Aussie SMH to develop on the Snowy River Green energy pump hydroelectric scheme – Thriving on it?
h/t The flood of Gerard; You know your green energy plan is in trouble, as even climate action cheerleaders at the Sydney Morning Herald are throwing your energy storage project in the trash like an “Elephant”. White”.
Five years on, Snowy 2.0 emerges as a $10 billion white elephant
Via Ted Woodley
March 15, 2022 – 5 amFive years ago, on Tuesday, then-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull announced, with great fanfare about the Snowy 2.0 pumped hydroelectric project: “The Turnbull government will begin work on an instrument of change. power game… This plan will increase Snowy Hydro’s power generation by 50%, adding 2000 megawatts of renewable energy to the National Electricity Market (NEM). ”
Articles of Senate Estimates confirming the announcement were brought together in less than two weeks after the concept was popularized by Snowy Hydro.
The national construction vision is to add a large battery to the Snowy Mountains Hydroelectric Project. It will be completed in 4 years (ie last year) at a cost of $2 billion without any taxpayer subsidies, lower electricity prices, renewable energy generation and impact minimal environment for Kosciuszko National Park.
Inspirational tool. But not one of these great claims has come true. Worse, Australian taxpayers and NSW electricity consumers will end up paying billions of dollars in subsidies and increasing electricity costs, all while Kosciuszko has become trash. Let’s have a quick recap.
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… The transmission tax in NSW will increase more 50 percent if the NSW government allows Snowy Hydro to operate, based on analysis in the Victorian Energy Policy Center report.
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No reduction in electricity prices, Snowy Hydro’s own model predict that price will increase because of Snowy 2.0.
As stated that Snowy 2.0 will add 2000 megawatts of renewable energy to the National Electricity Market, Snowy 2.0 is not a conventional hydroelectric station generating renewable energy. It is no different from any other battery, and as such, it will be the net load on the NEM. For every 100 units of electricity purchased from NEM to pump water uphill, only 75 are returned as the water flows back down through the turbine generators. Not only is the generated electricity non-renewable, Snowy 2.0 will be the least efficient battery on the NEM, losing 25% of its power cyclically.
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There are alternative energy storage solutions that are cheaper, more efficient and less destructive to the environment.
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As the Sydney Morning Herald, they couldn’t help themselves, they had to spoil what is otherwise an excellent review of the Snowy River boondoggle, by falsely stating “There are alternative energy storage solutions that are cheaper, more efficient and less destructive to the environment.“
The sad truth is that no efficient, inexpensive energy storage solution can be scaled up to the level needed to stabilize the grid using 100% renewable energy, even in a windy location. and sunlight like Australia. Alternatives to hydroelectric energy storage are pumped or leak stored energy like a sieve, or suffer from serious errors or save power costs, or in most cases case is both.
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