricity interconnectors to the UK to stave off major power shortages.
New electricity links to the UK are due to be completed by 2012.
However, the IDA says this plan needs to be fast-tracked as a top priority and put in place in advance of 2010.
The ESB has said Ireland is facing significant electricity shortages as early as next winter unless extra power stations are built immediately.
We should be exporting electricity
Nuclear.
It’s that simple.
all the more reason for Ireland to start developing a Nuclear Power generation programme now. You are correct PVC King, starting now 10 years is what it takes to get the atoms heating water, but waiting any longer is potential future economic sucide.
The days of Ireland’s energy policy being determined by some 60’s throwback Hollywood (China Syndrome/Monety Burns) mentality would be akin to Hogwarts being used as the model for future Irish Educational development. Yet this is what’s happening, along with some other weird anti-British agenda among Fianna Fail/Sinn Fein that “deh Brits have the nukes, not for us pure Gaels boyo!”.
The days of somebody getting a cough in Dundalk and blaming it on Selafield followed by some cheap electioneering pseudo-patriotic press release by Dermot Ahern or Dick Roache has to end.
We have no choice, it’s Nuclear Electricty or bye bye Irish economy. Wind Turbines are a pathetic joke when you look at what it costs taxpayer to destroy the countryside with them, compared to the actual “free” electricity they are alleged to produce, Wind Power is just a “feel good” scam. Biofuel on he other hand will be excellent for future road transport needs, but only nuclear power delivers the mega watt generational capabilities for a 21st century Ireland.
I often wonder (HOPE!) if there is a secret nuclear power commitee in the government looking into all this stuff and they are keeping it all on the QT till the election is over. I sincearly hope there is.
God help us if the Goverment really believe the pathetic Energy Paper they released a while back. Because Ireland is screwed if their “bit of an oul wind turbine here, and a dash of solar there and shure lads we’ll be grand so!” is all they have to offer this nation going forward. Coupled with the old reliable of the USA causing mayhem in Middle East will make up the difference…
Not only is Ireland’s current energy policy stupid, to the point of retardation, but on many levels it is immoral as well and reveals uncomfortable truths about what sort of nation we are. We are perfectly happy playing the moral high card when it comes to Nuclear power, but at the same time turn a blind eye to the human misery which the Anglo-American oil dogma inflicts on others around the world as we drive to work and heat our homes. In between all this, we put up the old wind turbine or solar panel to make us feel progessive and enviormentally minded.
A few weeks without the oil being delivered to the North Wall and people will be burning their Christy Moore and Moving Heart’s LPs as well as Duncan Stewarts “About the House” DVDs trying to stay warm and produce light. Talk about the “paradigm shift” we’ll be experiencing then.
But in all seriousness, Ireland really is living on the knife edge in terms of energy. It’s quiet frightening when you actually look at how vunerable we are. The only way out is Nuclear. It’s cheap, green and safe and it’s the only realistic option left.
Sorry for the rant but having been in communication with some foreign engineers and proper enviornmentalist (not the superficial D4 tree-huggers we have) in the last few weeks about this stuff, we really need to wake up in this country and stop coddding ourselves.
I am not so sure any source of power that will take minimum ten years to provide any power is any real solution. Whilst Wind Power on a large scale (see here) starts providing power in two to three years. Critically it is 100% domestically produced post completion unlike uranium which is again imported and like oil could become very expensive in future years.
@Cute Panda wrote:
Nuclear.
It’s that simple.
🙂 I fully agree with you as long as we get the Dutch or a contractor from some such demoracy to build and manage the facility.
:rolleyes: If the Irish mafia (Government) insist that their cronies could build and manage a nuclear power plant safely i would like to see it in operation for at least 10 years close to Dail Eireann before i would feel safe having such a plant in my backyardfrom Examiner 29/12/06
“ESB gets green light for €300m power stationBy Harry McGee, Political Editor
THE Government will give the ESB the green light “within days†to build a €300 million power station in County Cork, yet it believes it may not be enough to prevent power outages over the next few winters.Communications Minister Noel Dempsey is expected formally to announce the go-ahead for a second gas power plant at Aghada in Cork Harbour, near an existing power station which has operated since 1990.
The decision means the ESB and Bord Gáis — which will build a plant in Whitegate, Co Cork — will both have new 400MW power plants in operation by 2009. The new facilities are expected to help prevent blackouts and major power outages between 2009 and 2012, when an electricity interconnector with Britain is due to be completed. “
The below photo might give you some idea of areas where the 2 sites will go. ESB by existing station and Bord Gais by the Refinery
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