Re: replacement for severn tunnel?

On Thu, 08 Mar 2007 20:56:23 GMT someone who may be John Youles
<jyoules@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote this:-

But unlike other forms of generation, you cannot plan down time to coincide with
troughs in demand. You need the equivalent fossil and / or nuclear capacity
running at all times in case power production falls.

All forms of electricity generation need backup, in case production
suddenly fails. The electricity system is designed to cope with the
sudden failure of "conventional" equipment. Large power stations
mean large failures are possible, a recent example being the sudden
failure of the second largest coal fired plant in the UK
http://www.dunfermlinepress.com/news/story.php?story_id=300

Wind is easier to deal with in this respect. The wind does not start
or stop suddenly, but rather changes relatively slowly. The sudden
failure of a wind turbine does not cause a large hole in generation.

The idea of 100% backup dedicated to wind farms is a myth peddled by
the nuclear and anti-wind lobbies (two overlapping groups).

Just before Christmas we had several days of cold, foggy, still weather, when
wind was producing no electricity at all.

Over the past few decades there has not been an hour when wind
conditions were too high or too low everywhere in the UK for there
to be no output from onshore wind. Wind output does go up and down,
but this can be predicted accurately enough days ahead of real time
for this to be dealt with by other means including warming thermal
plant that is normally idle.


--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54
.

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