sharetrader
Page 4 of 8 FirstFirst 12345678 LastLast
Results 31 to 40 of 74

Thread: Electric future

  1. #31
    Legend minimoke's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Christchurch, New Zealand.
    Posts
    6,502

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by GTM 3442 View Post
    The big thing that spins round and produces the electrons doesn't give two hoots what's making it spin. So why, long term, would you build a generation source which you have to keep shovelling money into to make that big spinning thing spin?
    Whatever you shovel needs a consistent and reliable supply. Like coal. We have a thousand years worth sitting in the ground. Or oil - still seems to oodles of the stuff. Both of which are demonstrably "cheap".

    Unlike solar which in christchurch only shines 9 hours a day in winter, or wind which is unreliable, or tidal which goes slack during peak periods. Even hydro is unreliable and dependent on rain/snowfalls - unless we get more climate change going which will create more of the wet stuff.

  2. #32
    老外
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Earth
    Posts
    999

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by minimoke View Post
    Whatever you shovel needs a consistent and reliable supply. Like coal. We have a thousand years worth sitting in the ground. Or oil - still seems to oodles of the stuff. Both of which are demonstrably "cheap".

    Unlike solar which in christchurch only shines 9 hours a day in winter, or wind which is unreliable, or tidal which goes slack during peak periods. Even hydro is unreliable and dependent on rain/snowfalls - unless we get more climate change going which will create more of the wet stuff.
    Are you seriously advocating we burn coal to produce electricity minimoke? I recommend living in New Dehli or Beijing for a couple of weeks choking, getting sick and blowing your nose seeing black snot to disabuse you of that notion. There is a reason these countries are trying so hard to turn away from coal, just like the US did in the 70s and 80s. Repeating observable mistakes would be foolish to the point of absurdity. Interestingly China and India, if they continue on the same track, are likely to take up the slack of the USA in terms of the Paris Climate Agreement.

    We can run all our electricity needs from renewable resources or renewable resources + nuclear for major economies and a tiny bit of peak load gas generation for when things turn really tough (snow storms etc), with a smart grid and a slight over production of renewable power. Whether we choose to or not is a different story. In NZs case we could do it so easily its barely even worth talking about burning coal as we are almost completely renewable now.

  3. #33
    Guru
    Join Date
    Apr 2003
    Location
    Wellington, New Zealand
    Posts
    4,876

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by blobbles View Post
    We can run all our electricity needs from renewable resources or renewable resources + nuclear for major economies and a tiny bit of peak load gas generation for when things turn really tough (snow storms etc), with a smart grid and a slight over production of renewable power. Whether we choose to or not is a different story. In NZs case we could do it so easily its barely even worth talking about burning coal as we are almost completely renewable now.
    In NZ plenty of coal is still burned for energy. Look at Fonterra and the milk processing plants in the SI. They are not going to stop doing so any time soon either.

  4. #34
    Legend minimoke's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Christchurch, New Zealand.
    Posts
    6,502

    Default

    Could be no shortage of electricity if we can work out how to harness methane hydrate (fire ice) - with current reserves estimated to be more than all known other fossil fuels combined. Something like 280 trillion cubic meters (compared with 3.5b cubic meters of natural gas) - enough to power the world for the next 800 years. I'm still seeing city size scalextric roads in the future

  5. #35
    Legend minimoke's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Christchurch, New Zealand.
    Posts
    6,502

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by blobbles View Post
    Are you seriously advocating we burn coal to produce electricity minimoke? I recommend living in New Dehli or Beijing for a couple of weeks choking, getting sick and blowing your nose seeing black snot to disabuse you of that notion.
    Now why would you go and do that. What a senseless comparison. New Delhi population 19 million, Beijing 22m population Greymouth 13,500.

    Just string a few power lines from Greymouth, or maybe the new thermal energy plant on the Alpine fault and we too can have oodles of energy without worrying about the sun or wind. Imagine it - the South Island being NZ's Texas!

  6. #36
    Missed by that much
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Posts
    898

    Default

    New Zealand's future electrity requirements are likely to be met by wind power. The problem is that wind is intermittent and we are already at the stage where wind is starting to destabilise the national grid. That means for every MW of new wind generation we need another MW of fast start hydro or gas turbine plant.

    There is another way of matching future wind generation and that is with pumped storage hydro. Every 1 MW of pumped storage will allow another 2 MW of wind. There are two sites in NZ suitable for pumped storage: Lake Onslow and the Hawea - Wanaka Neck, but no-one seems to have the appetite to build them.

  7. #37
    AWOL
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Vacation
    Posts
    2,782

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by minimoke View Post
    Could be no shortage of electricity if we can work out how to harness methane hydrate (fire ice) - with current reserves estimated to be more than all known other fossil fuels combined. Something like 280 trillion cubic meters (compared with 3.5b cubic meters of natural gas) - enough to power the world for the next 800 years. I'm still seeing city size scalextric roads in the future
    Im seeing F1 turning into slot cars.

  8. #38
    Legend minimoke's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Christchurch, New Zealand.
    Posts
    6,502

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Jantar View Post
    New Zealand's future electrity requirements are likely to be met by wind power. The problem is that wind is intermittent and we are already at the stage where wind is starting to destabilise the national grid. That means for every MW of new wind generation we need another MW of fast start hydro or gas turbine plant.

    There is another way of matching future wind generation and that is with pumped storage hydro. Every 1 MW of pumped storage will allow another 2 MW of wind. There are two sites in NZ suitable for pumped storage: Lake Onslow and the Hawea - Wanaka Neck, but no-one seems to have the appetite to build them.
    I happen to think wind turbines are a blight on the landscape. Greenies not alright with polluting the atmosphere but visual pollution is just fine. One perfectly good hill outside Palmerston North now nothing but an eyesore. Makara used to be a pleasant escape (loved escaping there for a bit of diving and fishing) - now signs of industrialization speckle the hills all over the place. Disgusting for this "clean green country of ours!

  9. #39
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2014
    Posts
    581

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by minimoke View Post
    I happen to think wind turbines are a blight on the landscape. Greenies not alright with polluting the atmosphere but visual pollution is just fine. One perfectly good hill outside Palmerston North now nothing but an eyesore. Makara used to be a pleasant escape (loved escaping there for a bit of diving and fishing) - now signs of industrialization speckle the hills all over the place. Disgusting for this "clean green country of ours!
    I couldn't disagree more!

  10. #40
    IMO
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Location
    Floating Anchor Shoals
    Posts
    9,696

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Minerbarejet View Post
    Im seeing F1 turning into slot cars.
    Don't need slots

    Formula E

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •